Telekinesis' debut album announces its utility right away, filling your mind with ideas of how to put its songs in their most ideal contexts: car rides on sunny afternoons, summer-themed mix cds, cookouts, bumper music for teen dramas. It's like buying a new pair of sneakers and getting the urge to go for a run, even if you're not normally inclined to do such a thing-- the music creates a demand for its own use, and you start anticipating your first opportunity to hear it under perfect conditions.
There is nothing original or novel about Telekinesis' music, but somewhat counterintuitively, its by-the-books professionalism is what makes it so effective. Every song on the record feels instantly familiar, with easygoing power-pop hooks casually triggering positive responses. The 31-minute album feels like a sustained moment of déjà vu, with music that echoes feelings and sounds by the Shins, Fountains of Wayne, Sloan, Death Cab For Cutie, Superchunk, Matthew Sweet, and Teenage Fanclub without directly lifting from anyone in particular. Well, that is, with the exception of a guitar part on the mid-album highlight "Imaginary Friend" that clearly recalls Joey Santiago's shimmery lead on the Pixies classic "Here Comes Your Man", but that is hardly a complaint.
As much as its songs can fit comfortably in the background, several tracks on Telekinesis! reward closer attention. "Tokyo", a perky rocker about having dreams so vivid they feel like actual memories, stands out as a prime example of songwriter Michael Benjamin Lerner's gift for conveying a feeling of relaxed urgency. "Look to the East" and "All of a Sudden" have a similar kind of carefree velocity, careening headlong in the direction of nowhere in particular. When he's not trading on momentum, Lerner is successful in writing cutesy nostalgic tunes like "Awkward Kisser", but stumbles slightly when he attempts acoustic balladry in the vein of Elliott Smith, as on the anticlimactic finale "I Saw Lightning" and the limp album-opener "Rust", neither of which flatter his strengths as a writer, and only serve to highlight his thin, nondescript singing voice. The softer bits are more powerful when they lead up to a power-chord catharsis, particularly in "Coast of Carolina", which seamlessly shifts from a lo-fi intro to a crisp radio-ready chorus.
Even though their music is charming and enjoyable, Telekinesis! is ultimately a generic album, though that's not a slam. Think of it this way: If power-pop groups were pizza joints, bands like Weezer, Big Star, and the New Pornographers would be the world-famous, critically beloved restaurants with impeccable craft and unmistakable style, sorta like Frank Pepe's in New Haven, or Di Fara in the outer reaches of Brooklyn. Telekinesis, like many other good-but-not-great indie bands, are more like unpretentious neighborhood parlors that provide predictable but perfectly tasty slices with a minimum of fuss. They're certainly much, much better than what's on offer from the big corporate chains, and are often capable of delivering a product that is just as satisfying as their more upscale competitors.
