There's two kinds of pop music out there: over-produced, corporate constructed noise designed and built with one goal in mind: to generate maximum profit; then there's music that's not hard enough to really rock, not slow enough to be easy listening and doesn’t waver between the two languidly. Instead it expresses that rare feeling of content and bliss that nobody looking to be a rock star would dare go near. True artistry is rarely concerned about rock star status, and that's never more evident than in Jeff Boller's release under the name The Simple Carnival entitled Girls Aliens Food. It's a 12-song compilation of bouncy, light-hearted pop gems that never try to do more than what they can: entertain. Because isn't that exactly what music is supposed to do? And you can't help but chuckle at the lyrics to album opener “Really Really Weird” that repeats “You're really, really weird” a half a dozen times. And you get the feeling Jeff Boller means it. Channeling the best of Brian Wilson with “Caitlin's on the Beach,” The Simple Carnival embodies its name: after listening you just want some cotton candy and a girl to ride the Ferris wheel with.
--Jake Benjamin [October 4, 2008]
