Benny Sings is a Dutch artist who has been releasing albums for over fifteen years. After releasing a handful of albums on Dox Records and working with artists like Goldlink and Mayer Hawthorne, he seeks to cross over to an American audience as he makes his debut on Stones Throw with City Pop.

If you’re not familiar with Benny Sings, his style of music is a soul-flavored pop, with a touch of indie rock for balance. He’s drawing upon influences like Hall & Oates, George Benson, or any number of smooth R&B artists from the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, and then updating the sound just a little, putting him alongside contemporaries like Sondre Lerche and Phoenix. He’s got a nice voice and a good sense of melody, and everything on City Pop is incredibly easy to listen to. His music is just very accessible and fun. In making this album, Benny Sings was influenced by his international travel, and worked with musicians such as Mayer Hawthorne, Cornelius, Sukimaswitch, Mocky, Faberyayo, and Renaud Letang. On paper, this seems like a really interesting album. While it’s still an enjoyable pop album, if I didn’t know any background information on City Pop, I would have never guessed that this album featured artists from three different continents. It just sounds like another Benny Sings album, which is totally pleasant and nice to listen to. Really, more than anything, the thing that’s holding this album back is its lack of a standout moment. Everything about the album is good, but nothing is great. There’s not big moment, crescendo, or bridge that builds to anything or takes you to an unexpected moment. There’s not a lyrical moment that makes you pause and wonder on the imagery or the raw emotion. There’s just nothing to really sink your teeth into. So while it’s not bad, it’s not great either.

City Pop had all the makings of a great album on paper, but it just never quite reaches its potential. Benny Sings can write a solid pop song in his sleep, and he’s given us plenty of perfectly good R&B-flavored pop songs on this album, but it still leaves you wanting.