Beatles disciples master pop formula

For more than a decade, teenage angst has ruled the sphere of so-called "intelligent" pop music. As great as groups like Nirvana or R.E.M. were, they were alienating. They moved the crises of a person in their mid-20s into kid's music.\nSo, here are the Apples in Stereo, copping all that '60s pop music so ingrained and beloved by all and making music for the young people. The songs have lyrics that don't require thought and melodies that are undeniable.\nThe Apples in Stereo have always been confined by their affinity for the Beatles, but is there any better band to emulate? Not only have they taken the Beatles gift for melody to the hilt, they've also inherited the absolute joy of making music.\nVelocity of Sound races past the listener, leaving one mindless, like after watching a sitcom. It is instant gratification of the best sort -- this is a band that knows its limitations. The guitar tone never turns off the distortion, and the drums never vary from the 4/4 rhythm. \nSongwriter Robert Schneider's impossibly high voice moves all 10 songs along as one gleeful ride.\nLike Brian Wilson, who used to inject lyrics about his troubled youth into his teenage fantasies, Schneider is able to sneak in unsettling snippets into his songs. On "Do You Understand?" he sings, "If I had had my way / I'd tear down the memories / I'm chicken and I wanna run away." It makes one think that if Schneider got a little more personal, he could really be on to something.\nVelocity of Sound is such a slight album that one might be tempted to refuse its impact. While your typical pop stars whine about their success, the Apples are martyrs of the pop world. If you have a problem with it, the album is over in 29 minutes anyway.