A continuation and maturation of the playfulness exhibited on earlier releases,
Of Montreal create a brand of theatrical psychedelic pop that many of their '60s predecessors hinted at but only afew achieved. Overall less overtly rock-influenced than either
Cherry Peel or
Horse and Elephant Eatery,
Kevin Barnes continues to change chords with nearly every word, twirling Vaudevillian melodies that incredibly bring to life all the whimsy and melancholy of the characters the songwriter carefully orchestrates. Though these characters haven't yet taken on the florid personalities that would be found in later
Of Montreal albums,
Barnes nonetheless proved themself an adept illustrator, as the band charted the dizzying highs of infatuation, the leveling off of emotion, and the devastating collapse of a relationship with a picturesque precision. Still sweetly naïve with the swinging skiffle pop of "One of a Very Few of a Kind" and the gorgeously complex melodies of "Happy Yellow Bumblebee," the latter finds the narrator becoming a bee, befriending beetles and centipedes, avoiding spiders, and getting lonely because their parents are dead and siblings are nowhere to be found. Throughout, the absurdity of the songwriting never grows tiresome. Even so, understated gloominess creeps into tracks with the dark piano strikes of "Panda Bear" and the sprightly "It's Easy to Sleep When You're Dead," although the narrator escapes with the conclusion that life is a better choice in the end. Overall, an album that marked a crucial stage in the evolution from the lo-fi garage pop of
Cherry Peel to the ambitious rock carnival of
The Gay Parade and cemented
Of Montreal's status as one of the most creatively relevant groups of the late '90s. ~ Matt Fink