Before we get down to the nitty-gritty: Yes, it is a bit disconcerting how much Fiction Plane frontman Joe Sumner sounds like his dad (His dad is Sting by the way).
However, put the genes aside and Fiction Plane’s debut, Everything Will Never Be OK, is a surprisingly well-crafted piece of AmeriBritpop.

Everything, instrumentally and lyrically, is full of highs and lows, from the hyperactive guitar bounce of “Listen to My Babe” to the quiet pondering of “Do I feel love?” on “Sickness.” There are quite a few songs with hit potential, including the title track, the emotive “Silence,” and the band’s dedication to cynicism, “Hate,” featuring the chorus, “We’re cool, we’re different, and we hate things… we hate people.” Sumner makes a few smart-ass threats on the character-sketch track, including “Take a stand and we will cut you down, be yourself and we’ll call you a liar.”

This same kind of quasi-mean-spirited lyricism is also present on “Cigarette,” wherein Sumner tells a female smoker, “Taste yourself you smell like death, to love you I must drink my meth.” There’s a bit of obvious autobiography in “Cigarette” also, as Sumner tells the girl “Touch me cause my daddy’s rich.”

The mellower, less-charged songs on Everything don’t always work quite as well, such as the singer/songwriter-y “Fallow,” which contradicts the argument of the title track with “There will be better days,” and the contemplative “Real Real.” The latter track “Sickness,” however, makes up for the weaker spots as it wavers between quiet introspection and emotional tumult.

VERDICT: There’s a certain skepticism that comes with the progeny of rock royalty venturing out into a studio of their own. However, there’s a lot of talent going around in Fiction Plane, and the band’s mastery of songwriting proves that Sting’s son can hold his own.
 
 

• Preview the album with the Fiction Plane player
• Visit the Official website.
• Listen to samples and Purchase this CD online

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