GOO Goo Dolls Gutterflower (Warner) Rating: NN
Rating: NN
The Goo Goo Dolls name has always carried a certain amount of cred, since they started out as a grungy Replacements-style guitar rock band before making it big in sappy romance-movie soundtrackland. They still sound like Matchbox 20 or Gin Blossoms to me. Gutterflower (the title comes from Pablo Neruda’s poetic description of street kids) features typical hooky, radio-friendly pop songs, sprawling ballads and pseudo-hardcore big guitar dirges. But there are a few bright spots, like the country-tinged acoustic Sympathy, which breaks away from the Goos’ gag-inducing generic power-ballads. It’s a moment of respite in a sea of same old, same old. SARAH LISS