Elvis Costello

After eight years of working on interesting pop and avant-garde collaborations, Costello returns to spiky rock with this merrily rude outing. Instead of comparing this to earlier works like This Year's Model just enjoy cuts such as "Spooky Girlfriend" and "Episode of Blonde" on their own merits. The title track, which our hero observes a posh wedding, is a stunner.

As its title suggests, When I Was Cruel hearkens back to those bitter days when Elvis
Costello was as vicious as the punks with whom he was first lumped. You know the man is
back on track on "Alibi," when he conjures a sentiment that sums up the central conflict of
nearly all his greatest songs: "I love you just as much as I hate your guts." He spews it in that
vengeful, articulately unhinged manner that only he can muster. It can be a pro... More >