Junior Boys

Junior Boys (actually one boy, Jeremy Greenspan) say they want to take disco out of the disco and use its hypnotic rhythms to create a new kind of easy-listening pop. To that end, they remove the rock and hard-core club beats from their music to create pleasant, dreamy, somnambulant landscapes that don’t really make you want to get up and dance, or move, or even pay close attention. The music is slick and polished, but there’s nothing here that will rouse you to hit the replay button. The cover of the Sinatra oldie “When No One Cares” sums up the album’s main problem. Sinatra may have been middle-of-the-road, but he always had an edge, an insouciant panache that gave an emotional resonance to even his most laid-back performances. Without that edge, you’re left with 40 minutes of aural wallpaper.