Search - Db's :: Stands for Decibels

Southern Anglophilia

leeleedee | Lexington, KentuckyCincinnati | 12/03/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is one of the best power-pop records ever made. I always thought that Americans did it better than the English--that distance, and that realization that the English were imitating Americans to begin with, made the American imitation of the English bands that much more piquant. "Stands for Decibels" was recorded in 1979 and first appeared in 1981. It's mannered music, very self-conscious, and somewhat speedier and more brittle than its obvious model, Big Star. The intricate overlay of guitars, the nimble drumming, the whole way that the dB's build their arrangements, is quite sophisticated. Peter Holsapple's songs tend to be a little less overtly avant-garde than Chris Stamey's, but on this record the combination results in a minor classic."