Josh Rouse Country Mouse, City House

It begins with a lilting mellotron figure, set on "flute", that has me thinking I accidentally called up King Crimson's In the Wake of Poseidon on iTunes. Then, the soft acoustic breeze that is Josh Rouse gently blows away those notions, and the first thought that pops into my head, one minute into Sweetie, is that whatever spirit inhabited Rouse during his Spanish sojourn on Subtitulo, seems to have been successfully purged from his system. The formula that worked for him best on Nashville, combining 70s California AM pop with Bill Withers soul grooves, is back in full force, making Country Mouse an utterly unoriginal, nearly redundant and irresistibly charming success.

The Ramones taught us that when the formula works, stick to it. Hence, Rouse's new cd is a collection of pleasant tunes that could have appeared on any one of his albums, with virtually no attempt to experiment with sounds or rhythms. Good for him. When you do something this well, you might as well milk it for all its worth. Listening to the new one, you get the sense that Rouse still has something to say in this format, because while all the songs sound familiar, they still contain some vital spark which keeps you tuned in.

Rouse has a few modes he works in. There are the slow, low key, soulful numbers, like Italian Dry Ice and the closer, Snowy, where he employs a near whisper to convey erotic longing. I assume these songs are for the chicks, so I kind of let them pass. Then there are the upbeat, ready for the previous generation's top 40, stompers like Hollywood Bass Player and Nice to Fit In, which he does particularly well, right down to the thoughtful arrangements and the mild crescendos. But the best are the mid tempo tunes that a band like America might have recorded if they hadn't been so goddamned cheesy. Josh Rouse is corny, but not cheesy, and there is a difference. Cheesiness sets in when you take yourself way too seriously and start seeing profundity in a "horse with no name", and can't help spouting garbled lines like "for there ain't no one for to give you no pain". Corny people, like their elder statesman Paul McCartney, are overly sweet but usually avoid the trap of self-importance. Fortunately, Rouse liberally peppers his album with these songs, like the great God, Please Let Me Go Back, Sweetie and Domesticated Lovers. Nobody does this kind of thing better right now and it's not only because no one else is trying. Rouse's light touch and easy way with a major 7th chord are becoming hallmarks of his style, and his discipline in structuring his songs in a traditional AABA pop format ensure a non-threatening yet constantly enjoyable listening experience.

So if you are a fan of Nashville or the aptly named 1972, then Country Mouse will be right up your easy listening alley. Sometimes more of the same is just what you need.