Reviews (10)

The Wondermints rock!
Ever heard the opening sequence theme song from Austin Powers? These guys wrote and played it. They are also Austin's backing band in those between scene dance/musical interludes. They also are Beach Boy, Brian Wilson's live backing band and are huge in Japan. Okay, enough about the band's successes, what about the music you ask? BRILLIANT pop music. Not too devotional to any one style, these guys have a sound that reminds you of many things but with a sense of musicianship, originality and playfulness. That quality is sorely missed in today's cookie cutter world of music. If you love the Beach Boys then you will LOVE the Wondermints.

Fire Retro rockets!
Although at times they trod upon ground already claimed by Jellyfish, High Llamas or the Pizzicato 5, the Wondermints have pulled off a uniquely "groovy" set of sunny power pop on this album. "Instantly catchy" is the operative phrase here. These guys don't just wear thier retro influences on thier sleeves, they proudly unfurl it on banners, with song titles like "In And Around Greg Lake". Each song seems to be an homage to a specific 60's or 70's artist; Beach Boys, Beatles, Todd Rundgren are the most obvious touchstones, and I swear there's a lost Klaatu song in there too!(An homage to an homage? Discuss.)Crack musicianship and vocal arrangements abound. If you need a break from souless techno noodling or mopey, "important" discordant poseurs, "pop" open a box of curiously refreshing Wondermints!

Bali Pop
This is a terrific album by the best pop group to come along in years. The musicianship is stellar, the production is creative and intelligent and fun, and the melodies are the best I've heard from any modern band. Their many influences are incorporated smoothly and literately; they compliment the Wondermints' sound but never dominate it, and the songs are all fresh and different but still form a single cohesive album. The title song evokes the Beach Boys' "Smiley Smile" album.

Features

• Original recording remastered

Reviews (35)

This album made me a Townshend and Who Fan For Life
When i was in elementary school I heard for the first time Townshend's Face Dances Part II. That song started a lifelong obession with the music of Pete Townshend and the Who. Chinese Eyes is simply a great album. Silt Skirts, Stardom in Acton, North Country Girl, Stop Hurting People...the whole album is classic. You will never get bored with it. On a side note, some of the members of Pete's band on this album left and formed Big Country.

Townshend's Best Work
'Chinese Eyes' is simply his best, as all Pete fans know, coming at a time when The Who was winding down with two lackluster albums ('Face Dances' and 'It's Hard'). The fact that this disc is out-of-print in the U.S. is shocking, especially to a Pete fan like me who regards this as my second-favorite album ever, from any artist (#1, btw, is The Sundays' 'Static and Silence'). Superior to both 'Empty Glass' (which tends to sound like a polished edition of a 'Scoop' release) or 'White City' (good, but with too much gloss on the production), 'Chinese Eyes' exudes so much emotion, so many personal insights, that it's impossible for me to listen to it and not be deeply affected. Tracks such as 'Uniforms' and 'Communication' may be wry commentaries, but the rest of them (e.g. 'People Stop Hurting People,' 'The Sea Refuses No River,' 'Slit Skirts') offer the listener an engrossing, overwhemling melancholy. My fave, 'Somebody Saved Me,' may be Townshend's greatest achievement, and those final chords on the lone accoustic guitar still give me chills. BTW, it's 'Stardom in Acton,' not 'Action,' for Acton is a London suburb. Was Pete punning? Only he knows.

Features

• Extra tracks

Reviews (3)

The best the Knack has ever been...
Aside from "Get the Knack" (after which came their second and most dismal release), "Serious Fun" is a straight-forward guitar-driven rock-and-roll album. "Rocket O' Love" and "I Want Love," with their catchy vocals and excellent guitar work, are well worth the price of the album. The rest is mostly average work, (with some notable exceptions, such as "The River of Sighs") with the same glossy melodies.

It is a far cry from their first album, but that's not necesarrily (sp:?) bad. Altogether, the sound is more hardcore-rock, and the production is very polished. The vocals are dead-on, and put together very well. In the same vein, the songwriting is also far superior to their two previous albums (and way better then that of the preceeding album, which was lackluster at best).

So, to sum it all up, the songs either smoke, or they're so-so. You'll probably find three or four on there that you'll like, and the rest can be pitched.

A little musical backbone for a metalhead like me.
Like probably everyone else I learned of THE KNACK through their monsterhit MY SHARONA (does anybody agree with me that the second half of that song is the best? With the incredible guitar solo and the intrumental bit).
SERIOUS FUN was their early nineties reunion album and, as I understand, it was universally panned.
I have to disagree with that though (why else would I be giving it four stars?). Sure, it isn't the best KNACK album and Don Was' production is a little bit to timely for that, but it's (serious) fun in it's own right.

