Too Much Joy
...finally (Discovery)
by Marc Hirsh
Too Much Joy
...finally (Discovery)
by Marc Hirsh
originally published in the Public News, April 10, 1996
Punker and prouder than previous, Too Much Joy have decided once and for all to abandon any pretense of being a pop band, albeit a subversive and often very loud one. ...finally is the first Too Much Joy album to really capture the sparks the band creates on stage.
How much of this is due to the (amicable) replacement of bassist Sandy Smallens with William Wittman (also the producer, whose work ranges from TMJ's last album to the sublimely icky Rachel Sweet-Rex Smith duet "Everlasting Love") isn't clear. Short guy Wittman is just as energetic as tall guy Smallens, but a more subtle, serious change seems to have taken place in the band's dynamic.
Formerly a solid but shy player, drummer Tommy Vinton fills the vacuum for most of the songs, beating the hell out of his kit like he was Warren Moon, even in slower numbers like the excellent "Poison Your Mind." It's guitarist Jay Blumenfield who steps back in songs like the New Wavey "How To Be Happy," letting his playing be more processed and layered than it's been in years.
Too Much Joy are still cursed by smarts, excerpting books in the liner notes and providing fully readable thank-yous and production info. The songs ooze wit as well, with singer Tim Quirk taking on the role of a confidently totalitarian technology corporation in "You Will," watching someone he used to (and still might) sleep with walk down the aisle in "Mrs. Now" and choosing Billy Bragg's "A New England" as the token cover instead of some overplayed Ramones or Sex Pistols song.
A few snoozers between "The Kids Don't Understand" and "I'm Your Wallet" prevent ...finally from achieving the excellence of their last few albums, but the high points outnumber the weak spots two to one, making it far too long in coming.