From the upper, midwwestern U.S. comes the second effort from Mandrew, the work of Mike Andrew and company, including brother and recording collaborator Patrick. This wonder-full world teems with both the protoplasmic artwork adorning the cover and the quirked-out tales of vacuum salesmen and falling fruit, all being inflected with a sunny pop-rock sensibility. After a distorted intro on opener “Burning,” Andrew sounds decidedly Lennon-esque before things enter guitar-shredding territory later in the track. The album’s second song is the one to catch, about the aforementioned salesman, and is the most story-driven selection of the bunch. “I Can’t Write” is full of sunny pop-rock, full of organ-voiced keyboard and a real Beach Boys, 1960s-rock feel to it. “Cocktail Tree” is solid and talks of falling far (or not very far) from the tree, “Good Days” is another light, buoyant number with a nice guitar riff, and “Note to Self,” the last track, is effects-heavy and has an electro-rock, fairly jittery vibe going. One is sure to be enthused by this collection of short yet satisfying pop dispatches from the wonderful world of Mandrew.
--Andrew Palmacci
