No Silver Lining

Somebody needs to get Vic Chesnutt some Prozac. An accident while driving drunk as a teenager left him a paraplegic, and the pain and agony of his life infects every track on Silver Lake. The music and lyrics are downbeat, and if his voice were not so annoying, the CD could easily put anyone to sleep. Furthermore, it sometimes seems as if a twelve year-old could have written the songs. In "Girls Say," Chesnutt expounds on gender differences in his slow, whiny voice, using such profound lyrics as "Girls say, 'You look great today.' And boys say, 'Hey, show me all your boobs.' " Silver Lake doesn't offer much to the mainstream besides songs suitable to listen to alone on a Saturday night.