SECOND LANGUAGE

Disco Inferno is one of those bands that I have tried to get into several times but I just can't seem to find that toehold that will make me appreciate their music. This EP, which was released as a series of EPs between 1993-94, "Second Language" pretty much will give anyone a quick look into what their music is like. I appreciate what they do, and I even understand it, as they go against all expectations that a name like "Disco Inferno" might conjure up. The idea is an excellent one, and is the reason why I was initially attracted to exploring their music. They problem is, I never seem to hit "pay dirt" with them.

This EP is, much like all of their others, made up of tracks that pretty much have no emotion, with songs that sound like the band is a bit too casual in their approach. Yes they experiment with sound and textures, but once they introduce a sound in one of their songs, it has very little in change through the single track, sort of jangly, and more like a shoegaze sound than anything else. The melodies are pretty much buried in their textured and experimental sound, the singing is very unemotional and casual, and not much seems to stand out.

On this 4 song EP, the best track is "At the End of the Line", but the reason for that is that the band actually explores some nice experimentation to their usual shoegaze texture, and this adds a bit more character to the track. It ends up standing out the most because of this, however, overall, it's still quite a shrug when everything is said and done. Try as I might, I just have a hard time hearing anything that catches my attention, though I totally respect what they are trying to do here. However, it only makes for not only something that isn't commercial, but also creates something that doesn't really create any interest while it is at it. I end up giving this 3 stars because it doesn't really stir any emotions (excitement or disdain) by the time it is all done. I'm neither happy or sad that it is short, and once it is over, your life just continues as before.