Search - Nothing Painted Blue :: Monte Carlo Method

Extraordinarily hummable, smart & funny. Perfect pop.

01/13/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As if anyone's going to read this review! This is an amazing album from a fantastic band. I'm not sure how you go about convincing people to check out a band they've never heard, so I'll just talk about what I like the most.My personal highlights are as follows:"Shameproof Flirt" is an unreasonably meoldious tune that you should play really loudly (that actually goes for all the songs)."Cathexis" is as close to funky as NPB gets; it's a stunning song that makes it extremely clear how important rhythm is to the band."Niacin" sounds like Gang of Four filtered through Elvis Costello. I know that sounds bad, but it isn't."Spent" has an outrageous guitar lick that I can't hear enough of, plus it's got a perfectly sustained conceit that puts it in contention for best lyrics of the album."Growth Spurt" is another rhythm-soaked rave-up. More great lyrics here.In concert, Franklin jokingly referred to "Off the face of the Earth" as NPB's new theme song. It shows off their diversification, with a seriously great country lick and clever rhymes (what's new there?).That rounds out my half-dozen favorites. Feel free to email me yours if anyone bothers to read this.Jeff"