Lovedrug

Any band with two full-lengths under its belt should know better than to reform its sound and categorize it "neo-melodic-grunge." The formerly soft-spoken Lovedrug seems to have become more aggressive with its third album, but only delivers gutter-piss pop that sounds as creatively constipated as the absurd genre description it attempts to use. The Sucker Punch Show drips with piano-driven mediocrity and little to show for itself besides the moody, bass-heavy ballad "Blood Like." But Michael Shepard's clichéd song lyrics ("I am the straw that broke the camel's back") fail to maintain any momentum. While the band succeeds in creating a somber atmosphere, the mousy-voiced Shepard only uses it as a crutch during the album's tender moments. Lovedrug, the former windswept and acoustic darlings of dashboard confessions, just can't pull off that plaintive, endearing sound like they used to. 2 stars.