"Name"
changed the game for
the Goo Goo Dolls
. Prior to that unexpected hit
ballad
, the Buffalo trio was pretty much content to turn out amiably sloppy
rock & roll
in the style of
the Replacements
. Like the latter-day
'Mats
, they weren't adverse to cleaning up their sound a little bit, but once they had a hit, they were happy to jump headfirst into the mainstream, cleaning up their rockers until they shone and embracing acoustic power
ballads
instead of shunning them. In fact,
"Iris"
-- their contribution to the
City of Angels
soundtrack
and lead single for their sixth album,
Dizzy Up the Girl
-- is a virtual rewrite of
"Name."
The funny thing is, where most
college rock
bands of the
Bush
era sounded awkward as mainstream rockers,
actually sound better as a mainstream band, partially because they were hardly underground in the first place. Like a less mannered and conflicted
Let Your Dim Light Shine
-era
Soul Asylum
, the trio balances hard rockers with
. The difference is, they enjoy the mainstreaming of their music and respond with one of their catchiest sets of songs. There's nothing new on the record apart from their willingness to polish their music so it reaches the widest audience. That will alienate whatever hardcore followers they have left, but that attitude will likely please anyone brought aboard with
and
"Iris."
[
was re-released on LP in 2015.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine