Genre: Doom Metal
Label Number: PSY 004
© 2003 PsycheDOOMelic
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
tags: ordruin, epicurean mass, 2003, flac,
July 31, 2023
Violent Soho - We Don't Belong Here (2008)
Genre: Post Grunge
Label Number: 101
© 2008 Emergency Music
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
tags: violent soho, we dont belong here, 2008, flac,
Violent Soho - WACO (2016)
Genre: Post Grunge
Label Number: SD1619-2
© 2016 SideOneDummy Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
tags: violent soho, waco, 2016, flac,
Violent Soho - Violent Soho (2010)
*Australian pressing.
Contains 12 tracks total.
Country: AustraliaGenre: Post Grunge
Label Number: 2737362
© 2010 Universal Motown/Ecstatic Peace!
If proof is needed that the ‘90s alt rock revival is well on its way, it comes in the form of Violent Soho’s self-titled second album. A reworking of their 2008 debut We Don’t Belong Here with re-recorded and new tracks, Violent Soho looks to the days when grunge was king, serving up songs about girls, Jesus, and serial killers set to buzzsaw guitars, lumbering basslines, and loud-quiet-loud dynamics. This is the band’s first album for Thurston Moore’s Ecstatic Peace! label, which is fitting -- his imprint has also released similarly retro alt/grunge music from Be Your Own Pet’s Jemina Pearl and Pagoda, the band of Michael Pitt (who also starred in Last Days, Gus Van Sant’s film inspired by Kurt Cobain). Violent Soho is also descended from a fairly long line of Australian bands, including You Am I, the Vines, and Silverchair, who at one point or another in their careers, used grunge as the foundation of their music. The sludgy “Here Be Dragons,” in particular, sounds a lot like the Vines, minus their angst and the wide-ranging ambition that made that band occasionally confounding and fascinating. Violent Soho’s lack of angst and pretension go a long way on “Jesus Stole My Girlfriend,” a Pixies-meets-Nirvana-meets-Weezer mix of strutting power chords and shrieked choruses, and on “Generation”’s snotty vocals and handclaps. The band tosses in a couple of slow songs (“Muscle Junkie” and the cello-driven ballad “Outsider”) for range, but no matter how impressive their screeching and riffs are on “Love Is a Heavy Word” and “Bombs Over Broadway,” the traced-over feeling of many of these songs is inescapable. Though Violent Soho does a pretty convincing job of bringing this sound back, merely reviving it isn’t enough.
tags: violent soho, violent soho album, 2010, flac,
Black Sheep - 8WM/Novakane (2007)
Genre: Hip-Hop
Label Number: DR001
© 2007 Bum Rush Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: black sheep, 8wm novakane, 2007, flac,
Black Sheep - From The Black Pool of Genius (2010)
Genre: Hip-Hop
Label Number: None
© 2010 Bum Rush Records
Strictly speaking, From the Black Pool of Genius is not a Black Sheep album. Black Sheep was originally, of course, a duo, comprised of Dres and Mista Lawnge, who put out their much-lauded debut, A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, in 1991. The pair officially split in 1994, and though they briefly reunited in 2000, haven't done much work together since then. This didn't change for Black Pool…, which although (smartly) marketed as a Black Sheep record, is in fact a Dres album (albeit much better than his previous solo attempts).
