This is one of my all-time favourite albums, both for the individual songs and the stage of my life that accompanied this album. It is therefore too closely linked to many fond memories for me to have any hope of judging it objectively! So, here are some highlights:
- Bad Habit's menacing intro, irresistible energy and the amusingly obscene bridge (which was quite controversial back in the day, but it's not a patch on some of the profanity you hear in pop music these days!)
- The brilliantly catchy choruses of Gotta Get Away and Something To Believe In.
- Come Out And Play. Almost every element is a highlight: that distinctive drum intro, the irresistible guitar riff, etc. But even amongst all this greatness, the lyrics still stand out as the centrepiece; they deliver a very poignant message with great colour and emotion. Interestingly, I find many similarities between Come Out And Play and Pretty Fly For A White Guy (but obviously the former is a million times better!)
- Self Esteem is another masterpiece. Again, the lyrics take centre stage, but the unusual drum patterns also stand out as a highlight for me. The lyrics are powerfully humble yet sad, making for a soaringly drunk singalong and one of the all-time great rock ballads.
- The mindless energy of Killjoy Powerhead is thoroughly enjoyable.
- What Happened To You is part of the curious Offspring tradition of cringeingly bad ska! Perhaps it falls into the "so bad it's good" category?!
- The great message in Smash's lyrics.
(Sorry to finish with a whinge, but the recording quality is surprisingly poor... spanning from the weak bass to the muddy guitars to the high-pitched sounds being just noise.)
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