The Urge: Too Much Stereo : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

St. Louis ska-punk sextet the Urge have been skanking since the early Nineties, offering a kinder, gentler variation on that scene's book of loud, fast rules. Despite some occasionally hard-rocking guitars, Too Much Stereo evokes a blue-beat take on the springy strum of Dave Matthews and Barenaked Ladies ("What Is This" breathlessly name-checks Michael Douglas, Teddy Pendergrass, Dennis Rodman and Michael Jordan -- whew!). Eighties New Wave fetishists might detect the flange-friendly touch of the Fixx on "I Go Home," not to mention the influence of hyperpopsters Oingo Boingo throughout the album. Still, as kaleidoscopically textured as this effort is, there's little discernible personality on display: Lyrics like "Are we trigger happy/Or maybe trigger sad?" (on "Gunville") don't help much, either. The Urge need to lay off the Sublime and aim more for the sublime. (RS 846)

MATT DIEHL