Spacehog

 Yes you read that that right. Spacehog. As in: 'Our lands are greeeeen and skies are bluuuue.'

If my review of this album is much of a surprise to you as it was to me then you are also guilty of writing this band off as a 90's one hit wonder. And to tell the truth, I don't even know if this labeling has been earned by Spacehog. I honestly have never heard a Spacehog song other than In The Meantime. Who the fuck am I to judge or stereotype?

So when Joel gave me this CD on our lunch date earlier this week I laughed and accepted the album. Coincidentally, I have actually been listening to In The Meantime a lot lately....ever since Girl Talk sampled it on 'All Day.' It really is a an excellent song. Possibly one of the best to make it out of that time period. Thus, I'd be lying if I said I wan't a little curious to how this new album would sound.

I popped As it is on Earth into the CD player on my way home.

....As it turned out; I was the asshole....as usual. Not only because this album is great, but also because my narrow minded stereotype was incorrect. As I later learned, As it is on Earth is actaully Spacehog's 4th album. They have a fan base somewhere who would object and may be offended by the 'one hit wonder label' I so easily threw out there.

As it is on Earth just flows. A handful of really great songs stick out. Arguably, the first and last tracks are the best. The first track, Deceit, pulls you in with a simple chord progression on the piano and a ball-dropping vocal melody. The last track, Glad To Know, leaves you wanting more, but concludes the album nicely with killer guitar solo and big church-choir-esque backing vocals. ...And everything in between is the whip cream on top of the nipples.

One would call it lazy journalism to compare Spacehog to David Bowie. BUT I'm going to run with this because a) I'm lazy and b) I'm not a journalist....fuck, you probably have already come across 3 grammar errors and 2 mis-spelling already. So yeah, Spacehog sounds like Bowie. So much so, that As it is on Earth is the better Bowie album or the 2 that came out this year.

And it isn't only Bowie. I'm beginning to think Spacehog may have been one of the major inspirations behind the sound of Muse. Grandios at times with a synthy space vibe.

Now that I have set the table with all-too-predictable 'sounds like references' and shitty metaphors; it your turn to be the judge. Go into it like me; with absolutely no expectations. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.