keepers 2
keeper avg .200
The Cult's second album (under that name) starts strong though predictably. "Nirvana"***** is basic goth-pop with Billy Duffy's signature chorus-drenched guitar cranking out chiming arpeggios and snake-y leads and Asbury's wailing out one catchy chorus. The one other essential track is the psychedelic pop classic "She Sell Sanctuary"****, with one of Duffy's greatest droning riffs. The sparser title track has rhythmic power, and gets tribal near the end. "Rain", the second single, and "Hollow Man" are cut from the same cloth as "Nirvana". "Big Neon Glitter" is more new-wave-y, with a skipping beat and riffs more similar to The Smiths, while "Phoenix" is straight goth rock, kind of a noisy, energized "Bella Legosi's Dead", using the same descending chromatic riff. Though most of the tracks seem to blend with each other, the album would still be a consistently enjoyable if predictable listen without some egregious clunkers that wreck almost a third of it. "Brother Wolf, Sister Moon", one of many explorations of Asbury's native American fascination, is draggy and boring, as are "Revolution" and "Black Angel", two lame power ballads.
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