Album title:
Welcome to Reality
Artist:
Ross Copperman
Label:
Sony BMG
Ross Copperman's debut album sounds like it was made for a certain Californian rich kid TV series, and judging by the album sleeve, the carefully made-over young Copperman wouldn't be too out of place among Seth, Summer and whatshisname. Born in Virginia, USA but domiciled in London, Copperman is one of those 'solo artists' with an anonymous, uncredited band plonked behind him in the name of credibility. In conventional pop terms, the songs are well-wrought compositions (Guy Chambers lurks behind the scenes on several) but although they all try to sound different, they all become one and the same: sickly, insipid twaddle that couldn't be fixed by all the session guitarists in the world. Copperman warbles in the standard yearning, faux-sincere way and, with song titles like Can't Stop Loving You and I Don't Wanna Let You Go, you've got to wonder what sort of 'reality' this is. [Nick Mitchell]