The Bottom Line: You might enjoy Inside Wants Out, but listen carefully before buying. It's not a masterpiece by far or the product of a mature singer-songwriter.
lambchops's Full Review: Inside Wants Out [EP] by John Mayer (Rock)
It’s only been since the release of 2001’s Room For Squares that young John Mayer has had any stake in the music business. It took until that album for the young singer-songwriter to be noticed.
And to that I say…so be it. Mayer may some day be a musician of note, but for now his potential is yet unrealized and even following his sophomore effort there’s little to be said for his talent. It’s unfortunate, because the world could truly use more decent artists needing nothing more than a guitar, a voice, and a smile. As far as his style goes, Mayer is sonically similar to folk-pop-rockers like David Gray, Ben Harper, and Sheryl Crow. Alas, to be similar to such greatness isn’t enough. You gotta have a little something more…a dash of panache would do.
1999’s Inside Wants Out was a first effort for Mayer. It’s raw and real enough that the true artist in young John should have shone through. Instead, he sounds rather like a pale clone of Dave Matthews (a man whom I have no particular love for). There are high points of course, and on the whole the album could have been a total aural offense. It’s not horrible, Inside Wants Out just fails to capture the true Mayer.
Back To You is one of the few highlights of this boring and creatively stunted album. He seems at home with his lyrics, his guitar, and an unobtrusive backing band. It’s not a great song, but I do believe there is something to be said for his mellow vocals and ear for style. If the rest of the album used this as an example, it would have been successful. Alas, all pretty things must also die eventually.
But not before the second song, No Such Thing makes some impact on my heart. Closing my eyes, I can feel the heart and soul that Mayer manages to successfully pour into his song, his words, his project. He seems most comfortable when nobody collaborates. Just simply Mayer, his voice, and his guitar. The words in this song strike me as notable, too:
They love to tell you
Stay inside the lines
But something's better
On the other side
It’s here that any signs of greatness cease to exist. My Stupid Mouth is nicely sung, but seems trite and aside from backing strings I’m bored to tears. Yawn. I want to love this track, but the fact remains that other artists have attempted this thoughtful, guitar-picking boy thing before. They’ve been much more successful than young Mayer.
And so the boringness continues. Neon seems to have Mayer trying in vain to be Matthews. It doesn’t work—at all. I’d have preferred that on this release, his first, he would have at least been himself. I understand that with later albums, producers get their paws on the songs. In this case, there’s no excuse for trite crap like this Neon.
Victoria is a nice enough track, but the lyrics aren’t exactly groundbreaking. Victoria (or Tori) is a woman who dumps a man (Mayer? His roommate?) and instead of doing it in person, she leaves a message with a third person. Ahem. Yeah. Not that I could care less. If Victoria were a separate vision from this album, it might be a better track. In this context, it seems that the song sounds so similar to the other offerings that I can’t distinguish it from the next without some serious thought. Great songs stand firmly regardless of placement.
The tiniest bit more upbeat, Love Soon shines a bit more enthusiastically. Among the latter songs, it’s the best track. Mayer seems a bit more content and his lyrics are varied, the pace different and exciting. I have little interest in what he has to say…a flaw in the song. Singer-songwriters should appeal both in melody and lyrically. But, with that said that actual melody is entertaining enough.
Comfortable is unfortunately another repetitive, boring and ultimately forgettable track. The same equation applies. Mayer stands solo in front of a microphone with his acoustic guitar. This time, there seems to be little direction or point to the track. Another problem is with his guitar; it’s too loud and too high-pitched and thus detracts from his otherwise decent voice.
The final track here (there are but eight offerings) is Quiet. Many of the identical problems exist with this track as in Comfortable. Too boring, too repetitive, to indistinguishable, and much too distracting guitars for my taste. If he is indeed talented, I want to know. Inside Wants Out doesn’t prove a thing to me.
Inside Wants Out could be a catastrophe. And, from what I’ve said you might think it is. I’m just hypercritical…singer-songwriting balladeers should have something uniquely appealing about them. Mayer has yet to discover his inner artiste. I don’t suggest this album to anybody. And to discourage accidental purpose, I’m going to award the album just 2/5 stars. You’d be best advised to listen to the disc before buying.
Rating: 2/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Back to You
02. No Such Thing
03. My Stupid Mouth
04. Neon
05. Victoria
06. Love Soon
07. Comfortable
08. Quiet
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