Rolling Stone magazine described their tunes as being like “if all your childhood stuffed animals got together and started a band.” Just judging by the button-eyed toy dog featured on the cover, this portrayal seems pretty accurate. Upbeat and effervescently cheery, The Boy Least Likely To consists of the British duo instrumentalist Pete Hobbs and singer-songwriter Jof Owen. Their debut album released in 2006, The Best Party Ever, drew praise from critics, and the breakout single “Be Gentle with Me” was featured as a catchy theme song in several commercials.
Now Hobbs and Owen are back with the same poppy-folk feel on their new album, Law of the Playground, but this time they dig deeper and explore darker themes not covered in their previous album.
Although the melodies of the album are reminiscent of sophisticated versions of children’s cartoon theme songs, the lyrics — at times — provide an interesting contrast. Owen, with his breathy, Sufjan Stevens-like voice, croons out his very adult feelings of insecurity, loneliness and distrust. The result is a multi-layered listening experience — bright, toe-tapping instrumentals combined with deep and insightful lyrics. It’s an unusual blend that can be hard to accomplish, but The Boy Least Likely To is able to pull it off with flying colors.
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“A Balloon on a Broken String” seems to be a simple tune about the freedom of a balloon floating upward in the sky, but the lyrics quickly turn melancholy as Owen laments, “I drift carelessly on a summer breeze/ I bounce above the trees/ I try to be cheerful/ But I can feel myself deflating all the time.” Similarly, in “I Keep Myself to Myself,” Owen wavers unsure between the struggles of adulthood and the innocence of childhood. His ambiguous state is represented as he sings, “I am afraid of falling in love so I/ Keep myself to myself/ I want a cookie and I need a hug but I/ Keep myself to myself.”
However, not all of the duo’s work includes such heavy thought. The enthusiastic opener, “Saddle Up,” indicates the continuation of the bands irrepressible happy-go-lucky nature. “I Box Up All the Butterflies” — the early release single of the album — could be right at home on The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, complete with a wide range of vocal harmonies and a xylophone that creates an infectious, toe-tapping rhythm.
Sure to encourage sing-alongs is “When Life Gives Me Lemons I Make Lemonade,” which exudes a simple, positive — albeit clich?d — outlook on life. Hobbs’ twangy banjo and synthesizer interlude creates the cheeriest track on the album, but the cuteness hovers just behind the gag-inducing threshold. Still, the sunny, no-worries outlook rings clear.
For those times when we need a gloomy soundtrack to accompany our miserable day, Law of the Playground will probably be skipped over with a roll of the eyes. But for those who yearn for the carefree hours spent in the sandbox, The Boy Least Likely To is sure to create smiles with their playful snippets of childhood combined with lessons in optimism.
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3 stars out of 4.