All of this, however, ends up being nit-picky and cursory, and wholly unimportant, when it comes down to the actual content of the album, which is very good. Dres is smart enough to choose talented and recognizable guests who add to both his cred and the quality of the song, and they nearly all deliver. The Beatnuts' Psycho Les is impressive on his verse (and the production) on "Important Fact," one of the best tracks on the record ("I'm able to dish it because I got so many donkeys I'm in a stable condition/I'm independent, while you gotta get label permission," he spits), Rhymefest waxes poetic on the clever "Power to the Pih Poh" ("When Obama got elected I told my job ‘I quit/'Y'all ain' know? It's fin be some change in this bitch'/Now months later, the stimulus still ain't hit/Cash for clunkers, I'm still driving the same old whip"), and fellow Native Tongues Q-Tip, Mike Gee from Jungle Brothers, and De La Soul's Dave sound as good as ever on "Birds of a Feather" (only Rosie Perez feels underutilized on the silly and trite "Muy Bueno"). But it's Dres's own work that makes From the Black Pool of Genius great, from the hypocrisy-revealing "Born to Che" to the name-checking "Splash." Dres has always done a good job of balancing humor with consciousness in a way that doesn't degrade either, and so songs like "Forever Luvlee," "For the Record," "Reason to Pray" and the aforementioned "Born to Che" are all progressive without sounding preachy. His flow is easy but controlled, his voice just as easy to listen to -- and his stories as pertinent -- as they were two decades ago. From the Black Pool of Genius may be a comeback record of sorts, but it doesn't feel like something from a guy who just wants people to remember all that he was. Instead, it's clearly from someone who knows who he is.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: black sheep, from the black pool of genius, 2010, flac,
July 30, 2023
Cherokee - I Love You...Me (1998)
*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: R&B
Label Number: 07863 67541-2
© 1998 RCA/BMG/Trip Records
A statement of emotional liberation set to music, I Love You...Me chronicles Cherokee's abusive relationship with her former husband and creative partner. Musically, the album is a excellent blend of slick hip-hop and smooth '70s-style soul, but it suffers a bit from buried vocals and meandering melody lines. Not a bad debut effort, but while Cherokee's sultry vocals are capable of seducing, she needs more memorable hooks to keep listeners under her spell.
tags: cherokee, i love you me, 1998, flac,
N’Dambi - Little Lost Girls Blues (1998)
*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Neo Soul
Label Number: CPI-0827-1
© 1998 Cheeky-i Productions
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
tags: n dambi, little lost girls blues, 1998, flac,
July 29, 2023
T. Rex - The Best of T.Rex (1971)
Genre: Glam Rock
Label Number: 541 005-2
© 1971-1998 A&M Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
tags: t rex, the best of t rex, 1971, flac,
Violent Soho - Hungry Ghost (2013)
Genre: Post Grunge
Label Number: IOU032
© 2013 I Oh You
The third studio album from the Brisbane-based, post-grunge/alt rock revival quartet, Hungry Ghost finds the hard-hitting Aussies adopting a punchier tone while keeping their feet firmly planted somewhere between Screaming Trees, early Smashing Pumpkins, and Mudhoney. Luke Boerdam's sneering vocals aside (which lean more toward emo and pop-punk than they do the seismic, yet always melodious angst of Kurt Cobain), Violent Soho are as committed to their retro sound as ever, churning out a fiery 11-track set that's as spirited as it is redundant, with highlights arriving via the thunderous five-minute opener "Dope Calypso" and the tightly wound "Eightfold," the latter of which manages to break through the flannel barrier with some much needed call and response vocals. Hungry Ghost is at its best when it gets out of its own way, as it does on the easy, decidedly Pavement-esque "OK Cathedral" and the evocative title track, but the band is so intent on honoring its heroes that it manages to negate itself in the process -- the foundation of "Lowbrow" and the Pixies' "This Monkey's Gone to Heaven" are nearly interchangeable. Violent Soho are great at what they do, and Hungry Ghost should appease fans who waited out the four years in between it and its eponymous 2010 predecessor, but there's nothing here that hasn't been done much better and with less intent.
tags: violent soho, hungry ghost, 2013, flac,
Craig G - The Kingpin (1989)
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*This is a digital store download purchased from Bandcamp.
Contains 12 tracks total.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Hip-Hop
Label Number: None
© 1989 Craig G
It's not that Craig G and more notably, Marley Marl, didn't make good music and shouldn't be included when looking at old school hip-hop. They did make some good stuff, but not on this album. This is easily the worst work put out by both of these guys. There are ugly and commercial beats, unthoughtful lyrics, and absolutely no vibe to carry this through. It's almost like Craig G forgot how to rap and was trying to improvise his way through or trying to get all the lyrics written in one day. With so many other rappers making good records, this surely isn't going to cut it.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: craig g, the kingpin, 1989, flac,
Craig G - Now That's More Like It (1991)
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*This is a digital store download purchased from Bandcamp.
Contains 18 tracks total.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Hip-Hop
Label Number: None
© 1991 Craig G
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: craig g, now thats more like it, 1991, flac,
July 28, 2023
Cirith Ungol - Frost & Fire (1980)
*Reissued on CD for the first time in 1999 by Metal Blade Records.
