Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 01/12/1999
Run Time: 40:30
Sugar Ray lead singer
Mark McGrath had proven himself on national television as a walking
rock encyclopedia, in a 1998 episode of
VH1's
Rock and Roll Jeopardy. It was an impressive feat that could explain the divergent styles of
Sugar Ray's 1999 album
14:59. Their third album showed an alarming overhaul in their approach, practically moving
Sugar Ray into a new genre.
14:59 steered them from their
metal shellac toward a calmer, melodious pastiche of songs. The band on
14:59 has versatility nailed down better than your grade-A wedding band:
"Every Morning" bounces with the acoustic
pop gentility of their 1997 hit
"Fly," while
"Falls Apart" and
"Personal Space Invader" reflect influences from
Synchronicity and
Men Without Hats.
14:59 also favors the leaner, faster
punk of
Green Day in
"Aim for Me." There's even a frighteningly faithful cover of
Steve Miller's
"Abracadabra." If there's one criticism of
14:59, it's that if you listen hard enough you'll be playing "sounds like..." for many songs. In that sense it's almost a parody; the inclusion of two comic songs entitled
"New Direction" (one
death metal, one circus tent) help that assessment. Finally, though,
14:59 has such catchiness and charm that it's a guilty pleasure of high order, and a bigger step than one might have expected from
Sugar Ray.
~Paul Pearson, All Music Guide
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