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The crisp, unadorned production--courtesy of Matthew himself, who recorded and mixed this in his home studio--keeps the focus on his brilliant pop hooks, which shine brighter and cleaner here than they have in quite some time.
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Some may be turned off by his showy leads and somewhat cheesy sentiments, but those are the very things that hooked longtime fans in the first place.
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Sunshine Lies contains some of Sweet’s best moments in years, with the classic push/pull of gloriously sunny melodies and lyrical darkness underneath.
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MojoMatthew Sweet returns with a tenth tune-fest that's equal parts sunny delight and cathartic, Posiesesque bluster. [Oct 2008, p.106]
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still knows how to write a great song, and his formula of bringing in strong lead guitarists gives the songs extra punch.
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The album works just as well as a collection of terrific standalone singles, though, since Sweet keeps the focus of Sunshine Lies on some of the most compelling pop hooks he's written in years.
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Yoking fuzz-stoked guitars (credit Television vet Richard Lloyd) to gorgeous melodies derived from the Beatles and Big Star, Sweet serves up his best tunes since "Altered Beast."
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Consistent, it isn't, but Sunshine Lies has moments that make 2008 sound like 1995 trying to revive 1965 all over again.
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UncutIt's gratifying to hear this veteran crew sounding so scrappy. [Oct 2008, p.113]