"I'd give this two stars except "standing outside a broken phone booth ..." IS a great song. I was just culling my CD collection & couldn't understand why I hadn't played "rocket" more & so put it on & then remembered why & that would be because "standing outside ... etc." is the ONLY good song on the album & not enough to stop me culling this CD to the used CD store so I can buy something better. This is one of those albums where you hear an awesome tune & rush out & buy the CD thinking it's probably pretty good & it turns out only the one song you heard is any good & the rest of it stinks & you get the distinct suspicion some record label guy saw you & a million other ... coming. Point made."
Surprising Effort from a One man Band
Patrick Burnett | San Francisco, CA USA | 06/11/1998
(5 out of 5 stars)
"One of the things that makes me angry about radio stations is limited playlists. Because they're afraid to branch out and play music with which no one is familiar, the only song anyone heard by Primitive Radio Gods (who is one guy, paradoxically), "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in my Hand". Well, one song is not enough. If you've missed out on the raw anger of "Mother******" and the quizzical pointedness of "Skin Turns Blue", you owe it to yourself to give this album a listen. I count it among my favorite purchases of 1996."
Gets better with repeated listens
Walker Morgan | Bay City | 02/13/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"i won't mince words here. i HATED this album the first time i heard it. i was expecting more songs like "standing outside..." with keyboards and drum machines and stuff like that. what i got was what sounded like some washed up hair-metal crap to me. i threw it in the "to sell" pile.
then a friend who shared a lot of musical taste with me saw this album in the pile and told me to forget "standing outside..." and just listen to the cd as a rock album. i was pleasantly suprised to find that the songs stuck in my head and became something more than a one hit wonder's filler for his single. this stuff is actually pretty good. very melodic and powerful especially tracks 1,2,4,and 10. just don't expect anything like the single."
One of the Lost Gems of the Last Decade
Chris White | Oklahoma City, OK!!!! | 02/07/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"It's funny how things work. Chris O'Connor made this album in his garage, by himself, and some how got a major label to pick it up. They liked it, and so everyone was treated to the single "Standing Outside...." in the summer of 1996. What they did not tell you was how great the record was. Each song is like an opus of guitars, effects, and trippy lyrics. No song souns alike, and each are crafted with such care and delibertion, it is hard to imagine how he made it alone (well he had a little help, but for the majority, it is just him). It is a record full of rich texture, and heart, made by a man who knew nothing more than his love of music, he took his time to sculpt wonderful songs. This is, without a doubt, one of the best records that nobody heard. A true shame that is was not more successful!"