This pressing contains 8 tracks total
and remastered audio.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Heavy Metal, Doom Metal
Label Number: 3984-14252-2
© 1980-1999 Metal Blade Records
Frost and Fire, Cirith Ungol's debut album, was a decent enough attempt at sword-and-sorcery fantasy metal, and in some ways can be seen as a precursor to the bleaker, more influential work of Celtic Frost. Tim Baker is not the most melodic of vocalists, favoring a theatrical sing-speak for pretty much the entire record, but the band's music is often strong enough to support him. That isn't true for the entire album, as some of the compositions tend to meander, but if Baker's style isn't a problem for you, Frost and Fire will be a sporadically enjoyable record that may very well be worth your time.
tags: cirth ungol, frost and fire, 1980, flac,
Cirith Ungol - King of The Dead (1984)
*Reissued on CD for the first time in 1999 by Metal Blade Records.
This pressing contains 9 tracks total
and remastered audio.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Doom Metal, Heavy Metal
Label Number: 3984-14253-2
© 1984-1999 Metal Blade Records
King of the Dead, Cirith Ungol's second album, is actually something of a step backwards from Frost and Fire; the production sounds a little muddier, the song structures less focused, and the hooks less apparent. "Hooks," of course, refers mainly to the guitar riffs, because vocalist Tim Baker still hardly ever steps out of his shrill sing-speak delivery, which listeners generally find either deliciously evil or overdone and irritatingly silly. Cirith Ungol is actually a pretty ambitious band, but they're also somewhat amateurish and cartoonishly over-the-top. Those aren't necessarily reasons to dismiss their music, since bands like Venom and Celtic Frost -- who were generally critically reviled during their existence -- actually planted the seeds of the death metal revolution; however, Cirith Ungol doesn't have Venom's extremity or Celtic Frost's restless experimentation going for them, and they don't have the songwriting chops to make up for those deficiencies. It's apparent on King of the Dead that Cirith Ungol had a great deal of potential, but they don't bring it together here.
tags: cirith ungol, king of the dead, 1984, flac,
Cirith Ungol - Paradise Lost (1991)
Genre: Heavy Metal
Label Number: 7 72518-2
© 1991 Restless Records
Ever exiled to the fringes of the '80s heavy metal scene, Los Angeles' Cirith Ungol limped to the end of their troubled career with 1991's rather fittingly named Paradise Lost -- their fourth and final long-player in a decade's work. Unfortunately, very few music fans even cared by then, which was an especially tragic state of affairs since Paradise Lost was a far stronger outing than 1986's One Foot in Hell (1986), and matched improved sound quality and musicianship to the classic/doom adventure metal songwriting of uneven early efforts, Frost & Fire (1981) and King of the Dead (1984). Coincidentally, half of the band's lineup had turned over during their five-year absence (the band had actually split up for a time), and so long serving members Jerry Fogle and Michael Flint had been replaced with guitarist Jim Barraza and bassist Bob Warrenburg, respectively. But original drummer Robert Garven was back, along with vocalist Tim Baker, whose unmistakable gravely whine was always Cirith Ungol's most recognizable asset -- love it or hate it. In the case of Paradise Lost, there was slightly more to love than hate, including career topping metal anthems like "Join the Legion," "The Troll," and the foreboding riffing omnibus of "Chaos Rising" that handily overpowered weaker moments like the tediously dreary grind of "Before the Lash" and the overlong "Fallen Idols." Surprises -- both good and bad -- also reared their heads now and then, including a competent cover of Arthur Brown's perennial standard, "Fire" (the good), a misplaced stab at West Coast-flavored commercial hard rock named "Go It Alone" (the bad), and the Warrenburg-sung "Heaven Help Us," which simply sounded too strange without Baker's distinctive cries. The album's memorable closing title track appeared to provide further evidence of Cirith Ungol's healthy rebirth, but the band would in fact never record again, and it was later revealed that the sessions for Paradise Lost were in fact fraught with turmoil, spurred by unwelcome record company dabbling. In the end, the LP's title had proved as sadly prophetic as one could fear, and Cirith Ungol's career was indeed over at last.
