Post-punk, art rock, and pitch-perfect pop collide on this ear-popping 1996 debut from
Placebo
. Elevated by
Brian Molko
's unique vocals,
brings together various influences -- the epic, noisy "Chicago sound," late-'70s prog rock, and late-'80s "college rock" -- but boils them down into fairly conventional, guitar-heavy melodrama, with the sort of opaque and angst-ridden lyrics usually found in that genre. That's not to say that
's sound is boring; churning guitars and direct, heavy basslines give the album a good deal of strength, and
Molko
is able to write moving, gritty melodies and clever lyrics, heard on tracks like the progressive breakthrough single "Nancy Boy."
may sound like a mix between
the Smashing Pumpkins
and
Rush
, but it's well-written and performs enough variations on those bands' genres to keep it interesting. ~ TiVo Staff