Greg Cleary

More Misses than Hits, April 11 2004

I did not get interested in graphic novels until recently, when I ran across David B.'s amazing "Epileptic." I then read Daniel Clowes' "Ghost World," which was also very good. My next step was to purchase this book by Adrian Tomine, which is in very much the same vein as "Ghost World."

After two readings,though, I have to admit that I'm a bit disappointed with it. The stories are interesting, in their own way, and they do have substance, but the first two in particular are plagued by inadequate main characters. Tomine goes too far in making them ugly and unlikeable, to the point where they're not even realistic. It's impossible to care about these vain, petty, whiney young men… Read more

Some great music, but no cover art, Mar 25 2004

I bought this two-for-one disc before the Felt reissues were available, and I became intrigued enough to eventually buy more Felt releases. The guitar sound is wonderful. I hate to use a cliche like "shimmering," but there you have it. It's as if the notes are materializing out of the air, rather than being the result of fingers striking against metal strings. The dark mood will appeal to fans of albums like the Cure's "Faith" and "Seventeen Seconds."

These first two 30-minute albums are an excellent introduction to the band. I caution against buying this particular package, though. For one thing, the absence of cover art is a crying shame. Music… Read more

Four-star album, three-star CD, Aug 4 2003

"Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me" contains some of the catchiest tunes The Cure ever recorded, as well as some of the most obscure. It never quite seems to come together musically or lyrically, but I've ended up thinking that the lack of unity is all part of the game. I'm still listening after all these years, and that means the band must've done something right.

Unfortunately, the record company has done us no favors here--as the Music Fan from Daytona Beach pointed out in an earlier review. A short, uptempo track called "Hey You!" was cut from the CD back in the days when CDs only held 74 minutes of music, and has never been reinstated. (Fleetwood Mac's… Read more