Jason Martin has a fixation with love songs. Fans of Starflyer 59 have known this since the "Silver" days. But now Martin has gone and made it a family affair--with his new wife, Julie, and their new band, Bon Voyage.
The Martins are in familiar territory in their debut self-titled offering on BEC Recordings. The music is predictable enough, holding few surprises for initiated Starflyer fans. But it's the vocals that give Bon Voyage their distinction. Mrs. Martin adds a syrupy sweet high-end vox to the eclectic mix of surf and wave rock that sometimes seems to tire these ears. After the first half of the album I keep wanting to turn my cd player off and do something else. This is partly because it seems I've heard all these songs before on some previous Starflyer incarnation. It's also partly because I secretly don't want Bon Voyage to become so big that they replace the testosterone rush of SF59 in concert.
While the album does have some very catchy tunes--as with all Martin albums--it feels like some of the songs would have been better as Starflyer songs than as Bon Voyage ones. Gene Eugene also adds his signature on a couple of tracks, spinning magic like yarn on the synth end of the production.
Yet even despite overall better-than-average studio musicianship we've come to expect from Mr. Martin and company, I would have to recommend the album only to fans who already know and love Starflyer 59. On the whole this album seems like another Starflyer album, not like the breakaway new band I was hoping for. I can't help but get the feeling Jason Martin is going to get tired of the comparisons between his bachelor band and his married-guy band.
One plus is the first rate album art, complete with a nifty center-folding sleeve and Polaroid photos of the band lineup. But looks aren't everything, and I suppose in the end it just goes to show that if you want to make it in this market you don't necessarily have to be a "great" band if you're a "cool" band. A very slight thumbs down on this one.
Other coverage for this album
Opus 2000Reviewed by Nolan ShigleyJason Martin from Starflyer 59 and his wife Julie started Bon Voyage by just recording a few singles, but were then encouraged by others to keep recording and to play some live shows. The present self-titled album is the result of good advice taken. Foreshadowed by the past singles put out on vinyl, the current album has turned out to be no other than a gorgeous pop album full of catchy melodies…HM Magazine #72Reviewed by Brian Vincent McGovernFor anyone who likes Starflyer 59's more upbeat songs, imagine putting a sugary sweet female voice in it, and you'll have a fairly good idea of the sound here. Never one to follow trends, Jason Martin, along with wife Julie, have put together one of the nicer female fronted pop records yet this year - without sounding like most other so-called girlie-pop bands, but not as dark and atmospheric as…7ball #17Reviewed by J. Edward KeyesThe debut record from Starflyer-guy Jason Martin and wife Julie opens inauspiciously enough with the fuzzy, indirect pop of "Honeymoon," a bubblegum number about going out on a Saturday night. It neither captures the attention nor refuses it, but chugs along dutifully through its three minutes, ending in a swell of keyboards provided by producer and Adam Again frontman Gene Eugene. Then the real…The Lighthouse Unsorted 1998Reviewed by Alex KlagesHype is a terrible thing, and there was a lot of pre-release hype about how great the Bon Voyage album was going to be. Now that it is out, we in the general public have a chance to listen to the album and judge for ourselves the quality of this disc. Well, as far as I'm concerned, it's a good album, but not "the perfect pop record" that we've heard it would be. Bon Voyage is a band that comes…Similar sounding releases
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