Blunt trauma

James Blunt is back for your mom ... Well, her pocketbook, anyway.\nIf nothing else, one has to admire the focus, the determination, the singular pursuit of this goal in Blunt's sophomore album All The Lost Souls. Much like Coldplay's X&Y, Lost Souls is a study in disciplined mediocrity, but with a narrower end: It's a precisely calibrated, fastidiously crafted device for the delicate operation of separating your mom from $10 plus tax. \nTake, for example, all the touchstones nicked from other pop songs -- the references to "shining on," to sprouting wings and flying away; the "Hey Jude"-like sing-along at the end of "Give Me Some Love." Or take the fact that it starts with a nostalgic tune about nights spent clubbing in 1973 ("1973") and concludes by name-dropping "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" in "I Can't Hear The Music." Blunt even learns from Coldplay's mistake, injecting a bit (just a bit) of edge into the mix: the "I've taken a shitload of drugs" line in the chorus of "Give Me Some Love," a hint of anti-war/social criticism in "I Really Want You," a mention of cutting himself in "Same Mistake," etc. See, smooth James knows the ol' lady likes a bit of excitement (and, if not, she can get the edited version from Wal-Mart). \nAnd yet, despite occasional "bad boy" lyrics, Lost Souls makes Blunt's 2005 debut Back To Bedlam sound adventurous by comparison. In nearly every track, quiet piano or guitar open; percussion, additional vocals and instruments are added; things build until roughly two-thirds of the way through when an orchestral Wall of Sound breaks out. And what Blunt's lyrics lack in originality, they make up for in repetition. If you didn't think a lyric was interesting at first, wait 'til you hear it, or a virtually identical lyric, 11 more times (as in "Shine On"). \nThis is all very dull but never objectionable (as long as you don't think about it too much). However, as a good son or daughter, you should prevail upon your mom to simply buy one track and put it on repeat -- it's the same experience, and she'll save $9.