My first notes for Too Close read as follows: "This is pretty gentle singing for such an intense song." And that's how it stays for the Hullabahoos on Washed Up; there's just not enough oomph to drive these songs, and rarely an arrangement bold enough to enhance the original music in new ways.

Arrangements are definitely a talking point on Washed Up, largely for their simplicity. I've heard simple, largely transcriptive arrangements work before, but it's an uphill run where the voices must be rock solid and captivating. The first two tracks on Washed Up, Too Close and There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back, are rather basic with word-heavy backgrounds (too bad; that smoldering whisper-singing from Matthew Cahill on track two is divine). We get some bouncy arrangements with good leads, too (Marry You and Castle on the Hill), but nothing to really hook us and keep us. Creativity and more advanced work in the percussion lines would also help. The last four tracks on Washed Up sound particularly uncharged, a grouping that puts a spotlight on the strengths and weakness of these Hullabahoos, who are capable of creating soft, reflective settings, but unable to get a fire going.

When the source song was designed to be intimate, this framework of light-touch singing can offer great beauty for listeners, the strongest work being the alluring Something in the Orange. The lead, Nick Chu, is fascinating to hear and appreciate, a voice that offers a near confessional. A huge part of this success is the well-constructed arrangement from Andrew London, a chart that lets Chu maximize the impact through clearly defined sections and growth, where layers add urgency in the voice leading, rhythms, and percussion. The upper voices on this track are particularly sophisticated and controlled, creating a full spectrum of sound for Chu's story. However, despite clearly having the chops to deliver delicate, reflective pieces, the group's sound doesn't always pair up with the writing. Best Part should be a sexy, come-hither ballad, and the leads are certainly trying, but the peppy "bow!" and "ba da da!" syllables throughout the arrangement are jarring instead of warm. The lengthy, repetitive bridge is also ineffective. Both Something in the Orange and Best Part were arranged by London, underscoring the need to give every song the same attention to detail for a consistent release.

There are solid musicians here. There are good songs here. Washed Up is more of an ala carte offering than a full meal; enjoy what appeals to you.

There's something very nostalgic about the sound of the Hullabahoos's Washed Up: these arrangements are all very soloist-forward, with backgrounds that aren't overly complex or distracting. The songs covered are almost exclusively male singer-songwriter (or nearly so: Maroon 5 and One Direction are the exceptions here). This all leads to a very "swoonerific" sound, which reminds me a lot of the collegiate a cappella of yesteryear — just recorded much more cleanly and modernly.

This sound has its plusses and minuses for the 'Bahoos: Something in the Orange really lends itself to this soloist-forward sound, and the gentle "oooooh"s and "ahhhhh"s in the backs (some of which are beautifully crescendoed) complements soloist Nick Chu. This song is swoonerific at its finest: a stunning solo, an arrangement that complements and doesn't distract, and a delicate performance that works with such an arrangement. There's some real movement in the backs on Castle on the Hill, which gives the song a huge burst of energy and momentum.

Other songs don't work as well: on album-opener Too Close, soloist Teddy Price sounds great (and sings his heart out!), but the chord-heavy arrangement just drags at times and isn't the strongest way to kick things off. Slower, heavier arrangements don't help Jealous and Best Part: these songs just feel lethargic and unvarying, and as a result, the whole performance feels unmemorable.

By far, though, the best song on Washed Up comes towards the end with Anyone. It starts out fairly unremarkably, but by the time the group gets to the second verse, soloist Tilden Puckett has really let it rip, and the arrangement has grown from chords behind the lead to something that adds (like Castle on the Hill) some movement that keeps this ballad moving forward without lagging. It's a lovely reminder of what the 'Bahoos can do with the right arrangement behind a song: sometimes on Washed Up, these guys just sound like they're trying to seduce college coeds, but sometimes, the group really strikes gold with a lead who slays and an arrangement that allows the backs to complement the solo and give the song a beautifully moving texture. There's nothing wrong with the former, but the latter is the magic that gets us at RARB really excited about what a group of voices can truly accomplish.

Though I hate to make universal statements about any kind of music, it's my firm belief that a cappella tracks should build to go somewhere and should be distinctive versions of the songs they cover; otherwise, it's just all-vocal karaoke. And like sitting through karaoke, the Hullabahoos's latest album, Washed Up, features soloists showing off on songs you forgot existed while the background sounds lack energy.

I felt transported back to 2002 while listening to this album, replete with so many lyrics in the background vocals, tenors singing in head voice instead of belt or mix, and covers of similar-sounding male-identifying artists. But there is better sound quality and add9 chords, so maybe it's an alternate a cappella universe? No matter the timeline, these qualities contribute to the "sound" of the Hoos, one that feels several styles ago rather than contemporary. Not helping is an album comprised almost entirely of songs from over five years ago (if not fifteen or twenty) and missing uptempo numbers.

But, more than anything, there's a lack of energy and urgency on Washed Up from everyone who is not singing the solo line. There are no moments that I would classify as forte or big, no apexes of catharsis or splendor, no loud dynamics to contrast with the largely soft to middling volumes on the album. Even Too Close, a dubstep song where you should feel the bass in your bones and the background vocals should melt your face, is pedestrian and even a bit boring.

The largely static arrangements don't help. This album, like their previous one I reviewed, still lacks "any kind of bold choice" that would wow me. Anyone comes the closest to giving us an arc to the song, but even after a bridge that tries to build to something, the final chorus of the track remains stubbornly subdued because the background vocals immediately revert to mid-volume head voice.

The soloists are bright spots on the album who largely fit the songs well and deliver good performances. Two stand out from the crowd: Nick Chu bares their soul on Something in the Orange and June Kim brings emotional intensity while showing off their range on Jealous. This is something to build on: the Hoos have good singers, but they need to find a more dynamic sound when singing background vocals. Along with maybe a few uptempo, high-energy numbers. Those adjustments could take this album stuck in neutral from 0 to 60 in 3.5.