Friday, August 29, 2008

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The Beloved try hard -- way too hard -- to mimic their idols from Manchester, England, on Where It Is. The group's role models aren't difficult to guess; after all, they spend much of the time on Where It Is using New Order's "Dreams Never End" as a blueprint. The opening track, "A Hundred Words," gives it away: a sinister bassline and icy vocals propel a cold, mechanical beat. However, at least "A Hundred Words" has hooks; the rest of Where It Is suffers from the same problem that plagues most imitators of New Order and their earlier incarnation, Joy Division -- plenty of atmosphere but no memorable songs.

The Joy Division guitar drone and Jon Marsh's depressed singing on "Slow Drowning" can't sustain interest. The band borrows the Cure's Pornography-era funereal percussion on "Slow Drowning" and "In Trouble and Shame" and fails at making an emotional impact. Marsh even sounds somewhat like Nick Cave on "In Trouble and Shame"; however, he's nowhere near as disturbing. It's easy to compare the Beloved on Where It Is to other artists because their influences are so obvious. By their second full-length, the vastly superior Happiness, the Beloved had shed the gothic gloss for pure pop. Where It Is should be viewed as an awkward first step; the band got much better after it.

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