The Calling

Two finds vocalist Alex Band and instrumentalist Aaron Kamin ditching their peripheral Calling brethren in favor of going it alone. It's also the follow-up to Camino Palmero, their impossibly successful debut that featured the lite FM hit "Wherever You Will Go." That song's formula is revisited repeatedly here, as Band and Kamin unleash a neutered firestorm of MOR rock. "Our Lives," "Things Will Go My Way," and "Chasing the Sun" all drift straightforwardly between Matchbox Twenty and U2, incorporating elements of both but rarely making much of an impression beyond a resigned sigh. The late-album entry "Dreaming in Red" offers a bit of sass, but not enough to scare anyone. Two should help the Calling keep whatever fans it made with Camino Palmero. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide