POV

was essentially , suffering from the same listless production and songwriting that sank their first effort for Passport Records. The main difference is that the performances lean toward hard rock instead of new wave, which only makes sense since new wave was passe by 1985. Nevertheless, the production remains stilted and unsatisfying, reigned in by drum machines and clumsy synthesizers that make the entire thing sound canned. That would have been a problem even if the material was strong, but unfortunately, the songs on are even less distinctive than those on , highlighted only by "Mated," power ballad valentine to his dedicated fans. Those hardcore followers turned out to be the only ones still paying attention to -- bombed on the charts, peaking at #161. Congnizant of the commercial failure of the album, and perhaps realizing the group's well had run dry, pulled the plug on after this record, and it's easy to see why. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine