OPPENHEIMER
THIS RACKET TAKES ITS TOLL
The pop team of Shaun Robinson and Rocky O’Reilly fell apart in 2009, leaving Oppenheimer with a half-completed album that never saw the light of day. Bar None has rescued those tracks, along with a handful of rarities, and released them as This Racket Takes Its Toll. Oppenheimer’s twee power pop derived its charm from boyish vocals and a light touch; the sound on this collection tends to be a little heavier at times, as on the emphatic “Songs In Semaphore.” Elsewhere, when the duo flexes its electro-pop muscles, a cotton-candy-light track like “Hearts Don’t Listen” comes across as slick as the manufactured pop you hear on Disney Channel sitcoms. Way too many other band do this sort of thing better for This Racket Takes Its Toll to make much of a difference; only diehard fans mourning the loss of a favorite cult band really need take notice. (Bar None) by Jim Testa