In a style that can be best described as Tom Petty with an English accent, Love Makes Us Weird is the fifth album by Stephen Clair, a singer-songwriter who’s been making music for almost 20 years. Clair creates relaxing, somewhat funny yet adorable songs, but occasionally switches it up and throws a sad song into the mix.
The opening track, “I’ve Become That Guy,” is insightful and funny, as he ponders how he became “that guy who can’t read the signs” of his relationship. The title-track is a little repetitive, but overall is pretty catchy. “Coney Island Sugar Cane” is the most interesting tune on the album, as it has a Middle Eastern flair and talks about the problems of the area. The closer, “I Can Wait All Night,” is mildly melancholic, yet finishes the album the same way it began, without any attention-grabbing music or commanding vocals.
The whole release contains the same kind of sound, and the songs sometimes blur together. There really are no ups and downs on this record, because each track is so similar. Of course, the theme that “love makes us weird” is heavily present on the album, but in different ways. Some songs are about awkward moments (“Love Makes Us Weird”) or failed conversations (“You Don’t Talk To Me”), or even a broken heart (“Break Me”). Although the album is easy to listen to and very pleasant, it never becomes more than good, and hardly ever verges on experimental.
In A Word: Dependable
