Artist: Aaron Sprinkle
Album: Lackluster
Label: Tooth & Nail
Tracks: 14
Length: 55:46
Review by: Phil Nichols

Aaron Sprinkle is relatively well known in music today. If you are not specifically familiar with him you have probably heard of some of the artists he has been involved with. Aaron first entered the scene playing in bands like Poor Old Lu and Rose Blossom Punch. After a few albums, and a fair amount of touring, Aaron took up a job as chief engineer for Tooth and Nail Records. Since then, Aaron has made a name for himself working on some fantastic albums including Anberlin's Blueprints For The Black Market and Pedro the Lion's Control. Unfortunately, despite his impressive resume, Aaron's solo career has not been much to speak of in the past. With three solo albums under his belt, Aaron Sprinkle, has now released his Tooth & Nail solo debut, Lackluster.

So what does his new record have to offer? Well, Lackluster has basically everything that a good album should have. The production is very well done, which should not come as a surprise, as Aaron is a producer. There are also some nice hooks throughout the disc, showing that Aaron still has his pop sensibilities. There is some interesting instrumentation and even some experimentation with alt-country riffs in a few songs. At this point you're probably thinking: Ok, this sounds great, what's the downside? Well, my friends, the downside is that this album simply can get boring fast. The songs are all arranged very similarly: a catchy little intro, the acoustic guitar entrance, Aaron comes in on vocals, all building up to the climactic vocal/instrumental hook. The structure works well for the first few songs, but by the end of the album, some of the songs become monotonous and tiresome.

Overall, Lackluster, an ironically fitting album title, does have some well-composed melodies and hooks. The album stands above a lot of the other pop albums that have been released recently, it just lacks something that will hold your attention for repeated listens. Fans of Poor Old Lu and Rose Blossom Punch will probably not get as much enjoyment out of Lackluster as fans of Jars of Clay and similar mature poppy rock outfits. But if you are a fan of Aaron's past solo albums you will probably want to pick this one up, as it is his best.