The Jesus and Mary Chain

A noise assault that hadn't been heard since the Ramones' debut, coupled with the most bubblegum beautiful songs since Brian Wilson passed out in the sandbox. The result? One of the finest records ever recorded. Really. The combination of feedback-soaked rock primitivism and pure candy still amazes. Totally, absolutely essential.

Pistols comparisons are Anglocentrism--from fuzzy vocals to minimalist tunes, from hard-and-fast surface to sweet-and-chewy center, the formal coups that have made this such a sensation are pure Ramones. My favorite parts are the cheapest; when the feedback wells up over the chords in perfect pseudomelodic formation I feel as if I've been waiting to hear this music all my life. And when the fuzzy lyrics hint half-decipherably at a luxuriant doom impervious to democratic device, I worry that maybe Ian Curtis knew more than I gave him credit for. (Grade - A-)