WING BEAT ELASTIC: REMIXES, DEMOS & UNHEARD MUSIC

And just a reminder that Mike worked with XTC's wonderfully quirky frontman Andy Partridge here, which is just awesome. Reminded, too, just how much of a Partridge tune we have in "You Kill Me", recorded here as an acoustic, low-to-the-ground Pop song.

Certainly, for some of the greatness on this disc, we have less exciting passages. It can get monotonous, yet I was reminded how well everything was performed. I'm not mad at it haha. Monotony and then beauty. Not crazy about "Bobeau" for instance, but the middle section is a lot of fun. So much texture.

But a whole lot of it--heavily textured and ultimately complex or otherwise--tends to not be all that interesting. It didn't consistently hold my attention. I enjoyed moments aplenty just because we're dealing with Mike. He is incredible. One of the greats, in my opinion. Likewise, you would expect more from him and a just-as-seasoned, if not moreso, Andy Partridge.

Now, I've mentioned "Bobeau", but "Bobo" is a surefire highlight [italics denoting not only an implied verbal stress]. The soft keys, the harmonic trills of the guitars, the horns; it's a very, very nice listen. To me, a fan of Keneally, the only other highlight was the opener, "I'm Raining Here, Inside".

True Rate: 2.5/5.0