Here’s a group that I grew obsessed with for a long while. Upon re-listening to this, I can see certain elements I enjoyed (particularly the tasteful samples) and parts which I feel drag down the album (like some of the lazy drum programming, etc.).
Matt Elliot starts things strangely, with the quiet opening “I’ve Lost that Loving Feeling”. To clue you in, all the song titles are usually cynical or outright jokes. I’ve yet to figure out why he gives such silly names to bleak music, but that’s something I’m probably better off not knowing.
“Half a Tiger” possesses some sweet samples. The bass sounds like a distorted jazz bass, and the classical samples are appropriately brooding. “Lost” and “Goddamnit You’ve Got to Be Kind” are the other picks I enjoyed.
Listening to the other tracks, there’s either not enough creativity with the loops or an overreliance on repetition. Sure, I enjoy repetition a lot, but simply employing it doesn’t make your songs hypnotic. A bit more effort on the shorter songs, or having this as an EP might have eliminated some of the sameness quality that the album suffers from, by being more mood than song-based.
Overall, the good does outweigh the bad.