How big can you make a record? The brothers Ballard, Josh (piano/vocals) and Dan (guitars) along with drummer Daniel Dempsey have taken the modern arena rock template forged by such bands as Coldplay (who got it from Radiohead who got it from U2 who got it from….) and made it even bigger. It helps that the young lads have an endless supply of can’t miss hooks spread evenly among the ten thunderous tracks which comprise their debut disc, plus a vocalist in Josh who possesses the uncanny ability to break into a mile-high falsetto easier than Bono can wrangle an invite to the Vatican or the White House during election year. All June’s songs aim straight for the heart and nothing more. Case in point: “The Saddest Song” which details “falling in love with foolish things / and I fell away from me / and now you’re gone.” Okay, so the lyrics are a bit trite, but how can you resist the lush vocal harmonies (“Unnoticed”) and the Pink Floyd homage “Outer Space” replete with cascading guitar licks, dreamy aural atmospherics and hypnotic tempos? You can’t. So indulge Until June, especially if you dig Keane, Travis, and Starsailor.
--Tom Semioli
