No track on this trio's fifth album follows, directly or logically, the shape or style of the track preceding it. And that's ok, as Blonde Redhead's modus operandi is to produce a head-spinning musical melange, amassed from a multiplicity of sources, that will leave you and your ears dazed but happy.
True to form, the band launches into an ethereal, Stereolab-influenced "In Particular" after the opening mini-track's sonic blast. There is an initial kitchen-sink, frenetic similarity between Blonde Redhead and Solex, though the former is the more verbal, softer of the two. This similarity is shattered, however, by "Loved Despite of Great Faults," a measured, modest ballad with just a touch of Brian Wilson's wistfulness to its late-Beatles-meet-the-Kinks patina. Throughout it all, Kazu Makino and Amedeo Pace trade off sweet and captivating vocals, breathing life into subtly compelling lyrics.
Professional Reviews
Spin (8/00, p.149) - 8 out of 10 - "...[They] have stumbled onto something pretty damn deep....a loose-limbed sound-unit - swelling, melodramatic, unrequited....delving into lo-fi keyboard textures, jazzy drumming and studio manipulation..."
Magnet (1-2/01, p.44) - Included in Magnet's "20 Best Albums of 2000".
Magnet (8-9/00, p.69) - "...Entering their prime and bursting with self-confidence, [they] pull it off without missing a beat."
The Wire (5/00, p.46) - "...Broadens their range of expression further...in favor of an incipient melodicism....an adventurous departure."
CMJ (6/5/00, p.24) - "...BR uses their influences [no-wave band DNA and Sonic Youth] effectively, while incorporating some odd progressive elements and a lot of minor chords."
Mojo (Publisher) (7/00, p.104) - "...Thrusts the band into a complex landscape of electro beats, trash drumming and Satie-like piano motif. Their sound has finally caught up with their eclectic backgrounds...bouncing the proto-New Wave of 'In Particular' to the angular 'Ballad Of Lemons'..."
NME (Magazine) (5/20/00, p.43) - 8 out of 10 - "...Remarkable....It's as though all the contrariness of [their] angular past has dissolved into a fascination with pop, '60s soundtracks and naked piano ballads...without sacrificing any of the heart-stopping dynamics or confessional psychodramas..."
