It was the first Soul Asylum album with drummer Sterling Campbell, who had previously played drums on half of the tracks on Grave Dancers Union. This new album positioned Soul Asylum as a mainstream rock & roll band, and in certain way, it lost their identity, no more punk rockers but now replaced with introspective ballads and socially fine pop full of hooks.
From the opener "Misery" the mood is set on this winding journey of ballads and mid-tempo numbers, thru the ups and downs of a life intertwined with the lives of others. Dave Pirner has taken the weight of the world upon his shoulders, which becomes apparent from the lyrics. Pirner's lyrics are weighted with such self-importance, making it easy to overlook the relative merits of the music, which isn't quite as impressive as that of their previous records. On the other hand, you have great hooks, emotionally draining, lyrics that make you think and feel, and good riffs and hooks.
Obviously it wasn't as good as Grave Dancers Union, it doesn't matter, regardless of how good, will always be compared to the former albums. Nothing will ever be as good as the masterpiece or masterpieces, but that doesn't mean this wasn't good a album, there were stand out tracks like "Misery, " "To My Own Devices," "Just Like Anyone," for instance.
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