I love musical families. From the Jacksons to the Nolans, from DeBarge to those dreaded Hanson boys, musical
families have always provided us, I would say, with some of the most entertaining moments in pop (a contentious issue, but then, this is my review, not a
debate club). So we turn out attention to UXL, a band of three brothers and a friend of the family from Birmingham, with an average age of 18.
John, the lead vocalist, is but 16, although from the voice demonstrated here, it's a safe bet that he's been through puberty.
Beautiful Today has the potential to be rather interesting thanks to a very good, capable rhythm section, which anchors the song and probably
makes it better than it deserves to be. Credit to these kids, they're making a start in the business we call show, and they are doing it their way -
but I don't think I can dodge the issue further, because ultimately, this just isn't very good.
It's honest and earnest enough, but it sounds too much like the kind of soft rock that went out of fashion with Journey,
power ballads and Bonnie Tyler hairdo's.