tags: cirith ungol, paradise lost, 1991, flac,
Nifelheim - Devil's Force (1998)
Language: English
Genre: Black Metal
Label Number: NR022
© 1998 Necropolis Records
While many of the Norwegian black metal bands of the early 1990s were taking themselves so seriously that heinous acts of murder, church burnings, and the like wound up stealing more headlines than their actual music, Sweden's Nifelheim were shrewdly still treating the genre's Satanic silliness with the appropriate tongue-in-cheek tone. On the surface, this was illustrated by their cartoonish album covers and traditional black metal "uniform," consisting of the necessary leather and spikes, bullet belts, pentagrams, and inverted crucifixes. While musically the group was celebrating the formative black metal rudiments parlayed by Venom and early Bathory, as well as the subsequent thrash-infused Brazilian heretics, such as Sarcófago and Vulcano -- the exact opposite direction, in other words, as the new underworld order being advanced by their often avant-garde Norwegian counterparts. Nifelheim's eponymous LP had clearly established this agenda in 1994, and one would have been foolish to expect the Gustavsson brothers (vocalist Hellbutcher and bassist Tyrant) to shift gears with 1997's Devil's Force, which predictably delivered another batch of unselfconsciously retro, but consistently entertaining blackened thrash. Naturally, drummer Demon's predominantly supersonic beats pushed the pace throughout (see particularly frenzied assaults like "Deathstrike from Hell" and "Hellish Blasphemy"); but with the help of the stellar session work provided by guitarists Jon Nödtveidt and John Zwetsloot -- both of the legendary Dissection -- even more impressive standouts like "The Final Slaughter," "Desecration of the Dead," and "Satanic Mass" boasted an assortment of imaginative melodic counterpoint licks and face-shredding solos, worthy of envy from any extreme metal band. To each his own, though, and there's no denying that Nifelheim's purist old-school methods as heard on Devil's Force were a hell of a lot more fun. [Reissued in 2009 by Regain Records, Devil's Force was spruced up with expanded artwork, enthusiastic liner notes from legendary Slayer Zine editor, Metallion, and a bonus cover of Vulcano's "Witches Sabbath" that really elucidates Nifelheim's inspirational roots.]
tags: nifelhiem, devils force, 1998, flac,
Nifelheim - Nifelheim (1995)
Language: English
Genre: Black Metal
Label Number: NR 007
© 1995 Necropolis Records
The debut CD by Sweden's most cartoonish black metal act, Nifelheim, was originally recorded way back in 1994, when the movement was more or less at its peak of notoriety. But while acts like Mayhem and Darkthrone were vanishing down a black hole of humorless (even murderous) nihilism, Nifelheim never lost a sense of fun. Their songs might have titles like "Possessed by Evil," "Satanic Sacrifice," and "Storm of Satan's Fire," but they were no more truly wicked than their obvious inspirations, Venom. Their primitive playing had a punk rock edge -- the drumming had more in common with Discharge than death or thrash metal, while the guitar riffs always seemed just about to slide completely out of control, and solos were either minimalist extrapolations of the song's core riff, or short strings of semi-random notes. But beneath their lack of skill, one can always hear Nifelheim striving to be metal gods, throwing in little bits of flash -- a pick slide here, a Kiss-style opening fanfare there -- to take the songs just slightly beyond the realm of raucous, thrashing noise. On "Sodomizer," the band even writes a chorus that's almost catchy, though the shrieking and barking of vocalist Per "Hellbutcher" Gustavsson (his twin brother, Erik "Tyrant" Gustavsson, is the group's bassist) remains totally indecipherable. "Storm of Satan's Fire" is another track that offers an almost NWOBHM-quality melodic riff; unfortunately, it quickly reverts to screaming and bashing. This reissue adds one bonus track that is in no way revelatory or special, and the remastering job, while capable, can't overcome the primitivism of the initial recording. Nifelheim are good fun, for those who like their black metallers to occasionally crack a smile and reveal that they're playing music because they like it, not because their inner torment and self-loathing compel it, or whatever.
