Under the leadership of singer/songwriter Sam Jayne, Love as Laughter have gone through a few incarnations in the decade-plus they've been treading the boards. From garagey rockers in the early days to politically charged balladeers, Jayne and his crew have always sounded fierce and committed. On their 2008 album the intensity comes and goes. Certainly on a track like the speaker-singeing Paul Revere there is a surplus of the stuff, as Jayne snarls and screams and the guitars rage like a cross between early Dream Syndicate and Nirvana. At other times, though, an almost eerie calm creeps into the band's sound. Songs like the relaxed Crosseyed Beautiful Youngunz and Konny and Jim sound jammy, coming off like a backwoods and suspender-clad Jack Johnson, while some songs, like the funky All Parts of Me, sound like detours the band should have avoided. The Mellencamp-lite ballad Cleaning Man is an embarrassing marriage of bar band musical backing and clichéd lyrics. Love as Laughter have been many things in their career, but slick, well-kempt, and utterly predictable have never factored into the equation until now. You hate to blame the shift to a major label, but the record is so radio-ready and glossy that you have to wonder. Jayne and company do manage to pull off a few tracks that capture the old fire and brimstone of classic LAL with Paul Revere, and the shuddering Westerberg-ian Bonnie and Clyde. ~ Tim Sendra, Rovi

1		Holy
2		Crosseyed Beautiful Youngunz
3		Paul Revere
4		Baby Shambles
5		Konny and Jim
6		All Parts of Me
7		Cleaning Man
8		Don't Worry
9		Peace
10		Coconut Flakes
11		Bonnie and Clyde
12		Icarus

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