All About Chemistry in Bloomington, MN

Since the mid-'90s,
Semisonic
has been inspiring the overuse of words like "literate," "smart," and "well-written" by reviewers everywhere.
All About Chemistry
doesn't do anything to change that: It is a suite of 12...well, smart and immaculately crafted songs, all seemingly destined for the charts, yet also possessing enough lyrical muscle to elevate them above the level of guilty pleasure.
Chemistry
injects a heavy dose of piano into
's former copybook
college rock
sound, moving the group a few steps closer to the
adult pop
bracket.
"Sunshine and Chocolate"
is full of a sensual shimmer, borne along on a tune that is peppy in the best possible way.
"Act Naturally"
blends sweetness, prettiness, and heartbreak in perfect proportions.
"I Wish"
dissolves its thwarted desires in a slow-burning,
"Layla"
-esque coda. And
"One True Love,"
written with
Carole King
(who also sings backup and plays piano on the track), is both slightly desolate and wholly lovely -- a dream of a perfect love-to-be that also perhaps contains hints of regret for the seemingly inevitable moment when a dream is all it will turn out to be. Frontman and lyricist
Dan Wilson
creates interestingly human characters, people frayed by love and tossed about by contradictory impulses, not knowing what they want and wanting it all the same. Drummer
Jacob Slichter
proves he's no pushover in the writing department with
"El Matador,"
a wispy and impressionistic tune that gently references
Joni Mitchell
while waving goodbye to the summer: "Lying on the couch defenseless/With blue clouds court and spark." Only one song feels like a dud --
"Get a Grip,"
a charmless but ingratiating paean to self-love that feels...er, tossed off. That apart,
is almost perfectly balanced -- sweet but not sugared, clever but not wiseass, crafted but not cold. [
MCA
issued a twelve track import edition in 2001 as well.] ~ Leslie Mathew