3x****
As much as Like Flies On Sherbet was willfully chaotic, this album is straightforward homage. Since most of the tracks are middling R&B, including "Sick & Tired", "You Don't Have To Go", "Boplexity", and "Don't Stop"****, it's the detours that are more interesting. The jazzy "Devil Girl"**** is mischievously tongue-in-cheek in its dark references. "What's Your Sign Girl"**** is delivered with enough of a wink to save it from being laughable. "Il Ribelle" is fun surf-garage. Throughout the whole, Alex's formidable/sloppy lead guitar adds energy and spontaneity that make these songs fun, though for each highlight, there are is a true mega-clunker. "You're Looking Good" had to take less time to write than pissing. Listening to Alex trying to relive the hokey-est version of high school via the hokey-est early Beach Boys imitation is pretty painful. Though I can see no reason for a hammy version of "It's Your Funeral", it would just be disconcerting to hear a consistent, safe release from Alex; Chilton in the middle ground is just not that interesting.
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