Gentleman Reg — Jet Black

I was expecting more from Reg Vermue's Arts & Crafts debut LP.

Reg has performed with Broken Social Scene and played in The Hidden Cameras, but Jet Black comes across as far less bold than either of those bands. Instead of using this album as an opportunity to exploit his individual talent and truly define himself, Reg feeds into the stereotypical Arts & Crafts sound and fails to provide anything new.

It's not that this is a bad album per se. Reg has composed a collection of poppy folk tunes that blend nicely with other A&C artists' records. It's just way too safe.

Reg's last release, Darby & Joan, came out in 2004 on the now-defunct Three Gut Records. While Jet Black is lyrically more mature, musically it doesn't sound like five years have passed. I hate to cut Reg up because I respect him as a musician, but he's left me disappointed and bored.

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