THE KNACK for me where always so good 'cause off their really hardhitting playing style (it's THE BEATLES meets punk) and their mastery off those same instruments (like I said, I'll always be a metalhead). But it's the amazing songwriting that's most important.
There are some real gems on this album, like the title track, LET'S GET LOST and ONE DAY AT THE TIME. Best of all, there's bonustracks included.

Buy the cd to find out!

Reviews (76)

Pure joy captured on one little cd
Okay, how many cds do you own that you can say this about: I remember the very first time i heard this cd about 4 years ago. I remember sitting on my bed after i pressed play, and this huge grin just spreading across my face. I was in love at first listen! These guys are amazing! The perfect production, strong vocals, and varied music styles from the classical strings on "Hush" to the guitar rock on "Joining a Fan Club" to the polka style of "Bye Bye Bye", achieve masterpiece status. The lyrics tell some interesting stories as well. I love that 70's groove they invoke on "New Mistake." Complete with sound effects and atmospheric arrangements, they've thought of everything to round out this album to its keeper status. The fact that the band broke up is a shame, and i have only heard Jason Falkner's solo efforts, both of which are good but do not touch this greatness. I will admit, Jellyfish had given themselves a sort of silly image with their wierd hippie/costume clothing, but the music is far from silly. The Queen references can't be ignored, but there's so much more here. This is another one of those desert island discs, and always will be, ever since the time i bought it for a few bucks in a used cd store. Makes you wonder what kind of person would give it away.

Be patient with this one...
I bought this CD after ten years of enjoying Jellyfish's first album, Bellybutton. I figured this one couldn't be nearly as good as the first. And my first impression was that Spilt Milk wasn't as good... too uneven, the Queen-like gimmicks disrupt the flow, etc.

But during the second listen, I found myself truly enjoying and appreciating what the band has done here. The instrumentation and production is nearly flawless on this album, and the songwriting is superb. Even my least favorite tracks are well crafted, especially in terms of the lyrics.

"Glutton of Sympathy" is one of the most memorable songs I've ever heard: the lyrics are fascinating, and the vocalization is truly haunting.

If your tastes lean toward more conventional pop/rock, you'll probably like Bellybutton more (although nothing this band recorded was really conventional). But there are some truly great songs on Spilt Milk, and the entire album is top quality.

Sounds Like The Genius Offspring of XTC and Queen
If you like richly layered pop you have to buy this. The first time I heard this CD it literally left me with my mouth hanging open. The writing, singing, playing, arrangments, production...even the artwork...is nothing less than brilliant. It should go down as one of the best CD's of the decade.

Editorial Review

Features

• Import

Reviews (19)

A very poor album.
This band was formed by John Squire, ex-guitarist with Manchester band Stone Roses. Anyone familiar with Squire's superb work on the Roses' albums will be thoroughly disappointed with this weak effort. The songs have little or no individuality or quality, descending into bland, soulless sub-rock territory. Squire should know better. His guitar-playing is the one decent thing about this record but that is no reason to buy it. If you don't have the Stone Roses debut album, get that instead. Please!

Wow, how boring
It would be easy to say that the Seahorses fall short of anything the Stone Roses ever did, but that is not what bugs me. I expected, in a realistic fashion, that this would not be as good as the Stone Roses. But I was not expecting the CD to be NO GOOD AT ALL.

This represents more than just a decline in John Squire's talents as a musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Do It Yourself represents a complete lapse in talent and originality. It would have been a welcome occurance if this were a decent album, but the Seahorses couldn't even pull that off. One listen to a song like Suicide Drive shows you how fast Squire lost the plot.

I listened to Do It Yourself once and quickly lost interest, mainly because there is nothing interesting here. The Seahorses never made a second album. That might have been an unfortunate thing because maybe they would have improved over time. Then again, it might have ended up being Do It Yourself Part 2. In any case, John Squire doesn't know what he's doing anymore.

Features

• Import

Reviews (7)

This one grows on you
Previously, my review of Silver Sun's "Neo-Wave" was the lowest (3 stars) on this page. Several months later, I would have to say that I was far too hasty in my assessment. This is one that may take some time to grab you, but be patient. Now I think it's vintage Silver Sun. If you don't know Silver Sun, trust me, they're a best-kept secret in America at least (the British and Japanese already know them well).

sun-nny delight?
For a band who soundtracked a summer with lava & last day I was quite dissapointed, at first. With repeated listening the band, who I claimed were better than the Beatles, had some real corkers that eventually stuck in my head with the sunshine of a distant Queen concert. Not as good as the first but not as bad as the Supernaturals.

