The second album by singer/songwriter Tom Luce and an ever-shifting set of collaborators is a pleasant enough listen that never quite catches fire. Luce writes mature, emotional pop music that only rarely features enough melodic heft to match the strength of his lyrics, as on the catchy,
Neil Finn-like chorus of the title track. Too many of these 14 songs meander along for a few minutes and then peter out, and there's a disconcerting similarity to the slick AAA-radio-ready arrangements (think
Dave Matthews) that gives
Never Ending a pallid heard-it-before quality that the songs themselves don't really deserve. It seems like there's a much better record inside
Never Ending, waiting to get out, but its negatives come very close to outweighing its positives. ~ Stewart Mason