Pete Yorn — Back & Fourth

Oh, Pete Yorn. So wise in the way of singer-songwriter balladeer types.

After all, he's got the winning formula down pat: strum an acoustic guitar, sing in a soothing voice about love and hope and how everything's gonna be OK, the sun will come out tomorrow, all that jazz. (Oh, and being rather good-looking is a requirement. How else did John Mayer manage to bag Jennifer Aniston?)

It works for Yorn, definitely — his vocals can be equally warm and comforting or a bit wobbly to denote wistful emotion ("Don't Wanna Cry"). There's also the requisite, vaguely maudlin "how did I lose you" song — in this case, "Country" — to satisfy all the broken hearts who might be tuning in.

And so when a track like "Last Summer" hits, it's a surprising jolt because it's not what you'd be expecting. Quite frankly, its fast pace and swell of instrumentation is a bit of a relief from the stripped-down, laid-back coffeehouse acoustic of the rest.

And when "Shotgun" opens with a strong bass line, it makes one realize how much additional instruments add to an artist's sound. The result is much fuller and way more apt to capture the attention of a casual listener.

Those few exceptions aside, Yorn's fifth effort is all very calming and tame, which is surely what his fans have come to expect. You don't buy a Pete Yorn album and expect death metal (though that might make an intriguing side project under a pseudonym). It'll satisfy the needs of his followers, definitely, but if Yorn wants to expand further, he might be best to consider pushing the envelope next time around.