Oliver Trolley’s debut EP on Gas Can Records flirts with a nineteen and half minute run mark which is a mix of enjoyable and forgettable tunes. The first track off the album, Livin’ My Life, is a playful little number with cute lyrics, a whistling synth, and a repetitious little piano roll being played in the background. As a radio friendly pop rock tune its highly accessible but lacks depth. Maybe I Could Tell, track two, suffers from the same shallow inept approach lyrically. Still, oddly enough, the album begins with an upbeat and undeniable feel to it. It’s the kind of music that you hear once and like but after a week of heavy rotation you simply grow apart from it due to its lack of real substance.

The albums title track is the most obvious of the tracks to go truly radio friendly. Of all the tracks on the album Circles seems like it has the most direction and the most character. Sound-wise it doesn’t feel as clumsy as the rest of the album, which in its defense plays like a sampler for the bands diversity, moving through a nice little rock track occasionally flirting with a reggae sound. If any song on the album was meant for you to listen to and take seriously this band, this would be it.

The following two tracks on the album are Getting’ Loud! and Face To Face. The first of the two is really the only true throw away off the album. Not quite sure where they were going with this track or how they felt it fit into the theme of the EP, though I do reiterate that the album feels more like a sampler, but it simply comes off as some country goes pop mess. Face To Face however sits in the same category as the first two tracks on the EP. You’ve got some charming guitars, synths, great harmony, and an infectious chorus.

Last song on the EP is without a doubt my favorite and the most raw show of talent for the band. Way Too Fast is an acoustic number that lyrically shows a potent amount of substance and its delivery is fantastically smooth. Chances are, when the band is ready for a full album release, Oliver Trolley can either go this route, which is fantastic, or simply make music to please radio listeners. I hope its more of the first with just dash of the latter. In any case Circles makes for a good few weeks of listening before it begins to lose its charm, the exception being Way Too Fast. As always though final judgment is yours. Enjoy.