American Hi-Fi is probably a band that you forgot about shortly after their previous release The Art of Losing. Sure they’ve been touring, but their mega-hook-filled power-pop easily fizzles out after a while. Well, American Hi-Fi is back, on a new label and as poppy as ever.
The first thing I noticed about American Hi-Fi’s Maverick Records release Hearts on Parade is that it’s not as angry as The Art of Losing was. That album had a real pissed off tone that made the band’s hook-filled tones a lot more appetizing. With Hearts, these So-Cal guys have a super-peppy, candy-coated album that is so sugary it could rot your teeth out.
The second thing I noticed about Hearts is that some of the songs sounded damn familiar to me. The melodies reminded me of something I’ve heard on 80’s radio. And not to be proved wrong, American Hi-Fi openly admits that “Maybe Won’t Do” parallels Carl Carlton’s hit “Everlasting Love” while “The Geeks Get the Girls” has influences from Cheap Trick and “We Can’t Be Friends” draws from a Blondie song. This leaves me as a reviewer in a real pickle. Do these “sample” like melodies and harmonies defer artistic originality or do they make American Hi-Fi total geniuses? Perhaps they just have an obsession for bringing back their influences in a very direct fashion.
“We Can’t Be Friends” is probably my favorite track on the album. It’s fun, groove-filled and poppy. “Something Real” is a piano driven, melancholy song until it reaches the chorus, where the drums drives it into an anthem-like song. “Highs and Lows” and “Everlasting Fall” are songs that really don’t have much depth and may have you skipping to the next track.
With the pop-rock world being dominated by Good Charlotte, Simple Plan and Sugarcult, it’s unlikely that American Hi-Fi will join that group with Hearts on Parade. As a fan of American Hi-Fi’s previous two albums, I was a little disappointed with the new album, therefore I give it a 5 (out of 10).
Suggested Listening: “The Geeks Get the Girls,” “We Can’t Be Friends” and “Maybe Won’t Do”
By Adam K. Zakroczymski III – Senior Editor / Founder
