*1/2 Muzzle

ACTUAL SIZE

(Reprise)

Like the wave of better-known, major-label alterna-rock bands who've come before them (the Verve Pipe, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and Dishwalla, to name three), Muzzle make slickly polished mainstream pop that's as boring as it is agreeable. Although not nearly as cloying as any of the above-mentioned outfits, Muzzle share the same frustrating quality of having some good ideas that, save for a striking standout track or two ("Second Time Around," "Broken Tooth"), don't go anywhere. With the exception of the fizzy Gin Blossoms-esque jaunt "Drop the Needle," even the hired-gun New England rhythm section of drummer Mike Levesque (Talking to Animals, Tracy Bonham) and bassist Pete Donnelly (Figgs) can't push singer-guitarists Ryan Maxwell and Wesley Nelson past a predictable mid-tempo stride. "Obvious" is a particularly apt song title. And it's not a good sign that the vocals of Maxwell and Nelson are virtually impossible to distinguish. Boasting lots of big guitars and multi-tracked harmonies that are as devoid of personality as most of this material, Actual Size makes a convincing case that more can indeed be less.

-- Jonathan Perry