“Sweetness of sugar and the chaos of a bomb” is how this band describes their sound,which is quite appropriate concerning the melodies they deliver, against the beautifully overproduced audio experience.
It’s all loud and clear here, a perfect combination of simplicity and too many details (which you can’t get enough of, by the way). Even the song titles hardly ever get longer than one word, but it’s all well redeemed by the complexity of their super-imaginative arrangements.
Still, sometimes it’s just plain RAWK music, but when it gets to the refrain, once again it’s full of everything that makes this “bomb” so exceptional. Melodies-that-will-instantly-make-you-sing-along-multipart-harmonies – and-crunchy-guitars are the main ingredients of the gee ”Weez”-y opener What A Drag, with it’s middle eight on the “wings”, as well as the title tune, which sounds like Evan Dando coming up with the verses and Rivers Cuomo contributing the chorus.
The Who-ish synth intro leads into Hello, a possible million-selling hit single with an unusual rocked-up E.L.O. sound and Mail Order Girlfriend is a string-leaden, dramatic arrangement, with vocal harmonies just like the ones once conducted by Andy Sturmer.
The happy-go-lucky melody of Motormouth includes a heavy-rap part which is the only thing here that escapes my comprehension, but it also has that weird “so heavy” guitar riff, sounding just like it somes right outta Abbey Road, Poster Child Tragedy could easily pass for a Tug Of War outtake with it’s Macca-like balladry and After All, you’ll see an image of a “queen” through the kaleidoscopic Jelly-spectacles.
Let this one explode right inside your ears, you won’t regret it!
[Released by BMG 2001]
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