BLACK, FRANK – Teenager Of The Year
"...Also, none of that should be taken as a statement that Teenager of the Year is lazy or careless in any way. It’s not. Whatever attention that Black and company gave to the music while he held out on the songs pays off. Most of these tracks are oddball, restless things that get right to the point and squeeze a lot into small spaces Over half of the songs blow by in less than three minutes, but manage to boast diverse sets of full-bodied arrangements and even (usually very quick) solos. There’s real ambition here, a devotion to left turns and unexpected moves WHILE also being unpretentious and playing like pop music. It’s a crazy trick. The effect is that it’s one of those albums that you can hear something new in every time you play it. A lot of music that I was into twenty-five years ago doesn’t hold up for me now, but Teenager of the Year remains an inspiration. What continues to hook me is how this album feels like browsing a cool book collection, or maybe reading some eclectic