Not the best CX ever, but still great
payn | Hollywood, CA USA | 01/10/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"OK, this is pretty different for Cassandra Complex (Rodney's obviously sick of doing the same old Play-It-Again-Sam sound, no matter how much we all loved it), and it's nowhere near as good as the recent live shows (but then how could it be? See them if you get a chance!), but Wetware is a great album nonetheless. So, what's the new CX sound? The overall tone is more on the goth side than most of CX's earlier music (despite having more electronics), but it's a pretty diverse album, hard to nail down. In fact, each song seems to echo the sound of a different band (Sisters of Mercy, [your favorite Belgian newbeat band here], [your favorite northern European synthpop band here], etc.), as interpreted by Cassandra Complex. It comes across more as a playful paean than a ..... pastiche. People who call this a SOM clone probably only listened to the first track; people who call it an Apop clone definitely only listened to the last. As for the lyrics, they're slightly more obvious than before, but just as clever. See "Twice as Good" for a perfect example (and if there's any song more Rodney, I don't know what it is)."
SOM clone, but still good
Pessimystica | Austin, TX | 11/30/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Picky picky previous reviewer....name anything that's not totally original!! Every band always has to be compared to another... just enjoy the music for what it is!! If it bothers you that much that this is an SOM clone, then I can't convince you otherwise...but if you don't mind (cuz I don't), then this will be just more ear candy for ya. I really don't know much about this band. I only know about them from a friend's recommendation who saw them with Front 242 this year, & my friend said they had put on a good live show. The album has some instantly catchy songs, esp. the opening track "Valis". Usually I don't pay too much attention to the lyrics, so if the lyrics are bad, I haven't hardly noticed. I did get a kick out of the lyrics to "Twice as Good", & not sure if I've heard any other song by anyone else touch that subject that way...you'll have to hear for yourself to know what I'm talking about :) So anyway, get it if yer just dying to add something new & rare to yer never-ending cd collection."
Not CX greatest BUT
D. Tumpic | All over the place | 02/19/2005
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Not CX greatest BUT still interesting especially the CX rendition of Borghesia's N.U.D. (Goli, Uniformirani, Mrtvi.) Some of the posters have likened CX to Sisters of Mercy, which I find VERY funny... they aren't about the same thing. Anyone that has listened to the album Theomania can surely vouch for that. WetWare doesn't come close to Theomania BUT "Bad Faith" is rockin and "Twice as Good" has very valid points and is "catchy"."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1