Hefner

The liner notes to Breaking God's Heart, the debut album by Scotland's Hefner, contain three injunctions, which characterize Hefner rather well: "If you like this record send us one of yours. Be kind to small businesses. Buy more Beach Boys records." These are good sentiments, well meaning and empty headed. Such is their music. Hefner's Brit-pop inclinations are balanced by Antony Harding's vocals, which careen from Elvis Costello to the Violent Femmes' Gordon Gano--although the lyrics never come close to the wit or heart of those two.

I define Hefner wholly in terms of other bands because their inoffensive songs sound thoroughly derivative. Nothing's new, but nothing's unlistenable. Closest to unlistenable are "The Librarian," wherein Mr. Harding's vocals grate irritatingly over a harmonica, and "Tactile," a too-lengthy acoustic-like drag. "The Sweetness Lies Within" and "A Hymn for the Postal Service" display lovely guitar-work. "Love Will Destroy Us in the End"--despite containing the line "We feel so empty and our late twenties should be better times"--is pleasantly anthemic, the best three-minute pop song on the record. Or at least it should've been. It unnecessarily runs a minute too long.