Still Background Noise, but its pleasantly strange just how many of them have embedded themselves in different ways since the album release. My Sex wasnt a favourite but now theres just something about it that draws me to it. And Slow Jam has risen highly in my rankings over the months.
A truly incredible album for its short gestation period - none of it feels rushed or forced to me which is quite something.
Background Noise is the biggest "disappointment" for me. It lacks the power and the gritty side of the live version. It still sounds good, but not a highlight of the record for me. Maybe it was rushed coz of James Ford illness ?
The lowest point of the record is the break in Hymn of the North, when they change the chords into something else. I was expecting an avalanche of sound, of strings. Same here, it was powerful live, almost scary. And on the record it falls flat and there's that hideous Cher-effect on Jarvis' voice.
Slow Jam is the song of the year for me. But the record as a whole is so strong Got to Have Love, Grown Ups, Tina, My Sex, Hymn of the North, Partial Eclipse...