Get the Picture?

Reviewed by:
David Peisner

You could say that Smashmouth are a group of unimaginative, uninspired radio-pop charlatans, but then you’d already be putting more thought into their music than they do. This is not really meant as a dig: Some things just aren’t meant to be pondered too heavily, and Smashmouth is definitely one of them. Their fourth album, Get the Picture?, continues in the bouncy, brainless vein of their previous three, with Neil Diamond–penned, lite-reggae love songs (“You Are My Number One”), synth-led reminiscences about middle school (“Seventh Grade Dance”), and jaunty power-pop meditations on highway traffic (“105”) that show a commitment to nothing other than breezy, hook-filled fun. “Hot” mimics the band’s earlier hit “Rock Star,” and “Fun,” with its organ-juiced garage-pop snap, sounds an awful lot like their breakthrough, “Walkin’ on the Sun.” But if you were expecting bold, original musical direction from Smashmouth, you obviously don’t, uh, get the picture.