EXTREME : III SIDES TO EVERY STORY [EEC 1992] CD

(A&M) 1992 made in Europe

cat. num. 540 006-2

#funk metal #hard rock

Yours1Warheads 5:182Rest In Peace 6:023Politicalamity5:044Color Me Blind5:015Cupid's Dead 5:566Peacemaker Die6:03 Mine7Seven Sundays4:188Tragic Comic4:459Our Father4:0210Stop The World5:5811God Isn't Dead?2:02 & The Truth Everything Under The Sun 12I Rise 'N Shine 6:2313II Am I Ever Gonna Change 6:5714III Who Cares?8:19

Extreme's brand of hard rock balanced ambitious, progressive tendencies with catchy melodies owing more to the Beatles than anthemic arena rock; on III Sides to Every Story, the former tends to dominate. The album is divided into three "sides of the story" -- roughly speaking, "Yours" concentrates on politically oriented rockers showing off Nuno Bettencourt's virtuosity; "Mine" leans toward pop songs with warmly romantic sensibilities, plus an occasional philosophical lament; and "The Truth" tries to wrap things up into a coherent whole but dissolves into indigestible prog-rock excess. Thus, the thematic material can be likened to a less focused version of Pornograffitti. The album is wildly uneven, but amidst the indulgences there are some fine songs to be found: "Rest in Peace" displays both Bettencourt's technique and melodicism as a soloist, while "Seven Sundays" continues in their occasional lounge ballad vein, and "Tragic Comic" and "Stop the World" are two more intelligent, wounded-romantic pop gems.