Spock's Toe

Overall Album Score: 7.7 out of 10

Geez, the Go-Go's were short-lived! This is their third and final album. They would have a reunion in 2001, but that doesn't really count. I guess they were really experiencing tension within the group thus igniting a seemingly premature break-up. These guys also were never exactly major *artists*, anyway, so they probably didn't have much calling to go on together. That is, they weren't exactly ones who wanted to challenge themselves or others with their music. Their only goal in music was just to make happy-go-lucky compositions.

They did change their sound a bit for this release. This continues to be similar to Beauty and the Beat, but not quite to the point where I can legitimately title it Beauty and the Beat III. The most striking difference it's much more guitar heavy. They're no longer penning so many bubble-gum surf-rock tunes. Obviously, I like that they altered their sound! Plus, they seem to have taken this opportunity to prove to the world that they were capable of rocking out if they wanted to. They just didn't want to until now! Despite the frustratingly half-hearted electric guitar solos that pop up every once in awhile, I really like hearing some of their crunches. All of that should have made an immensely enjoyable album, but unfortunately their songwriting just wasn't so up to snuff. Where are the memorable melodies? What they have is usually fine, but this constitutes another considerable step down for them.

The biggest problem of them all, however, has yet to be discussed! And if you read my previous two Go-Go's reviews, I bet you were able to predict it. I reported that The Go-Go's lost some of their spark in Vacation compared to their unstoppable, carefree debut. Well, Talk Show continues down that path, and they're even dimmer stars than they ever were before. This is to the point where I can't say I'd recommend this release to anyone except particularly devoted fans of Vacation.

The only A-level composition here is "Head Over Heels," which is rather joyous. It's more heavily produced than their previous hits, but there was nothing wrong with that as long as it's still fun. The melody is catchy and doesn't betray their happy-go-lucky writing style. Unfortunately, that's the only excellent song here. The rest is a mixture of tasteful though entirely middle-of-the-road material that are so unremarkable that they're not worth mentioning by name. Sure, they're fun to hear, but they're entirely forgettable, and I can't say listening to this album was such a valuable experience. What a pity.

Overall Album Score: 7.7 out of 10 (The Go-Go's are too solid to snub and they're using the electric guitars like they never did before, but ... well this just isn't very interesting!!!!)

Average Song Score: 8.1 (Can I pinpoint any part of this album that isn't enjoyable? NO! Can I pinpoint any part of the album that's amazing? ... "Head Over Heels" is it.)

Album Tilt: 7.5 (It's all very solid, but there's absolutely no personality. This is frustrating.)

Artist Rating: 7.5 (They were metamorphosing into faceless pop stars albeit ones who liked the electric guitar better than synthesizers most of the time.)

Track Reviews

Head Over Heels 9.5/10

This has nuttin' over the ABBA composition of the same name, but this is a pretty dang good pop song just the same. This continues down The Go-Go's tradition of penning delightful songs with a catchy melody and a youthful exuberance. It's not quite as splendid as "Vacation," but it's enjoyable just the same. It's much more heavily produced than their previous songs, but fortunately it doesn't adhere to tired old '80s pop cliches. It's true that anyone can probably guess that this is an '80s song, but it isn't in-your-face and annoying about that fact.

Turn to You 8/10

Oh yeah, the guitars are as heavy as ever! Why can't they turn in some blistering guitar solos, though? I can hear one, but it's very quiet in the mix and it's not that amazing anyway. Well... Maybe they weren't that good instrumentalists! Most importantly, this is a bouncy, poppy song with a nice beat and a spirited vocal performance. The melody is good enough for government work, but it's non-memorable in the least!

You Thought 8.5/10

Er... They never sounded this '80s before. Thank goodness it's only that cheesy synthesizer they use for the background texture. And, oddly enough, it's this intro that I like best about the song. It sort of goes downhill from there. The opening atmosphere is rather thick and ominous, and I'm disappointed that the rest of the song just sounds like a normal Go-Go's pop song with their usual, breezy melody. I will say that there's some particularly nice guitar lickage in here. Woof!!

Beneath the Blue Sky 8/10

This isn't bad! Again, their breezy melodies are always charming, and their instrumentation is just fine. Unfortunately, this is getting too close to the point of just being another ordinary '80s pop song. I'll grant you that they're keeping the guitar central to the sound, and Carlisle is nice to hear. Yeah, I think this song is fine, but it's uninspired. It should have soared.

Forget That Day 8/10

This has the same sort of intro as "You Thought." It's a slow and ominous beginning. Then they slowly pick up the tempos and, with it, along with all the general interest that I had in it. Unfortunately I think this is pretty indicative that their hearts weren't into the songwriting. They were fine enough to make a good intro, but the body of the song is blindly adhering to Go-Go's cliches. Yes, but it's still way too fun to snub.

I'm the Only One 7.5/10

It's back to the awesome, fast-paced songs. But why don't I like it so much? I'll tell ya why! Even though this is rather guitar heavy, the riff they're playing is pretty dang bland and so is the rest of the melody. However, they sure do have spunk, and you can't deny that it isn't effective. Hear how Carlisle is delivering those vocals that are so determined to be carefree! (Yeesh, they're trying to rock out so badly, but it's a shame that it's not really working....)

Yes or No 7/10

No! ... er, yes? Wait, they weren't asking me anything. ... Either this album is gracefully getting boring to me, or it's genuinely dropping off in quality. My money's on the latter, because this is a pretty dang trite melody. Those hooks are unforgivably sterile and simple. The instrumentation doesn't disappoint, and I particularly like some of the crunches. There's nothing much about the instrumentals that can completely redeem this track, however. I'm kinda tempted to give these songs higher ratings just because I'm fully aware that they could have had butt-cheesy synthesizers.

Capture the Light 8.5/10

Well here's something. I knew they had to rebound sometime! And what better than this song, which has quite a lot of spirit. The melody is nice, but the star of the show is undoubtedly the guitars. The crunches are very well done, and there's even some power chords! The electric guitar solo might have been a tad more spirited, but I guess you can't ask for everything. It's probably the best solo of the album though.

I'm With You 7.5/10

Er, what's this? The Madonna "Material Girl" bass groove??? ... Hm. Otherwise, this is just another one of them Go-Go songs. It's mid-tempo, and Carlisle is such a stable singer. The instrumentation was thick and well constructed. The main problem is that there just isn't a lot of real spirit with this one. The melody is also a little bland. It does seem like they forgot that their debut album was so memorable because it had so much personality, but this is pretty faceless.

Mercenary 8/10

This song has an ominous opening featuring a militaristic drum solo. It's a little plain, and I kind of like it. As the instrumentals build up, they fit along beautifully with this ominous opening. Unfortunately, just like they've done multiple times before in this album, the rest of this song doesn't live up to the intro. It never catches fire, and it really should have! Despite that , this track does manage to hold its own. The guitars here are particularly effective ... some have a nice bending effect to it! Cool.

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