Squeezing Out Sparks 4 Out of 5 Stars
From their inception as Half Nelson to the current incarnation as avant-garde popists, Ron and Russell Mael have defied every convention, inspired hundreds of other bands, developed a rabidly loyal cult following (count me as a member) and yet, this is the only compilation of their work to date. While it may be hard to top this double disc set, I find that fact a little depressing.
However, over two discs and 40 songs, Sparks show why their fans are almost deliriously devoted to the Mael brothers. There's three decades worth of good music to be found here, and a chance to hear how the band and music itself has evolved through the years. Starting with the earlier singles, like "Wonder Girl" and the still astonishing "This Town Ain't Big Enough for The Both of Us," the band's mix of English theater and Glam took hold. Naturally, no one in America bought the act. So they headed for England and, just as naturally, become huge.
It's easy to see the qualities that made Sparks so influential at the time. Russell's vocals obviously had an influence on a young Freddie Mercury, and the quirky lyrical qualities seem to have filtered into bands like 10cc. Then you have the 'look' of poster-boy Russel with mustachioed nerd and keyboard whiz Ron, a dichotomy the likes of Cheap Trick doubled down on. Rick Nielsen obviously liked the kind of subversive glam Sparks put out, as their "Surrender" could have dropped out of a Sparks album.
But it was Sparks' lack of USA success that seemed to allow them the leeway to try anything. The thin sound of earlier albums led to bigger, funnier numbers like "Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth" and maybe the only pop song to ask about Albert Einstein's life as a kid on "Talent Is An Asset." When that got to be boring for the brothers, they did a complete 180 and asked Giorgio Moroder to produce the Munich Disco "No 1 In Heaven," a 1979 primer for the likes of Depeche Mode and The Human League.
History finally caught up with Sparks, as albums like "Angst In My Pants" and the song "I Predict" began to break through on MTV. The exaggerated focus finally paid off when Go-Go and fan Jane Wiedlin dueted on the sublime "Cool Places" and "Sparks In Outer Space" finally became a commercial sucess in America. While that was the band's commercial peak, it is by no means the artistic one. Such chucklefests as "All You Ever Think About Is Sex" and the seriously great "Change" continued Sparks' sting of creativity.
The collection goes up to 1988, but there are several Sparks albums since. You can still buy this set, thanks to Rhino, but the band continues their subversive streak on albums like Hello Young Lovers and Exotic Creatures of the Deep.
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