At first appearance he looks just like a cross between Kurt Cobain and the singer for the Goo Goo Dolls… though there are few similarities between the three when it comes to the sound.

Michael does however make use of a slightly less pronounced grunge style, albeit much cleaner and delivers some great melodies.

"Inhale" as an opening track could well make some waves as a lead single, with it's trippy beat and catchy chorus… though "I'm In Love With Everyone" may be just a bit far reaching twenty years removed from the seventies!

"January" is among the lighter variety with a fine mixture of acoustic/electric guitar, very AOR and easy to listen to when seeking morningside inspiration. Very upbeat and poppy, Michael incorporates quite a bit of that seventies influence that first made the likes of Cheap Trick into a household name… and all these years later there still fumbling around the kitchen it seems!

Tune five, "Luxuride" is a dead ringer for something they did back on one of their late '80s releases… very flighty and Zander-like in key moments. Not quite the bite of traditional rock but more so of a Matthew Sweet style… maybe The Wallflowers, or Tal Bachman-remember 'im?

But "Inhale" is pretty bare bones at the surface. Yes it's your basic pop/rock elemental look inside the brighter side of life, grown up and without reservation, all the while wholly modern without the typical use of additives or filler.

Monotony rears its dissatisfied head at times throughout the middle here where Michael seems bent on getting a little too cerebral and sorrowful. All told not a bad debut for a virtual one many show… how does he get his hair to stand up like that after wearing so many hats anyway?

He effectively mixes and matches serious and at times quirky lyrics, which for artists like this are as symbolic as anything else going on in the background, into a neatly wrinkled little package of power pop and grind and even throws in an old Joe Jackson cover given an extra boost by playing off key and blending in a few keyboard highlights, but basically a nice job all around.

Released by Beyond Music

Review by Vinnie Apicella [va85@columbia.edu]