Saturday, August 12, 2023

Life Without Principle - s/t (1989, Intrepid)

My takeaway from this one? Surface level perception in only worth so much. My expectations for Life Without Principle were far from what I actually got. What I thought would be a band solidly steeped in left-of-the dial aesthetics, either of the serious post-punk or lovingly shambolic (a la The Replacements) varieties instead skewed considerably closer to mainstream notions. Surprisingly, even the presence of synths doesn't particularly imbue this trio with new wave bona fides. By and large, the eight songs occupying this self-titled platter can stand on their own, though LWP's commercial aspirations (try the frequent, wailing guitar salvos on for size) were loftier than I could have anticipated.  "Find Yourself Inside" is my clear favorite here, suggesting the band had tuned in to some of Tommy Keene's then-most recent albums. My copy of LWP was no-so-tastefully defaced by a radio station, so Discogs for the win for supplying me with a non-blemished pic of the front sleeve. 

01. I Hear You Singing
02. Find Yourself Inside
03. Much Too Much
04. Let's Go There Anyway
05. Don't Cry For Me Now
06. Business as Usual
07. No Going Home
08. You Can't Hide From Love

1 comment:

Tom said...

Trusty73, what an excellent album. Very listenable and a surprise since I have come to expect the "better stuff" to show up on Mondays.
Thanks again, Tom