When a band with a name like “The Televangelist and the Architect” puts out an album as thoughtfully titled as The Mass Exodus From California, you immediately get a pretty good idea of what it’s going to sound like – sensitive, introspective, and a tad self-absorbed. This album of lonely traveling songs (inspired, unsurprisingly, by the artist’s own departure from the Golden State) is the solo project of Grand Unified Theory’s Jerry Chen, and its swaying, folky melodies are an enjoyable departure from his work with the full band. Self-recorded over a stretched-out period of time at various locales around San Francisco, this doesn’t sound like a mere side project – its skillful mastering and careful lyricism make this an excellent example of top-notch independent music production. However, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that this, at times, sounds a lot more like an album of Bright Eyes B-sides than an collection of original music, and that while it’s very pleasant to listen to and expertly performed, it’s really nothing new or innovative. But fans of the “sensitive indie boy” genre, and supporters of (excluding the purists) Bright Eyes, will acknowledge that any major deviation from the formula would render the music something they were no longer interested in. There is nothing wrong with a band taking a good formula and delivering their best version of it, even if they don’t add any new elements – such notable bands as Built to Spill, Death Cab for Cutie, and Damien Jurado have been making people happy doing exactly that for years. The simple truth is that in this day and age, you’re gonna have to try pretty hard to come up with anything completely new and original – whatever you come up with, Nick Drake has probably already done it better. Your best bet is to make music you yourself enjoy, and hope that others feel the same. In that regard, this album succeeds completely.
- Jessica Watkins
West Coast Performer
April, 2005