Chester French - Love The Future Review

Though this is the Pharrell Williams- mentored duo's debut album, frontman D.A. Wallach already knows the perils of rock-star romance: ''This ain't groupie love, 'cause you mean so much to me,'' he pleads in ''Bebe Buell,'' a number named after Liv Tyler's mom. Okay, he's being sarcastic. But given the infectiously goofy tunes on Love the Future — the Beastie Boys covering the Beach Boys? — it might not be long till Wallach's girl trouble is real. B+...full text Could this really be Chester French's first album? "Love the Future" sounds too wise - and too catchy - to possibly be the debut from recent Harvard grads D.A. Wallach and Max Drummey. These industrious boys, under the protective wing of Neptune and label honcho Pharrell Williams, have put together a Fountains of Wayne-esque collection of harmonic pop and sardonic lyrics that is a musical field trip of quick wit and loose women. The smart-alecky "Bebe Buell" has a raunchy pop energy reminiscent of Robbie Williams, post-Take That, pre-artistic decline. There is just enough retro-influenced studio trickery to give the album a big "We intended this to be ironic" wink and nudge to listeners. But when the boys decide to be sincere on "Fingers," they manage moments of lovely symphonic pop that aspires to Brian Wilson's finest. There are times when their brand of historic pop almost sounds too studied, such as the safe-sex anthem "She Loves Everybody." But those moments are a small price to pay for the exhilarating country jangle of "Beneath the Veil" or the ELO feel of "Neal." (Out tomorrow)...full text While most students were cramming in the library, Maxwell Drummey and D.A. Wallach were hustling to finish their demo in a Harvard University dorm. Bored with the music on the radio, Chester French tapped influences as wide-ranging as The Beatles and OutKast to formulate a uniquely original sound. In 2007, their retro, yet modern, mash-up caught the attention of Pharrell Williams, who beamed the college seniors up to his Star Trak label after a tug-of-war with Jermaine Dupri. Two years later, the Massachusetts pair’s debut, Love the Future, hits and is aimed directly at the girls in Jimmy Choos.

Chester French are like the kids who blend in with every clique in school. They float easily between pop, indie rock, and hip hop, earning some street cred with their recent mixtape, Jacques Jams, Vol. 1: Get Familiar with Chester French, which featured Common, N.O.R.E., and Clipse, while poaching N.E.R.D rock fans with new wave-y lead single, “She Loves Everybody.” But while they’ve triangulated the market and earned their rap bona fides, Love the Future is ultimately an homage to ’60s pop, full of heartache and break, but little hip hop swagger....full text