Traffic And Weather
by Fountains of Wayne
  • Record Label: Virgin
  • Release Date: Apr 3, 2007
Metascore
68

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 28
  3. Negative: 4 out of 28
  1. AllMusic
    70
    It's sturdy, well-written power pop, but it falls prey to some of the faults of craftsmanlike pop -- mainly, it's possible to hear the craft behind the pop instead of just getting sucked into the sugar rush of the melodies.
  2. Uncut
    80
    Cements FOW's status as the savviest modern-day practitioners of both Beatlesque pop and Steely Dan's cool precision. [Jun 2007, p.94]
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  3. PopMatters
    80
    Matters of love and life dominate the album, as they do all great pop, although there’s a sense that the band is more in on the joke this time out.
  5. Rolling Stone
    80
    Here they fail to provide the elusive novelty follow-up to "Stacy's Mom" but nonetheless invent many dandy new ways not to be in love.
  6. The A.V. Club
    100
    Traffic And Weather offers vivid little snapshots of characters and places, but in Schlesinger and Collingswood's hands, a snapshot can tell the whole story.
  7. Entertainment Weekly
    83
    The end product is, on the whole, a simply wonderful CD of songs about love, lust, and loneliness.
  8. Magnet
    70
    There's always a surplus of good humor to carry us past the rough patches. [#75, p.98]
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  9. Boston Globe
    70
    If ‘‘Traffic and Weather,’’ doesn’t as frequently pack the knock-out punch of 2003’s superb ‘‘Welcome Interstate Managers,’’ it still more than holds its own in the fight for pop music that is both catchy and canny.
  10. Austin Chronicle
    78
    Front to back, this 14-song slice of bop-worthy Americana hits the spot like hamburgers and coffee.
  11. Blender
    70
    On Traffic and Weather, their lyrical touch slips. [Apr 2007, p.114]
  12. cokemachineglow
    73
    They’re still far and away the best bet for impeccably produced, beach-ready power-pop, and way better than your shitty sounding power-pop band, so excuse them if they seem to harbor no interest in doing anything else.
  13. Billboard
    80
    They still pen power-pop tunes so utterly irresistible—"Someone to Love," "This Better Be Good," "Strapped for Cash"—that they deserve to be every bit as ubiquitous at radio as the elements of the album's title. Oh, and they're still brilliant. [2 Apr 2007]
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  14. Los Angeles Times
    75
    Record geeks beyond repair, the songwriters still lace the more accessible material here with their trademark wit.
  15. Dot Music
    70
    There's little not to love.
  16. Village Voice
    70
    The left-bent, middle-class everymen in these songs are consistently disarming.
  17. Amazon.com
    80
    As usual, the band never takes itself too seriously, crafting melodies around a lively, vigorous cast of characters that practically come to life.

Awards & Rankings

100
#100 Most Shared Album of 2007

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 32 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 32
  3. Negative: 2 out of 32
  1. ParcoM.
    Aug 25, 2007
    9
    Not the best FOW album ever, but very solid, very enjoyable, and sticks with you, the way true FOW music should.
  2. JohnR
    Jul 6, 2007
    8
    How corny is '92 Subaru'? Barenaked Ladies heard it and said, "Wow, that's corny. Are they Canadian, too?" Hey, Fountains of How corny is '92 Subaru'? Barenaked Ladies heard it and said, "Wow, that's corny. Are they Canadian, too?" Hey, Fountains of Wayne, Ray Davies just called. He heard '92 Subaru' and says he wants his embarrassing '80s period back. Haha, seriously, '92 Subaru' aside, this is song-for-song every bit as satisfying as WIM. There's at least three masterpieces here ('T&W', 'New Routine', 'This Better Be Good'), and the rest is completely listenable and not completely disposable. 'Planet of Weed' is hilarious and kind of sweet -- I don't get the backlash against that song. And, OK, even '92 Subaru' scratches some dark, repressed .38-Special-adoring itch somewhere. Pitchfork hates pop music, that's all I can figure. Anyone who likes pop music will like this album, and like it repeatedly.… Full Review »
  3. TedR.
    Jul 3, 2007
    9
    Great power pop....songs I can listen to over and over again.
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