The Kansas-bred singer-songwriter got mad critical kudos for This Perfect World, his major-label debut. Deservedly so. Johnston's unerring ear for pop hookmanship is evident throughout, and the songs are wrapped in plaintive arrangements, usually centered with acoustic or jangly electric guitar. His clear tenor — vulnerable, a little weary — effectively delivers these rueful tales of losers and loners.
This article appears in Jan 31 – Feb 6, 2007.