Collecting numerous studio outtakes from the amazingly prolific
Wildhearts,
Fishing for Luckies was originally made available only to the band's fan club. Later repackaged and resequenced for commercial release, the album contains so much topnotch material that it almost qualifies as a full-fledged successor to 1995's excellent
P.H.U.Q. record. In fact, the only clear signs betraying this as anything but a legitimate album are many of the song's lengths. Short bursts of madness like the cartoonish "Mood Swings & Roundabouts" and "In Like Flynn" are countered with some of singer/guitarist Ginger's most ambitious mad epics. Among these, "Inglorious" and "Schitzophonic" had already made appearances as bonus tracks on the CD version of
P.H.U.Q., but outrageous, never-before-heard musical voyages like "Sky Babies" and the awesome children-led choruses of "Do the Channel Bop" push the boundaries of normality like only
the Wildhearts seemed capable of. Considering the group's eventual collapse amidst record company ineptitude, intra-band strife, and Ginger simply being a complete nutter,
Fishing for Luckies deserves even more recognition as a worthy part of this band's already impressive discography. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia