John Davis in Bloomington, MN

When a hard-livin'
rock & roll
frontman --
John Davis
, formerly of
Superdrag
-- decides to clean up his act and follow God, it's up to his audience to decide whether or not to continue following him. It's a risky move, especially when that redemption -- not in the hellfire and brimstone
Johnny Cash
kind of way -- is the central subject of each and every one of his songs. Like many,
Davis
grew his wings after a long battle with alcohol, but unlike many who return to the music world after a religious epiphany, his compositional skills haven't been compromised. In fact, the longtime
Brian Wilson
follower has unleashed his most
Pet Sounds
-inspired batch of songs to date. The impossibly lush opener (
"I Hear Your Voice"
), using
"God Only Knows"
as its template, sets the tone for what sounds more like an exorcism than a Hallelujah.
get his
Byrds
fix out of the way on the jangly
"Me & My Girl,"
channels
Creedence Clearwater Revival
on the
gospel
-
blues
rave-up
"Have Mercy,"
and revisits early
territory with the
Replacements-esque
"Too Far Out."
Lyrically,
pretty much sticks to the central theme of belief, a subject that he works wonders with spiritually but not creatively, leaving the listener free to marvel at the wonderful world of sound he's created. ~ James Christopher Monger