Damien Binder: Til Now

By RUSSELL BAILLIE

(Herald rating: * * * *)

The usual path for the Kiwi bloke singer-songwriter is to have the legacy of a band or three behind him before striking out under his own name.

Even Greg Johnson was once a "Set". Aucklander Damien Binder, whose voice isn't unlike Johnson's, and is here on his second solo album after his impressive self-titled 2000 debut, did his mid-90s time in the group Second Child, which didn't really dent the national pop conscience.

But here Binder again proves that the personal approach agrees with him and his songs, on an album which ranges from toe-tapping pop- and country-rock to moody, heartfelt ballads.

If there's a drawback it's that the music sounds too even-tempered, and Binder's voice can sound like he is again fronting a band rather than being the natural centre of attention.

However, if the production isn't calling attention to itself, the songs soon shine through. Among the brightest are the optimistic opener Til Now, the rueful heart-on-sleeve Anytime, the Crowded House-ish A Day's Grace, the country-hearted More Than You Could Know (helped by Dianne Swann's sweet harmonies) and the equally dreamy pair of Take Me and the closing Passing Through.

It may lack that one standout track that might win him an extra spotlight, but that doesn't stop Binder's second being an album as convincing as its predecessor in its honest emotions and intelligent songcraft.

Label: Muse