Former
Squirrel Bait leader (as well as a veteran of such groups as
Big Wheel and Starbilly)
Searcy sticks to the post-punk pop he artfully crafted on his earlier projects for his debut solo album. He's obviously older here (
Squirrel Bait were mere teenagers when they hit) and his subjects have appropriately grown, too.
Could You Please and Thank You suffers from a slight lack of focus (influences spotted here include
the Replacements to
Matthew Sweet to any number of the '90s alt-rock heroes), but the pleasantness of some of the songs gives it a decent balance. ~ Michael Gallucci