CD Revue: Badly Drawn Boy - One Plus One is One

When your first album is one of the defining records of the decade, as was Badly Drawn Boy's classic The Hour of Bewilderbeast, how do you follow it up? Thus far Damon Gough (A.K.A. Badly Drawn Boy) has chosen to focus on the more mainstream elements of his songwriting. On One Plus One Is One that proves a mixed blessing. Sure there are some great songs but like the anthemic "Year of the Rat" and the goofy "Four Leaf Clover", but the much of the album is one decent but unspectacular mid-tempo number after another. The sense that anything could happen on the album is long gone. While I love Gough's songwriting I hope he doesn't continue this middle of the road path. Badly Drawn Boy used to be cutting edge, now it something you consider buying for your mom's birthday. And I still don't understand how One Plus One Is One.