Reviews (10)

If you like numan you will like this CD
I have been into gary numan for several years now, and I am 20 years old. I got this album originally when I was 18, and was immediately impressed. It is the type of CD that grows on you. Dont be scarred away by albums such as berserker, the fury, or machine and soul. These were some of numans worst. Well dance I would classify as the last of the 'classic' numan. It is definitely different from the telekon sound, or any sound on a numan album. But it contains the essential elements needed for a great numan recording. A song that not a lot of people have mentioned in these reviews is 'moral.' Moral is the sequal to the song 'metal' that was released on the pleasure principle album and also served as a b side to cars. Its fun to listen to metal then moral sequentially. Another great song is 'stories' that has a very creepy theme paired with a very creepy sound. Numans talents really shine in this epic recording.

One of Gaza's finest works; multi-cultural electro-tapestry
At last, DANCE is available in its entirety in the U.S. (through Beggers Banquet records)! One of Gary Numan finest, most diverse and challenging electronic opuses...

This newly repackaged, remastered and extra track version of this 1981 classic by Gary contains a several page review of why DANCE is and has been very influential to many other artists; standout tracks include:

Slowcar to China (mesmerizing in its minimalism)

Nightalk (brillant bass by Mick Karn of Japan who contributes on several tracks)

A Subway Called You - music to sit in a subway station at night to....

She's Got Claws - the single and most danceable track on the CD - a sign to where Gary would go on his next one, "I, Assassin"

Crash - the flip-side to "Cars"

Dance - the never before heard title track; beautiful melody that comes in with a great backing rhythm track (the slowed-down drumbeats to "White Boys and Heroes")

Again, a MUST for any CD collection; guaranteed to wow you friends and confuse your enemies...!

Numan at his Very Best
I was rather surprised to see only eight reviews of this incredible record, to which I have been very addicted for years! There have been numerous re-releases since the vinyl original. The dynamic contrasts are considerable, with lots of extremely quiet passages, so CD was essential, but an original re-release had omitted "Cry the Clock Said," much to my dismay. Fortunately, later releases include that song along with bonus tracks. I have yet to hear the title track in its entirety, so this review will be of a 1993 Beggar Banquet re-issue.

The strong opener, "Slowcar to China" clocks in as one of the longest Numan pieces. It is atmospheric and jazzy, one of his best pieces. "Night Talk" has wonderful rhythms, awesome bass, and soaring synthesizer. The lyrics "Boys like me aren't supposed to cry, but it's so easy to do." Another gem of musical perfection. "A Subway Called 'You'," as the reader may surmise from other customer reviews, is well-liked, and rightly so. It continues in the same vein as the first two: atmospheric, complex rhythms, music that floats in space, beautifully engineered recording. "Cry the Clock Said" is quite simply Numan's most introspective song ever, not to mention beautiful. After a leisurely introduction that features reverberant electric piano, Numan sings cryptic, despondent lyrics, fragmentary, and sufficient to evoke a sense of disappointment and longing.

Reviews (5)

Magnets¿. small and large
OK, here is the gag. Back in 1981 when I bought my second Vapors record, Magnets, I was emotionally and physically stunned by the sheer brilliance of the band. And, 23 years later, as I am playing this album in the CD format on my $15,000+ esoteric system it once again has stunned me emotionally and physically. The kids, all 4 of them, join in when dad is raising the roof with high sound pressure levels and jamming to the Vapors! God Bless the 80's!!!

P.S. If you were to endure cruel and unusual punishment by being sentenced to only getting to listen to 1 Vapors Album for the rest of your life...I would have to pick MAGNETS.

As good as New Clear Days
I bought The Vapors Magnets to basically complete my Vapors collection. After listening to it, its as good as the first album in my opinion. Although I can't say that the alternate tracks are much different than the album tracks. Highlights include: Jimmy Jones, Spiders, Isolated Case, Civic Hall, Daylight Titans and Silver Machines. A very under rated band that deserved better than "One hit wonders.." description.

They stand the test of time...
Well this was my favourite album about 20 years ago...
I was in a drugstore and they had this cassette in the $1.00 bin
I bought it fast as I remembered what a fantastic album "new Clear Days" was,. And I was so surprised...
Wow!
what a masterpiece!
one that nobody I knew had ever heard before.
It quickly became my favourite album.
Johnny was in LOVE again!

Well here I am again 20 years later paid $15.00 or whatever to get it back again....
Wow!
Johnny is in LOVE again!
It's my favourite album all over again.
I have no words to explain how much pleasure it has brought me to finally get this album back. I have blown away my friends (different ones and the same old ones) with this album which again none of them have heard...
The lyrics are so intense. The new wave sound never sounded better than this! they are the cars times 5!

Editorial Review