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ALL MUSIC GUIDE

Review by Erik Hage

P.J. O'Connell's earnestly ragged, good-time power pop has the appeal
 of much of the best that came before him, including Big Star, Paul 
Westerberg, and even that grand latter-day collective Golden Smog. 
"Dim Star" revels in a ponderous and grinding kind of beauty, while 
"Can't Get It Right" possesses a set of nimble Anglo sensibilities 
that seem descended from the ranks of Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, 
or even Rockpile, but there's a burnish and roughness around the edges 
that is unmistakably O'Connell. "Walked Away" is simply power pop par 
excellence done up O'Connell style. The guitars throughout the album 
all have a grit, a twinkle, and a twang that provide ballast for the 
songwriter's knack for crystalline melodic twists. (Here, the 
six-string is the gravel beneath the wild sunshine of O'Connell's 
songcraft.) O'Connell also employs his friends NRBQ to back him up 
on the (you guessed it) NRBQ-ish, "All This Time." From his days in 
North Carolina fronting the Flying Pigs to his numerous collaborations 
and two previous solo albums, O'Connell is an Americana power pop auteur 
on a journey that keeps getting more and more beautiful with each release. 
Careful is simply terrific from end to end.