★★★★★
From The Raspberries to Marshall Crenshaw to Matthew Sweet,purveyors of intelligent pop rock have had a difficult time of itcommercially. The mass audience seems to like its rock-inflectedpop from either potential or bona fide teen idols, not grown-upswith knowing irony. But two years ago, Fastball's single "TheWay" was the exception that proved the rule...
- ew.com
2011-03-03
★★★★★
You'll recall this pop-rock trio as the men behind The Way, which became ubiquitous on commercial radio several years ago. Just like that previous single, this new full length hints at some greater potential, but falls short by aiming squarely at radio with a transparent polish. Like a cool new pair of sneakers crying out for some mud, Keep Your Wig On suffers for its lack of grit.
- www.hour.ca
2010-11-02
★★★★★
What do Fountains Of Wayne, All-American Rejects and Wheatus all have in common? Apart from the fact that they're all North American groups, it would appear that they are also commercially-minded pop rock bands who are perpetually struggling to shake the 'one hit wonder' label. Fellas, say hello to Fastball.You have to go all the way back to 1998 to find Fastball's breakthrough. It came in the form of My Way, which was a massive run-away hit for the Austin, Texas trio...
- www.musicomh.com
2010-08-23
★★★★★
Sound: "Keep Your Wig On" is a very laid back, very rockin, stoner album. It starts out with a little piano track named "Shortwave" sung by both Miles Zuniga & Tony Scalzo, which by the way, some of the Austin Trio's new album has songs written by both Zuniga & Scalzo. "I Get High" is a real laid back rockin song about getting high, and forgetting about it all, but the 2 real standout songs in my opinion are the very upbeat "Till I Get It Right" and the sad "Our Misunderstanding...
- www.ultimate-guitar.com
2009-11-15
★★★★★
About five years ago, Fastball's All the Pain Money Can Buy went platinum on the back of smash single The Way. Since then, Messrs Scalzo, Zuniga and Shuffield have had time to reflect on commercial success and the pressures of selling records. The Austin three-piece spent a while apart, writing with artists like Guy Clark and NRBQ's Al Anderson, before finally coming back together after the long break to put together this latest effort...
- www.noripcord.com
2009-07-21
★★★★★
More than a decade has passed since Fastball's platinum breakthrough, 1998's All the Pain Money Can Buy. The local trio's fifth studio LP, Little White Lies, doesn't signal a comeback but rather a coming of age. Frontmen Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga are at their most engaging and affecting, perfectly complementing each other via the title track's modern decadence and opening summer crush of "All I Was Looking for Was You...
- www.austinchronicle.com
2009-07-21
★★★★★
"We just wanted to make a personal statement with our music," aver these three Austinites with a sincere look in their eyes. And so they yoke popcraft worthy of Three Dog Night, the Doobie Brothers, perhaps even Matchbox 20, to lyrics that speak of the dark things--institutionalization, methadone, lovers left bleeding, highways going nowhere, and, quite a few times, their own inordinate careerism. Is that personal enough for you?
- www.robertchristgau.com
2009-07-10
★★★★★
We're told the"power pop" label is the kiss of death, so let's say you mightenjoy this Austin trio even if you don't care for three-minuterock songs rife with whistleable riffs, mistakable-for-vintagehooks, and the wryest possible sincerity. Talk about knowing"The Way": Fastball's unexpectedly crackerjack sophomore try All the Pain Money Can Buy issuch a quantum leap forward from their mediocre, garage-y '96debut, it's as if they progressed from the Hamburg Club toRubber Soul in two years. A-
- ew.com
2009-06-12
★★★★★
From the Raspberries to Marshall Crenshaw to Matthew Sweet, purveyors of intelligent pop rock have had a difficult time of it commercially. The mass audience seems to like its rock inflected pop from either potential or bona fide teen idols, not grownups with knowing irony. But two years ago, Fastball's single "The Way" was the exception that proved the rule...
- ew.com
2009-06-12
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