"Wishing," the opening track of Closer Than You Think, will no doubt have Puller fans scratching their heads, wondering, "Where have they taken my favorite band, and who is playing this radio-friendly modern rock in their place?" Not to worry. The hammering riffs and jagged rhythms introduced on their debut, Sugarless, return in time to keep the fan from throwing the disc on the pile of MTV-crowned flavors of the month.
The collective talents of Puller are on full display throughout this release. A powerful metallic low-end crunch is taken on an obstacle course of time changes with superb precision. Trouble is, too much of this good thing makes for an occasionally compelling, but mostly exhausting experience. The listener is left with little to hold on to, sort of like trying to tackle Barry Sanders. Impressed, no doubt, but still left behind, watching as the Detroit Lions' star running back dances in the end zone.
Wonderful things do happen when the pyrotechnics meet a unifying idea, particularly on two songs in the middle of the disc. In "Own Devices", disparate musical themes flow rather than crash into each other as Mike Lewis sings about refusing to accept another's help:
You set out your hands
I reach for something else
You whisper my name
I hear my call
I tend to fall down
Hope prevails, though, in "Light In Eve's Time", which slowly builds before a piano solo (no kidding!) leads into the joyful finale:
Reborn life
Picking up the pieces to survive
Keeping me barely alive
Keeping my heart alive
Keeping my hands, keeping my hope
Keeping my soul alive
"Am I Samaritan" is another lyrical highlight, as Lewis identifies with the woman who Jesus met at the well. But these moments are lost in the complexities of what could have been, with just a little more restraint, an excellent album.
2.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Jeff ElbelThis sophomore venture by former For Love Not Lisa frontman Mike Lewis' group shows alternating signs of maturity and stubbornness. None will argue that Puller isn't a crack rhythm unit; this quartet manages time shifts to make any prog band drool. The band exhibits more texture and emo appeal this time, while tracks like "Wishing" and "She" suggest kinship with the Foo Fighters. The problem with…HM Magazine #73Reviewed by Brian Vincent McGovernWith a cool melody blended with timely musicianship, the first track, "Wishing," sadly laments a relationship with lyrics like, "I find I wish a lot, reduced to a vampire. This is all the damage I care to take..." I see a lot more guitar variety here. In fact, some of the hooks in songs like "Out of My Head" hint at Stavesacre. Though not as heavy, it sure is rock & roll. Geoff Riley keeps the…7ball #20Reviewed by Derek Walker"This is all the damage I care to take," Puller frontman Mike Lewis asserts in the opening track on Closer Than You Think, "Wishing." Sporting a world-weary and mysteriously earnest tone in his pleasant singing voice, Lewis (formerly of now-defunct mainstream rock act For Love Not Lisa) leads his Southern California-based outfit through 12 stirring tunes that make up a gem of a sophomore album.…Similar sounding releases
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