Rooftops of London - Broken Sunshine

Rooftops of London

Broken Sunshine
self-released; 2014

3.2 out of 5

By Ted Rogen

The recent album by Rooftops of London entitled Broken Sunshine was recorded through an iPad. After listening to the album I have to say I was impressed by the audio quality but I don’t think professional recording studios are going to be a relic of the past anytime soon. Rooftops of London is actually a solo project but I don’t know the name of that person so we will have to improvise. 

The album contains eight acoustic based pop songs which, fall in line with bands like the Goo Goo Dolls and about a dozen and half other bands that sound similar. Overall, there isn’t anything wrong with the songs but also nothing that yells originality. The lyrics are straightforward, rarely deviating from a basic narrative and often relying on stories we have heard before about heartache, loss and more loss.

Whoever is singing isn’t bad but did nothing in post-production to cover up some of his sour notes and failed deliveries. The most glaring example is surprisingly in the very first song. His vocals sit on top of the mix so that every nuance can be heard. Not a good thing when some of the notes you try to hit are flat.

Luckily, some of the songs later in the album are improved. The first one that caught my attention was “Crocodile Tears.” His vocals sound good here and I thought the digital orchestral strings were a nice touch. If the audio quality was improved I could see this one getting radio play on FM radio.

“Scratches & Fireworks” is another well-written song although the theme felt too similar and familiar to a thousand other songs about heartbreak. The lyrics were marginal but he occasionally delivered something that caught my attention. 

As the album progresses the songs are hit and miss. I know better production value would have made some of these songs more impactful but sometimes you just have to work with what you have. Whoever made this album certainly put some heart into it and that is one thing that is obvious and I can respect that. 

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