Harp, Oct 2003 There are enough crappy albums by rock writers to fill a Hall of Lame…but who'd actually buy a ticket besides schadenfreude-fueled rock scholars? For all our hot air, most of us can't craft a tune to save our nickel-a-word asses. Sometimes, though, a guy coughs up a pretty good disc (the first Gay Dad album comes to mind) as with L.A.-based journo/musician Neal Weiss, AKA Weed Patch. Maybe The Brakes Will Fail betrays Weiss' bias toward jangle-and-hum pop and singer-songwriter fare (the ubiquitous love of many a music writer), this and his sinus-aided/addled vocals might hint at derivativeness, but for some damn shiny nuggets. "Like California" is a joyous top-down sing-along power pop a la Tom Petty, likewise take-it-home track "Crash Landing." "Lillies (1/20/02)" and "Codeine" wax Dan Bern and Byrd-sy. Also notable is Weiss' writerly way, which enhances, rather than overpowers, his lyrics. This is one rock pupil who paid attention during class. Randy Harward |