ViV
Flawed
(Self-Released)

Much along the lines of other indie pop bands, such as Guster and Beulah, San Francisco's ViV serves its songs sunny-side up, artfully concealing the gooey core of their songwriting until it's too late to do anything but heartily eat it up.

The band's radio-friendly sophomore release, Flawed, successfully unites meaty melodies a la Foo Fighters, with syrupy emotional sensitivity, a la Travis, while infusing a bit of down-home Americana.

"Did I"'s infectious pop chorus belies its more serious nature as a breakup song, while the sweet melodies and blossoming harmonies of "Friends" and "Shine" really make everything seem okay.

Flawed's tunes are both sad and encouraging, good-natured love songs written for all those humpty dumpty's who have been broken but managed to put the pieces together again, albeit with the cracks still showing.

A. Koledin