SOMETHING / ANYTHING ?

Far more approachable, even in its bloated double album format, than the labyrinthine A Wizard, a True Star, Rundgren's Something/Anything is a deft and subtle cornucopia of progressively inclined songwriting which ranges from moments of delirium on a par with its infamous followup to pop perfection like I Saw The Light (a song which surely set the tone for the marvellous Matt Berry's own music career much more recently - indeed, Berry's been known to perform it live from time to time). An expert production job inspires Rundgren to essentially dare listeners to try and hunt down studio hiss, hum, and other hallmarks of sloppy production, but it's the solid compositions (often Rundgren's Achilles heel) which really push this one over the top.