[media-credit name=’Upbeat Records’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]

Cake is back, but they’re suspiciously catchier than ever and it sounds as though their lead lyricist, John McCrea, has taken vocal lessons to chop out the choppy, half spoken style associated with the face of Cake. For those of you who were belting out Backstreet Boys, ‘N Sync and Hansen tunes in the yellow school bus, you’ll recognize their chopped up 2001 single, “Short Skirt/Long Jacket,” is the theme song for your favorite NBC TV show, “Chuck” (of course after “30 Rock”).

Their newest album, Showroom of Compassion, is chock full o’tracks that in the majority, are single worthy. “Federal Funding,” “Sick of You” and “Teenage Pregnancy” are among some that do not scare from the band’s politics, ethics and cultural eye-opening PSAs. At the least that much hasn’t changed.

Their messages are crystal clear, almost straight forward. McCrea sings, “Every shiny toy that at first brings you joy will always start to cry and annoy; every camera every phone all the music that you own won’t change the fact you’re all alone,” in “Sick of You.” 

It’s simple to recognize his opinion on the current consumerist culture that covets the latest gadgets, all without having to make an effort to read between the lines. The four-year hiatus has done a number on the band and McCrea, as they get right to the point, no-holds barred.

There is a misdirection in Showroom of Compassion. It’s evident in an all too easy case of juggling multiple genres, deviating far from the funkiness they’ve been embraced for. 

“Bound Away” is noticeably country-like and a song that may have you double-taking to make sure that it was in fact Cake, while “The Winter” displays more than a hint of The Beatles. They’re guilty as charged.

If Cake’s history was nonexistent, Showroom of Compassion would be a solid debut.

What’s suspicious is that rather than testing the lyrics, it’s a change in the melody and various genres with which Cake is experimenting – dare we say, almost testing the waters. It can only make one wonder about their underlying intent.

Are they seeking to find their niche based on their fan’s reception? Or should we expect a rap and hip-hop track in Cake’s next album. If that’s intent for a veteran band, it’s a disheartening thought. With the popularity of the likes of James Blunt or John Mayer, McCrea seems to have traded the spoken style for potentially chart topping crooning and extended piano parts, though signs of the old McCrea are interspersed within the melody, albeit rarely. 

It appears that like Christina Aguilera, no one is safe from the changing times of the music industry and the consumers’ tastes.

To an extent, you can’t blame Cake. This album was released under their own record label, Upbeat Records, and from within their solar powered recording studio, so they’re likely looking to pay off the bills for those expensive solar panels. When business is a factor, labels are always going to worry about fans purchasing albums, posters and other miscellaneous gear to keep the gears of the music factory turning and churning.

4 of 5 stars