ive really liked these guys going all the way back to their first us single: superman's dead. i picked up that album, 'clumsy', and really enjoyed it. their next one, 'happiness...', wasnt quite as good. it was mostly just a bunch of angry songs. a very angry album, to be sure. i wasnt sure if i should even bother with their album after that. i am very glad i did. 'spritiual machines' is the best of their career, i still listen to it often. their next, 'gravity', was good, but it felt like they had been forced to loose their original sound so that they could be more sucessful. the best part of the group are the catchy melodies and the totally unique voice of the lead singer. one of his trademarks is that he constantly changes from normal voice to a really high falsetto. which, amazingly, works really well. on 'gravity' we rarely hear that range, instead it seemed like someone told him that he could only sing normally, so he doesnt 'frighten the kids'.their latest i got a little while ago, but i didnt give it the time it needed. i think i only listened to it once (i really should know better than to buy two cds at once, this happens every time i do...). its called 'healthy in paranoid times'. its good that the singer is back to his old ways with the vocals, but the problem with this one is something else. there are alot of great melodies on the cd, the only problem is that they get cut off. there will be a great set-up for an awesome chorus, but then it just kind of changes its mind and limps of in another direction. one of the starkest examples is the song 'wipe that smile off your face'. the song has a strong flow to it and the vocals are some of his best, and then half way through the chorus the cool flow is dropped and replaced with a crappy lame sneer.
oh well. ill still keep holding out for a proper follow up to 'spiritual machines'.
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