Connected

Singer/songwriters Jen Black and Aja Blue may not be identical twin sisters, but they're clearly not at all uncomfortable with drawing comparisons to Tegan & Sara: the crisp, slightly punky power pop of the San Francisco-based duo's second album immediately brings to mind the similarly well-polished sound of the Canadian duo's So Jealous and The Con. Not to mention Letters to Cleo, Garbage, Veruca Salt, Velocity Girl, and post-Exile in Guyville Liz Phair, to name just a few of the Bruises' other antecedents. This is quite a surprise, given the more acoustic, folk-rocking vibe of the duo's 2003 debut Last Summer, but nearly five years is long enough to assume that the near-total stylistic overhaul was organic and not commercially motivated. The problem is that the bright and shiny guitar rock of Connected has only a surface similarity to the previously mentioned bands, which all have or had both stronger songwriting and more memorable personalities than are evident here. The songs are melodic and hooky enough, with catchy singalong choruses and good riffs, but the lyrics lack any spark of uniqueness that would make them more than vaguely memorable. It's no trouble at all to imagine a cookie-cutter pop princess like Avril Lavigne or Mandy Moore singing smartly catchy potential hits like "Distraction" or "Handful of Tears," which speaks well to the commercial pop smarts of Black and Blue as songwriters, but makes Connected a pleasant but unchallenging listen that barely registers in the listener's memory half an hour later.