ROGER KLUG
"Toxic and 15 Other Love
Songs"
(Mental Giant '97) 16 trax
$$$$$ (5 out of 5)
Some artists are happy to leave
pop alone -- like the old Coca-cola, it never needed to be tampered with. But for a
select few popsters, the same old sugar and fizz isn't enough; they want to add some magic
to the tasty potion. On his second full-length album, Roger Klug takes all that's
come before him and burns the rulebook. Sure, he holds on to a few pages -- some
chord ideas, a sense of the melodic sinew that made his idols worship-worthy, and even a
few spelled out references to ELO, the Move, Chris Stamey and Crowded House. But if
ideas were clothing, the suitcase of Klug's brilliance wouldn't close. Not that this
album is overpacked or anything -- it's just that Klug gets a handle on the kind of power
pop that folds the pain and beauty of love into one artistic statement. Anyone who
can create an image like "angels in their bras" has the sort of devilishly
clever talent that's harder to find than a pitchfork in a cathedral.
-
Popsided, Issue #9 '98 (J. Oakes)