Not a Trampoline is the solo debut studio album by American musician Rob Cantor, released independently on April 14, 2014. It follows an alternative rock style with elements of electropop and dance-pop. Produced by Gregtronic, the album originated from a period of exploratory writing without a rigid concept. Former Tally Hall bandmates and peers collaborated on the project, including the featured artists Madi Diaz and Jhameel. Three singles were released in anticipation of the album: "Old Bike", "Ghost", and "All I Need Is You".
Upon release, the album earned generally positive reviews. Critics praised its stylistic variety, songwriting, and upbeat production. The song "Perfect" went viral after Cantor produced a video with Horowitz featuring 29 celebrity impressions, with a later reveal that the impressions were lip-synced within a carefully edited production. Not a Trampoline received physical vinyl and CD editions alongside a deluxe release on November 14, 2025.
Background and production
In December 2002, Rob Cantor formed the band Tally Hall with Andrew Horowitz and Zubin Sedghi. Later recruiting Joe Hawley and Ross Federman,[4] the band released two albums: Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum (2005) and Good & Evil (2011). Tally Hall went on hiatus following the latter, leading Cantor to begin producing solo work. In 2012, he released the singles "Christian Bale Is at Your Party" and "Shia LaBeouf", with both becoming viral videos.[5] Cantor began writing demos without a collective vision, aiming for the album's variety to prevent monotony. Songs were composed before their lyrics were developed, although at other times, they began with the lyrics. He was influenced by Hawley's writing style with Tally Hall to create plot-focused songs.[6] "All I Need Is You" was the first song written for the album, expanded from an unused pitch for a Time Warner commercial. Cantor and producer Gregtronic were both inspired by Elton John's song "Levon" to incorporate a powerful string arrangement. "Old Bike" followed as the second song written.[1]:7:03
Cantor shared an unfinished version of the track "La Telenovela" with Jhameel, who completed its chorus and transformed it into a duet. In 2012, Cantor reunited with Horowitz in Los Angeles, spending six hours together writing the song "Perfect".[6] The two additionally collaborated on "The Rendezvous" with Madi Diaz, a track that was originally scrapped until further production was applied. Federman contributed drums to the song "Old Bike", while all four of Cantor's ex-bandmates gave feedback during the album's development. "I'm Gonna Win" is a reworked version of a Tally Hall demo written by Hawley.[2] The revival of the demo came from Hawley's inclusion of Cantor's song "Time Machine" on the album Hawaii: Part II, sparking a song exchange.[7] He initially had concerns regarding how the songs would flow together, but producer Gregtronic resolved this issue. For the project, Cantor has cited the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Queen, Elliott Smith, Paul Simon,[6] and Dan Wilson as influences.[2] The track "Lightshine" was later reconstructed from an old demo by Cantor into a drastically different song, only retaining its chorus, though it was scrapped from the album.[1]:10:33
Release
On March 4, 2014, Rob Cantor announced Not a Trampoline as his solo debut album, alongside releasing "Old Bike" as its lead single with a music video. "Ghost" followed as the second single on March 19, and "All I Need Is You" as the third single on April 9, with the latter also featuring a video. The album was independently released on April 14, 2014.[8] Its videos were independently produced on a low budget, primarily utilizing help from friends and volunteers.[5] On October 30, 2025, Cantor announced a physical issue of the album on CD and three vinyl variants, which were released on November 14. The edition features "Lightshine", re-recorded drumming by Federman, and new mixing by Gregtronic.[8]
On July 1, 2014, Cantor released a video performance with Horowitz of "Perfect" while doing 29 celebrity impressions.[9][10] It received wide press coverage as a viral video,[11][12][13] amassing 6.5 million views on YouTube in its first week.[14][15] When inquired by Today about its spread, Cantor stated "I'm so glad people enjoy the clip, and I'm even happier they seem to dig the song!"[16] He then published a behind-the-scenes video on July 9, revealing that the impressions were lip synced with home movie editing designed to make it seem real.[17][18][19] Stephen Peltzer of Westchester Productions, Cantor's representative, described it as "a carefully orchestrated effort",[20] aiming to promote the album.[21]
Not a Trampoline received generally positive reviews upon release. Aaron Kupferberg of Powerpopaholic gave the album an 8 out of 10, complimenting its varied genres and usage of harmonies and guitar riffs.[3] Jeff Clutterbuck of Daily Vault rated the album a B+, praising its brevity as good idea utilization. He additionally highlighted the album's packaging and Cantor's vocal range awareness as contributing to its enjoyability, comparing various tracks to works by Weezer, ELO, the Cars, and Ben Folds Five.[22] A BMI spotlight of Not a Trampoline likened its style to Cantor's work with Tally Hall, calling attention to the album's "smart songwriting and infectious, poppy beats".[23] Albert Lunn of The Celebrity Cafe lauded the multitude of vocal collaborators bringing diverse sounds, singling out the production of "Old Bike" and its theme of companionship as encompassing the album. Within a week of its release, Bandcamp's staff noted the album as its weekly pick, describing it as "meticulously arranged pop music filled with gorgeous harmonies and irony-free optimism".[24]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Rob Cantor, except where noted.
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