tags: nifelheim, nifelheim album, 1995, flac,
Saturnine - Wreck At Pillar Point (1995)
*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Indie Rock
Label Number: DRT 019
© 1995 Dirt Records
Wreck at Pillar Point is the first of several indie-pop gems from Saturnine -- on this record, they piece together a lovely, incredibly pretty indie-pop sound that invites vague comparisons to Galaxie 500 and dreampop in general, but seems far too simplistic and unassuming for these references to be very important. The album skirts convention the same way future releases like Flags... would, occasionally verging on straightforward pop -- but Saturnine has a knack for always falling on the better side of pop, with a lazy indie guitar sensibility and an ear for languid, gorgeous melodies keeping things remarkably great. It wouldn't quite be appropriate to call Saturnine brilliant, given their straightforward pleasantry and simplitic charm -- but Wreck at Pillar Point and its followups are about as great as records like these can get.
tags: saturnine, wreck at the pillar, 1995, flac,
Consequence - Niggaz Get The Money: E.P.
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*Photos of the record are included in the RAR file.
Country: U.S.A.Genre: Hip-Hop
Label Number: CON-1
© 199? Not On Label [Consequence]
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
.Notice from Sentinel: The original post, which is now archived here, was a misprint that only contained the first 2 tracks on side A, while leaving side B completely blank. This post features a new rip from a different record with all 3 tracks present. Due to this E.P. not being an official release with no release date located anywhere on the record/sleeve, errors in audio mastering are present. "The Riot" features a noise error that is unique to this E.P. with other unofficial records unrelated to this E.P., that were pressed differently, not featuring such errors. There was nothing that could be done to remove the noise artifact as it was pressed and mastered this way. Other than this one flaw, the entire rip and the audio quality are clean.
We do not publish record rips with large amounts of crackling and other static noises that are a result of dirty records. All of our records are cleaned before they are played and ripped. In the case of Hip-Hop records, producers often sample from old and dirty records. The noises are intentional and are a part of the music's production. Noise artifacts from dirty records will never overpower the audio from any Mediasurfer record rip.
July 27, 2023
Smack - On You (1984) ☠
*Reissued on CD for the first time in 1997 by Amsterdamned Records.
This pressing contains 17 tracks total
along with remastered audio.
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Country: Finland
Language: English
Genre: Hard Rock
Label Number: 70015-2
☠: Selected by Lass
© 1984-1997 Amsterdamned Records
Sneering, driving '60s-style punk by these Finnish rockers, this is a must for Pistols and Iggy fans.
tags: smack, on you, 1984, flac,
Bizzy Bone - Speaking In Tongues (2005)
Genre: Hip-Hop
Style: Gangsta Rap
Label Number: SMC 105
© 2005 845 Entertainment
With a title referencing his wild, much-talked-about 2005 appearance on the Houston radio show Damage Control, Bizzy Bone welcomes your confusion on Speaking in Tongues, a driven and scrappy full-length that's a more street-level follow-up to his cryptic 2004 album Alpha and Omega. Last time out, Bizzy surrounded his spiritual raps with glorious production and packaged it with a bonus DVD that told the Bone man's story. This time out, production and packaging are lean and Bizzy's raps are even more detached from the mainstream. He's actually sounding a lot like reggae legend Lee "Scratch" Perry on much of the album, shooting out metaphors that seem gibberish at a glance but flesh themselves out when Bizzy's new brittle snideness is accepted by the listener. Stomping over all doubters, "Bald Head Horse Man" sounds a lot like one of Perry's characters/monikers, as boasts and brags alternate with nonsensical asides and trucker speak, with Bizzy crying out "breaker! breaker!" into his spiritual CB radio. God's name is once again dropped in every song, along with the usual Ns, Fs, and MFs Bizzy's so familiar with, but there's plenty here that breaks away from anything the man's done before. Something evil is fighting hard to get out of the man during the first verse of "Seeing Things," but if Bizzy is just crazy and not crazy like a fox à la Perry, how could he pull off the slinky-cool second verse by rapidly shooting off the lyrics like he hasn't lost any of his touch? The album's title is truth in advertising elsewhere, with "Beauty (You Just a Rose)," "He Told Me," and "Shake Ya Stick" all sounding like Bizzy's about to unhinge, but each one contains lyrical darts that hit the bull's-eye, even through the album's weird sonics. The productions -- mostly from Tightanniam Beats or Eddie B -- are either densely packed or very sparse, but almost every track wraps Bizzy's voice in plenty of echo and reverb, making this an even odder-sounding album. "Man-up" for the second coming seems to be the message, and whether or not you're a believer, Bizzy's delivery is convincing and direct -- up to the last track, that is. "All Good" is a paranoid rambler that brings those "Bizzy's crazy" rumors to mind, but that's probably just what he wants, since it keeps them talking, keeps them coming back. The Great Manipulator's last few albums have been nothing if not interesting. Speaking in Tongues comes in right below fascinating.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: bizzy bone, speaking in tongues, 2005, flac,
