I Want To Stick You in the Head, and Kill You

Pluto - PipeLine Under The Ocean

Years and years ago (two, I think) I saw Pluto put on a really good show at the Big Day Out, and immediately went out and bought their album 'Red Light Syndrome'. I liked it, they're one of the quirkiest NZ rock bands, at least in the mainstream, but for some reason poor old RLS usually sits unloved and unlistened at the bottom of my CD pile.

Then this year I saw them put on another really good show at the Big Day Out this year, and bought their new album as soon as it came out. It's a lot more mainstream than their last one. There's no more freaky craziness, it's pretty much just straightforward rock, although it's very eclectic. There's the ambient 'Dance Stamina', the weird, heavy 'Perfectly Evil', the 60s surf song 'Rock'n'Roll' and the poppy 'Baby Cruel'.

Unfortunately I think it's probably going to end up at the bottom of the CD pile with it's forerunner. It's not that it's a bad album, I quite like a lot of it, especially all the sappy sad songs for some reason. However it lacks the quirkiness that I liked about their first one, and I'm not much of a fan of plain straightforward rock. Sorry Pluto, you made a nice album, but it lacks the special quality that makes me listen to something again and again.