Sneaker Pimps - Becoming X
Okay, so this album has been out a million years and we just got to review it…so what! Better late than never.
First impressions are certainly favorable. Maybe a little heavy on the meaningful lyrics front but other than that an enjoyable piece of work.
Like a chameleon Kelli (vocals) Dayton sensuously Reznorizes and Bjorkulates all over the perfectly acceptable ready-made soundscapes, even though they must have sounded pretty complete to begin with. She does have a memorable voice though, clean and strong, and it must be great to hear her scream it when the roadwork gets tough going.
High points are without doubt the fathomless pop depths of Waterbaby, the first track Low Place Like Home and everybody's favourite Roll On. Oh and How Do, which hopefully sets some kind of tone for their next album.
Liam Howe (keyboards) does a great job throughout, exhibiting a thoughtful respect for those among us who are looking for something more than good production and the occasional winning riff. There's actually a load of really good programming in this thing. Chris Corner (guitar) also does a good job although I wouldn't have said no to a bit more experimentation.
The re-hash of Underground at the end of the CD made me wish the whole album had the millions of tiny little hard to hear but highly effective bits in it but I guess I'll have to wait until next time.
Rating: 729,998 (out of a possible 1,000,000)