Bizzy Bone - The Story (2006)
Genre: Hip-Hop
Style: Gangsta Rap
Label Number: RTE-CD-20
© 2006 Real Talk Entertainment
*No professional reviews are available for this release.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: bizzy bone, the story, 2006, flac,
Bizzy Bone - A Song For You (2008)
Genre: Hip-Hop
Style: Gangsta Rap
Label Number: APL7935
© 2008 After Platinum Records
You can argue about how "eccentric" loose canon Bizzy Bone can be and how it gets in the way of his music, but you can't argue about how his over-prolific release schedule has sadly undermined his better work. Albums come out the rate of two or three a year and on various labels with quality varying wildly, from forgettable to almost there. The year 2008 had already seen one Bizzy album -- the much fiercer Ruthless -- appear by the time Song for You arrived, but this full-length breaks the pattern, becoming the first end-to-end stunner in the rapper's solo career. Part of the reason seems to be Bizzy's love of his new home, the After Platinum label which the rapper mentions repeatedly in a giddy voice not heard since the early days of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. After a hopeful intro, "A Song for You" presents the first truly radio-worthy single the man has released in years with DMX and Chris Notez as guests. Cool crooner Notez also brightens the emotional highlight "Hard Times," which touches upon the old days with the Thugs and how Bizzy's been "Livin on the outside" of the crew's inner circle. Seeing Joel Madden's name on the guest list is a shock, but the bigger surprise is how well the Good Charlotte vocalist fits into the stately world of "I'm the One," a track that could accompany any given heavyweight as he enters the ring. Hooks are plentiful with "Mercy Mary," "I Need You," and a handful of others sticking in the head, plus the production is slicker, more polished, and altogether better than on previous albums. A Song for You might just be a tad more friendly than his cult would desire, but the idea that Bizzy is his own worst enemy gets tossed out the window after this roaring success. Give him the right time and right place, and Bizzy, surprisingly enough, ends up being the right man for the job.
* Due to past abuse, comments for the Hip-Hop section have been disabled.
tags: bizzy bone, a song for you, 2008, flac,
The Soft Boys - Underwater Moonlight (1980) ☠
*U.S. first pressing.
Contains 18 tracks total.
A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.
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Country: United Kingdom
Genre: New Wave
Label Number: RCD 20232
☠: Selected by Lass
© 1980-1992 Ryodisc
After recording the material that would later comprise the bulk of Invisible Hits, the Soft Boys recorded their masterpiece, the shimmering neo-psychedelic Underwater Moonlight. Essentially, the band didn't change their style for the record -- they merely perfected it. The Soft Boys don't hide their influences -- whether its the ringing guitars of the Beatles and Byrds or the surreal humor of John Lennon and Syd Barrett -- but they assimilate them, resulting in a fresh, edgy take on '60s guitar pop. Robyn Hitchcock's subject matter tends to be more explicitly weird and absurdist than his influences, as titles like "I Wanna Destroy You," "Old Pervert," and "Queen of Eyes" indicate -- even "Kingdom of Love" equates romance to bugs crawling under your skin. But the lyrics aren't the only thing that are edgy -- the music is too. The Soft Boys play pop hooks as if they were punk rock. "I Wanna Destroy You" isn't overtly threatening like their post-punk contemporaries, but with its layered guitar hooks and dissonant harmonies, it is equally menacing. Furthermore, the group can twist its songs inside out and then revert them to their original form, as evidenced by "Insanely Jealous." Although the neo-psychedelic flourishes are fascinating, the key to record's success is how each song is constructed around rock-solid hooks and melodies that instantly work their way into the subconscious. In fact, that's the most notable thing about Underwater Moonlight -- it updates jangling, melodic guitar pop for the post-punk world, which made it a touchstone for much of the underground pop of the mid-'80s, particularly R.E.M.
tags: the soft boys, underwater moonlight, 1980, flac,
