Ronan

Ronan Keating is an entertainer, not an artist, so maybe it's a bit rich to expect him to turn into Captain Beefheart at this stage. The king of spin, RK's line of work probably has more in common with your average GMTV presenter than any interpretive singer. That's not a snipe, just a fact - the guy exists on a media treadmill, and career management is his primary form of self-expression, not songwriting.

Maybe that's why his records huff and puff but never quite blow your house down. Ronan's take on perfect pop often sounds strained, lacking the pleasing sweetness of an All Saints tune, or the loving attention to detail a Gabrielle might invest in her Motown/Bacharach pastiches. In fact, the joylessness in his work can suggest an old pro like Paul Weller rather than the snap and crackle of any pop act.

Sensing this perhaps, Keating and handlers have drafted in ex-New Radical Gregg Alexander to inject the necessary upful oomph into this debut album's lead-off track, 'Life Is A Rollercoaster', easily the best thing Ronan's every done. Like 'You Get What You Give' (though not quite as delirious), it's a piano-driven anthem which demonstrates that, contrary to what the timbre of his voice may suggest, Ronan's better-suited to lighter fare than big ballads, a point driven home by the pedestrian nature of slowies like 'Keep On Walking' and 'Addicted'.

However, it would be remiss of any reviewer not to note Keating's labours in the vocal booth, even if the feel of the material that makes up the belly of the album is undeniably ersatz: designer gospel/r&b ('Brighter Days'), fake rave ups ('If You Love Me'), flaccid balladry ('Only For You').

Far better is 'The way You Make Me Feel', co-written by Phil Thornalley and Bryan Adams, featuring the Canuck buck on backing vocals. Here, Keating turns in the kind of easygoing roots-rock that would make his colleague Mikey Graham green with envy, and I'm not just talking about the production budget either. And on that note, the money's a mixed blessing - why invest so much moolah in knocking the corners off your music, resulting in an album that sounds like it was designed by committee, lacking a coherent tone or flavour?

Ronan Keating may yet make a great pop record, but this ain't it. Put some blood in the music, dude.