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Midnight Oil |
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Midnight Oil
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Midnight Oil |
There's a lot of punk rock bluster here, with screaming guitars, a warp-speed tempo, and a spartan mix. Only a few timid keyboard parts beef up the arrangements. But the band is way too methodical, practiced, and willing to dawdle to be truly punk, even when they rock out on the testosterone-drenched "Powderworks." Instead, their closest model seems to be a stripped down, unpretentious take on glam rock a la David Bowie ("Used And Abused") - it's not so far from pioneering punks like the New York Dolls. Rotsey takes some flashy, 70's-style guitar solos ("Dust"), and on the overambitious, but impressive eight-minute guitar epic "Nothing Lost - Nothing Gained" he even aims at Jeff Beck's more dramatic, drawn-out riffery. Meanwhile, Garrett's gasping vocals are more of a limitation than an affectation; what he's really after is Bowie's stuttering mania. The lyrics are also a mixed bag: some Morrison-like posturing, a couple of love songs, and some tentative and not very specific political protest. It's an interesting effort, particular in the way it parallels the early New Wave movement in America (the Television-like "Run By Night") and Britain (the XTC-like "Head Over Heels"). A lot of promising signs, but the band still had a long way to go.
Rating: ***
Reviewer: John Alroy