Album is good but not 'of our lives'

The Soundtrack of Our Lives' Behind the Music is one of those albums that makes the listener wonder, "Where have I heard this before?"\nTo the musicians' credit, they have made an album that is both original and derivative. The listener can never quite put a finger on whom they are ripping off.\nThe Soundtrack of Our Lives continues the Swedish invasion into the American rock scene, but unlike the Hives, Hellacopters or the International Noise Conspiracy, TSOOL isn't a bunch of garage rock revivalists but psychedelic popsters instead. Finally released with major-label distribution in the U.S., Behind the Music is probably the worst album title of the year, though I am happy to say that Leif Garrett is nowhere to be heard and that any confusion between this disc and a cheesy VH1 television show is strictly your own. \nIn the album's 15 tracks, the band tries just about everything and does a decent, but not great, job of keeping a stylistic discipline. "Tonight" and "In Your Veins" are pretty piano ballads. "Broken Imaginary Time" and "Into the Next Sun" are psychedelic epics. "Sister Surround" and "Independent Luxury" are straightforward pop songs.\nFor those of you who equate "psychedelic" to "10-minute droning guitar solo in the middle," TSOOL might disappoint. Its sound is more about sound flourishes and attitude -- handclaps here, sitar there. Fredrik Sandsten gets credit for "drums, percussion and spiritual guidance, etc."\nThe band's main fixation seems to be late-'60s psychedelic pop, like Love or the Zombies. They also borrow a little from Sgt. Pepper's and Pet Sounds. Singer Ebbot Lundberg is decent but lacks a captivating voice, and one can say the same about Ian Person's guitar. Martin Hederos is the MVP, with some pleasant organ washes and piano tinkling, and he proves to be the band's real personality.\nSometimes, though, an album needs a few powerful moments to help the listener appreciate the subtle. Behind the Music's main fault, though, is that it is too subtle.