Artist: NeverShoutNever
Album: The Summer EP
Genre: Acoustic/Pop
Label: None

Christofer Drew has returned [finally] with a full band EP that’s sure to make girls squeal and guys moan. By moan, I’m not talking excitedly, but that dull roar of “this girl is going to make me listen to this forever” kind of moan. Drew’s The Summer EP is a radiant display of pop so sweet your dentist will drop dead.

To be honest, the lead track and single, “Happy” has never, ever appealed to me. Drew has written quite a few cute/quirky tracks about his abundant happiness over someone else, but it’s generally done with more skill than seems to be applied here. It’s too simple, even for a simple love song. There’s no wit or turned phrases, just the overuse of the word “happy.” Luckily, we get the sweet, cute love song with skill writing Drew on “Hummingbird.” It’s destined to be on thousands of mixes for tween and teen “lovers” expressing how they want to be Facebook official with their special someone. I feel like the age of Drew puts a damper on his remarks about being a wreck as his career and life up to now seems to not have had many downfalls, but I could be mistaken. Things then finally speed up with the pop rock, radio ready, “I Just Laugh.” This is the first track to scream summer, but it does so well enough to make up for the two previous tracks. You’ll find plenty of young drivers blaring this in Summer 2009. That’s not a guess, it’s a promise.

“Simple Enough,” the 4th track, is easily the best track Drew has written to date. The structure is simple and catchy while the vocals pull you in like undertow. This is the soundtrack to young love without being too corny. It’s beautiful. However, “On The Brightside,” the follow-up track, is a bit too corny for my tastes. It’s a solid attempt at story/metaphor writing, but Drew’s overly optimistic track seems more like Saturday morning cartoon messages than that of a budding musician. It feels as if some company paid Drew to give a positive message for kids for an anti-something campaign. It’s a shame. Luckily, “Losing It,” the closer and a track obviously inspired by The Beatles sound wise is a career maker. Drew mixes strings and his ukulele to create an interesting atmosphere for his best attempt at straight storytelling to date. Chris’ maturity as an artist has never been clearer than it is on this track and it’s the perfect morsel to leave us craving more.

Once again, Christofer Drew has made a winning record. While not every track pleases completely, those that do really show his maturity as a songwriter and musician. I still hold tight to him being the next big thing, but I think it’ll require a full length. Until then however, The Summer EP should fit perfectly into any soundtrack this…well…Summer.

Score: 9/10

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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