Failure [Expanded Edition]

Audio Mixer: Jon Auer.Liner Note Authors: Veronika Kalmar; Scott McCaughey.Recording information: Nor'Sound (12/1987-02/1988); Studio X (12/1987-02/1988).Photographer: Jill Goodejohn.Jonathan Auer and Ken Stringfellow weren't old enough to buy beer (and hadn't outgrown the tragic fashion affectations of teenage Cure fans) when they created this low-budget pop masterpiece, recorded in a makeshift studio in the Auer family's home. And while it was the first salvo in what would become an enduring career in indie pop, Failure still remains one of the Posies' best and most purely enjoyable albums. Though there are brief moments while Auer and Stringfellow's inexperience betrays them, Failure is a strikingly accomplished piece of work; the instrumental work is solid, the lead vocals and harmonies are splendid, the production is crisp and imaginative (especially for an album cut by amateurs on an eight-track setup in someone's basement), and the songcraft is remarkably precocious in its skill