**1/2 Bernard Butler

PEOPLE MOVE ON

(Creation/Columbia)

It's always risky when an artist opens his debut album with an eight-minute opus whose plodding pace makes Pink Floyd sound like Megadeth. But British rockers have never been an understated lot, least of all guitarist-turned-solo-artist Bernard Butler's former band, the London Suede. So it comes as no surprise that the lofty sense of drama and atmosphere that was so much an element of Butler's old outfit is in large supply here. People Move On is loaded with Butler's spacy guitar weaving hazy, languorous soundscapes around a ride cymbal à la the Verve while his crushed-velvet, guitar-hero flash splits the difference between Stone Roses/Seahorses axman John Squire and the quietly adoring side of Billy Corgan.

Unfortunately, despite lovelies like "Not Alone," and "In Vain," Butler's songwriting rarely moves beyond impeccable, standard-issue Britpop balladeering. And as a singer he's fine but faceless: he hits all the notes but chooses so few of them to hit. Although one would never accuse London Suede singer Brett Anderson of restraint, at least he's got personality. When Butler closes the disc with a listless "I'm tired, I've got no more to say," it's far too easy to believe him.

-- Jonathan Perry