Unless you're a Fountains of Wayne fan, you'll probably only be familiar with their mega-hit from 2003, Stacy's Mom. While that ubiquitous (yet undeniably catchy) power-pop anthem served the Massachusetts foursome well by raising their profile to a previously-unknown stratospheric zenith (a video starring model Rachel Hunter as the subject matter didn't do them any harm, either), it also pegged them as something of a frivolous act with a penchant for cutesy-catchy pop songs. Which, okay, isn't actually that far off the mark. Delve into the Fountains history, however, and you'll discover some interesting facts, if not hidden depths. Frontman Adam Schlesinger, for example, was responsible for writing the ace theme tune to 1996 movie That Thing You Do!, and was nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for doing so; he's also co-founder of independent label Scratchie Records with ex-Smashing Pumpkins James Iha and D'arcy Wretzky, amongst others. Unsurprisingly, then, it's this marriage of perfect pop and a more serious rock background that moulds the Fountains of Wayne sound, and particularly that of Traffic and Weather. Opener Someone to Love is a bouncy, grunge-tinged pop number with a distinctly '80s synth jangle, while its successor, '92 Subaru sounds like a Tom Petty track from the same decade. Most of Traffic and Weather runs the same course: jangly-pop-rock, power-pop-rock or synth-flavoured-pop-rock replete with warm, glossy harmonies and wry lyrics that tell witty stories of customary episodes ('They say Virginia is For Lovers, but it's not / 'Round here, it's just for truckers who forgot / To fill up on gasoline / Back near Aberdeen'). There's the occasional downtempo number (torch song I-95, and the gloopy, slinky Planet of Weed) too, and even a brace of out-and-out alt-country numbers (Fire in the Canyon, Seatback and Tray Tables). Fountains of Wayne may not be the most experimental band releasing music, but if your bag is high-quality rock music with a brazen pop sensibility, Traffic and Weather is definitely one of the albums you'll enjoy most this summer.
