Two Lights in Bloomington, MN

Five for Fighting
's
John Ondrasik
is a straight, clean, post-9/11 version of
"Daniel"
-era
Elton John
. He's got exquisite pipes, a knack for the big key changes, and a true star's sense of emotional entitlement that masks itself as introspection. If 2004's
Battle for Everything
saw a more assured and concise
reacting to its surprise success of 2001's
"Superman"
single, then 2006's
Two Lights
represents
Ondrasik
's complete transformation from somber
troubadour
into
adult alternative
mother-ship. With the now branded
, there is no hint of danger, no chance for controversy, and no way that at least half the record won't end up supplying brow-creasing melodramatic film moments and high school year-end slide shows with forced poignancy for years to come. It only takes a few minutes into the elegiac opening cut
"Freedom Never Cries"
to revisit the 9-11 angst/patriotism that won
the majority of his initial public favor ("I only talk to God when somebody's about to die/I never cherished freedom/freedom never cries), a song he deftly follows with the super earnest and wistfully upbeat
"World,"
and later
"Riddle."
From there it's a real hodgepodge, with detours into murderous
Springsteen
-esque road trips like
"California Justice"
and
"65 Mustang."
For the most part,
is a serious record about hard-working people in hard times -- only the jaunty
"Johnny America"
and the dumb but infectious
"Policeman's Xmas Party"
echo early press comparisons to the more whimsical sides of
Ben Folds
Billy Joel
-- but it's not saying anything that hasn't already been beaten into the masses since the confessional that used to house self-absorbed
singer/songwriters
became open to the public. ~ James Christopher Monger