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EW review: 'Idol' CD defines mediocre

Also: Angel's decent 'Soundtrack,' Andrews' firm 'Hand'

By Dalton Ross
Entertainment Weekly

YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS

(Entertainment Weekly) -- To be honest, I don't even remember Melissa McGhee, but her take on Heart's "What About Love" is a perfectly generic cover that kicks off an entire album's worth of expertly crafted mediocrity.

With about 10,000 various effects and vocal backing tracks present, it's hard to even tell most of the saccharine crooners apart on "American Idol: Season 5 Encores," although I suppose Chris Daughtry should be given some sort of cookie for singing both Bon Jovi's and Sambora's parts on "Wanted Dead or Alive."

EW Grade: C

'Soundtrack to Your Life,' Ashley Parker Angel

Reviewed by Leah Greenblatt

Whatever F. Scott Fitzgerald had to say about second acts in American lives, he surely couldn't have imagined Ashley Parker Angel.

Banished to the boy-band dustheap when O-Town broke up, the mop-haired blond rose from the ashes on MTV's 2006 docudrama "There & Back." His resulting first solo effort, Soundtrack to Your Life, tries almost heartbreakingly hard to rock, and succeeds insofar as it has lots of guitars and drums and yell-y lyrics.

But surprisingly, "Soundtrack's" also pretty catchy -- ideal to, well, soundtrack a show on MTV.

EW Grade: B-

'Hand on String,' Mike Andrews

Reviewed by Kristina Feliciano

Mike Andrews, who created the magical score for "Donnie Darko," delivers a poetic first solo album that proves he doesn't need another's narrative to produce inspired work.

The story he tells is of the precariousness of relationships, illustrating it with diaphanous vocals, off-kilter arrangements, good old-fashioned musicianship (he plays most of the instruments), and charming eccentricity -- two "Hand on String" songs reference citrus ("Hello Lemon," "Orange Meet Lemon"). It takes nerve to step out from behind the scenes, but in this case, the effort was most fruitful.

EW Grade: A-

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