It was inevitable that the children who grew up with Barney the Purple Dinosaur and Power Rangers would eventually start listening to music. This is the only explainable reason why flocks of kids love this group while a number of critics poo-poo them. I'm not saying these kids don't have taste, but maybe they just don't know that music like this has been done far better for years and years. Take the vocals of Frank Tovey and Richard Butler, add a dash of Ride, mix well with the Smiths pretending to be any generic Factory label B-list band and hire any old 1980s producer who's not done much in a while (but will get the critics scatching their chins) and voila, a debut album is ready for a press campaign! While Gareth Jones's take on the group's recordings clearly sound miles ahead of their first EPs and mediocre live performances, even the most talented producer is completely unable to accommodate for atrocious vocals and downright painful lyrics. There are moments of reflection, like on the heavily reverb-effected "NYC" or the up-close and intimate "The New" but most of it is brainless jangly guitar-based minor key dance music like songs like "Obstacle 1" or Joy Division riff-ripoffs like "Roland." To their credit, the group does play well together, despite having numerous moments of one-note playing, but even they will eventually get bored of that.
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