This Is Hardcore

THIS IS HARDCORE is, despite its name, a fairly mellow album in places, with many of the songs having a wistful, nostalgic feel to them. The band has moved on (again) from their previous sound, but all the tracks still retain that essential quality that makes them recognizably Pulp. The music somehow manages to sound cheap and throwaway, while able to retain a tough core.

The omnipresent keyboards and synthesizers of previous Pulp albums are back again, though I think they are somewhat more restrained than usual. There's a section in the middle of the CD of mostly guitar-based and straight piano music that seemed much more mainstream, although there are still some eerie sounding effects running through the tracks. "TV Movie" is a sad comparison of a broken relationship to a badly produced made-for-TV film. (It sounds sillier than it is. Cocker's lyrics alternate between hilarity and sentimentality masterfully.) "A Little Soul" is a frankly bizarre song where Jarvis sings to his fictional son about how he really wasn't a terribly good father and makes a brief, frightening mention of what things he used to practice every night with the kid's mother. I can't think of too many people who could get away with this, but Cocker does it with a wink and a smirk.

Pulp prove that they still know how to make some fast danceable music when they want to. "Party Hard" has a strong rhythm, while "The Fear" and "This Is Hardcore" feature some great bass guitar work. The music is fairly catchy overall; there are many tracks that I hum to myself for days after listening.

The US version of THIS IS HARDCORE features a bonus track not included on the UK release: "Like a Friend". This interrupts the fine conclusion that was brought by "The Day After The Revolution". But it is a fun song, so its inclusion is welcome. The album as a whole will probably appeal to those people out there who like quirky, offbeat music. It's not different enough from the mainstream to freak out anyone weaned on US radio, but it is just that little bit off to be quite appealing.

However, that's as good as this cd gets. The music certainly isn't exceptional or interesting. The songs aren't particularly catchy. So, the cd has to stand on the strength of the singer and the lyrics. Both are wanting.

The lyrics are banal. Jarvis is apparently a sensitive guy, full of middle-aged doubts about aging, lost opportunities, masculinity etc. He simply doesn't have anything to say about any of these topics that hasn't been said a dozen times by much better songwriters. His sensitivity seems to be a bit strained at times - he seems to be trying to make deep comments. He comes off as a bit of a wimp, and has absolutely no edge to him.

The vocal performance is mediocre. He tries to inflect sincerity and pain into his relatively ordinary observations. That would be hard for a great singer to do (which he isn't), and after a while, it becomes plain irritating.

I realize that I'm in the minority on this. However, my copy's going back to the cd store's used bin.