Food for Thoughtlessness

It's a solo album from the rhythm guitarist of EchoBrain, the band that Jason Newsted started after he was kicked out of Metallica. So one would be forgiven for expecting Dylan Donkin's solo debut to be the nu metal equivalent if, say, the bassist from McGuinness Flint had done an album of his own circa 1973. Turns out, however, that Donkin was thinking more in terms of James Iha's surprisingly sweet and poppy post-Smashing Pumpkins solo record. The five songs on Food for Thoughtlessness are AAA singer/songwriter pop, with an introspective bent and a fondness for unpretentious pop melodies. There's one tune, the instrumental "The Commonaut," that leans towards mid-period Pink Floyd with its spacy keyboards and Dave Gilmour-like slide guitar solo, but for the most part, Aimee Mann is as close a comparison as anyone to this earnest, heartfelt record. One song in particular is a huge standout, however: the epic "Make a Choice" goes into full-on '70s FM ear candy mode in the style of Fleetwood Mac, 10cc, and even a little bit of Al Stewart's "Year of the Cat," all in the service of the album's strongest melody.