Artist: The Lonely Hearts
Album: Paper Tapes
Label: Tooth and Nail
Tracks: 10
Length: 38:46
Review By: Jacob Gehman

Holland was a Tooth and Nail band who emerged during the label’s emo phase. It seemed that every band T&N conceived was destined to be nothing more than a sub par Taking Back Sunday or Dashboard Confessional. And there was Holland. They weren’t really emo, but it was to that crowd that they got lumped, which didn’t really make anyone happy. The emo kids didn’t get it, and those who would have didn’t consider them as someone to check out. It was quite a stalemate. Tooth and Nail suddenly remembered there were genres other than emo in the world and Holland changed their name to The Lonely Hearts.

It took a while to release “Paper Tapes,” which has generally been received with open minds and kind words. It is nothing revolutionary for the music scene, though it is an interesting stretch for a Tooth and Nail album. It is a mix of the rootsier Jars of Clay material (think “Who We Are Instead”) with more of a Son Volt feel and an indie rock twist. Some of the stripped down sections take on a Coldplay air.

The pacing of “Paper Tapes” is relatively slow, a gentle plod against time. It is this which works against The Lonely Hearts the most, as songs which start off intriguing stretch into tedious yawns. Their general lack of creativity doesn’t help much, either. There isn’t anything here that sets “Paper Tapes” apart from their alt country/indie rock peers. The big thing it has going for it is that there isn’t much in the Christian market to battle it. The last rootsy Jars of Clay is several years old and the Lost Dogs haven’t released an album to get distribution in forever.

If you like rootsy indie rock and only listen to Christian music, The Lonely Hearts will be a great find. Just don’t expect something earth shattering. But it is performed well, just lacking some good ideas.