There aren't many acts that were big when I was in college that are still making relevant music, likely for the same reason I'm not headed out to clubs much these days to hear their successors: Life (and age) gets in the way. So it was a surprise to hear Secrets of the New Explorers from Glen Phillips. While I was an eager listener in the earliest days of his band Toad the Wet Sprocket --the band's debut, Bread and Circus was issued the summer after my freshman year, and was on the playlist of every sensitive indie rocker that fall semester -- I outgrew Toad about the time grunge took hold.

I knew Phillips had embarked on a solo career, but didn't pay him much mind until this EP showed up in the mailbox. The premise is intriguing: The son of two scientists, he and collaborator John Askew discussed ideas while recording that led to a batch of songs about space. Three songs were completed, with Phillips recording an additional three solo. The result is a clever, catchy EP.

It sounds like Phillips if you know what you're listening for, but I was surprised at the maturity of his sound. Credit the fact that he started with Toad while still a teenager, and is now a guy in his mid 30s. I wish more of my favorites from way back had stayed in the game in this fashion. Too many give up or put together years-in-the-making albums that fall flat. Phillips had an idea, came up with an EP's worth of songs and put it out. Simple, and the kind of experiment that more artists would do well to emulate.

The disc is surprisingly diverse given its quick completion and its brevity. "They'll Find Me" and "Return to Me" seem the most Toadlike, while "Solar Flare" seems like a sweet lullaby about, um, radiation poisoning. "Space Elevator," with a faux funky vibe is one I could take or leave, but everything else is pleasant and compelling.

In just 20 short minutes, Phillips reasserts himself as someone for me to watch, with a model that ought to be emulated by any creative artists with access to a home studio and some ideas to explore.

MP3: Solar Flare

Labels: music, TuesdayTuneup