Hanson - This Time Around (2000)

It's tempting to go after Hanson with a full-on snark attack and deconstruct the new haircuts, snicker at the slightly rougher sound, and hoot at such impossibly tortured lyrics as "On the ground crying out, 'Somebody see me please.'" Trouble is, it's hard to trash them when the smile on your face has no trace of malice. That's the sort of smile these songs induce. The mildly spicy, funked-up "You Never Know" has a "Smooth" feel (only it's Jonny Lang, not Carlos Santana, supplying the licks). Hyper-happy harmonica (courtesy of Blues Traveler's John Popper) and thwacky-wacky effects on "If Only" turn yearning into a disease you'd stand in line to catch. "Save Me" is a sweet plea; the title track (and first single) has Southern-rock/gospel textures; "In the City," despite its adultery theme, is like Disneyland Manhattan--more fun than dangerous. Throughout, Taylor Hanson's vocals prove pretty expressive and throaty for an adolescent could-be male supermodel. Yes, teen girls will be penning pining letters to boyfriends at far-flung camps all summer to this stuff. But the Tulsa trio's real triumph is the way they bridge not just the generation gap, but the cynical chasm with clean, perfectly sappy pop.