The Favorite Things - ​Coming Clean

The Favorite Things

​Coming Clean
self-released; 2016

​3.8 out of 5

By Matt Jensen

The Favorite Things is a band from Minneapolis that formed in 2014. After a couple of line up changes, band name changes, etc., they teamed up with Jacques Wait to release Coming Clean. 

​The band is a rock band through and through and to my my ears I thought there was a classic American vibe mixed in with country. My first thoughts were Tom Petty with a bit more distortion. The songs go down really easy and aren’t anything new. They have plenty of hooks and catchy melodies that are memorable and familiar sounding the first time you hear them. The album is about the perfect length at nine songs. In fact the songs themselves are all about three-and-a-half-minutes long. The album goes by quickly.

The production is about perfect. It’s commercially viable and radio ready. The producer did a great job getting the band to sound live yet polished. Up first is “Coming Clean.” The band doesn't give an intro. They get right into it with the whole band rocking out together. Right away you should be able to spot the aforementioned classic American vibe. Suffice it to say if you like this song you will enjoy the others. 

As I was listening the word that came to mind was professional. They sounded great and in the pocket. No one in the band seemed to be overpowering the other. As the album progressed you realize how cohesive their sound is. There aren’t any synths or even many effects besides reverb. The band keeps the songs rather simple in terms of their palette. 

It’s hard to pick out highlights because all of the songs were well written. I have to say songs like “In The Summer,” “Sunny Day” and “Blow Zero” each have a single-worthy quality to them. You could make the argument that the band is either cohesive or playing it safe. Although the songs have a ubiquitous classic backyard feel to them it's undeniable the band knows exactly what they want to play. Recommended.

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