Smiths- S/T LP (180 gram vinyl!)

Vinyl LP pressing. Digitally re-mastered edition of the 1984 debut album from the legendary British quartet. Arriving in an era dominated by Synthpop and gloomy Post-Punk, the Smith's eponymous debut was the beginning of a new era. Johnny Marr's inventive songwriting and ringing guitars were catchy and melodic and were made all the more original by Morrissey's vocal style and lyrics. Although The Smiths continued to improve over the course of their career, the songs here are vital and alive, making sure that their debut remains startling and exciting to this day.

• - Disc 1 -
• 1 Reel Around the Fountain
• 2 You've Got Everything Now (2011 Remastered Version)
• 3 Miserable Lie (2011 Remastered Version)
• 4 Pretty Girls Make Graves (2011 Remastered Version)
• 5 The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (2011 Remastered Version)
• - Disc 2 -
• 1 Still Ill (2011 Remastered Version)
• 2 Hand in Glove (2011 Remastered Version)
• 3 What Difference Does It Make? (2011 Remastered Version)
• 4 I Don't Owe You Anything (2011 Remastered Version)
• 5 Suffer Little Children (2011 Remastered Version)

Arriving in an era dominated by synth pop and gloomy post-punk, the Smiths' eponymous debut was the bracing beginning of a new era. On the surface, the Smiths' sound wasn't radically different from traditional British guitar pop Johnny Marr's ringing, layered guitars were catchy and melodic but it was actually an astonishing subversion of the form, turning the structure inside out. Very few of the songs followed conventional verse-chorus structure, yet they were quite melodic within their own right. Marr's inventive songwriting was made all the more original and innovative by Morrissey's crooning and lyrics. Writing about unconventional topics, from homosexuality ("Hand in Glove") to child molestation and murder, Morrissey had a distinctively ironic, witty, and literate viewpoint whose strangeness was accentuated by his off-kilter voice, which would move from a croon to a yelp in a matter of seconds. While the production of The Smiths is a little pristine, the songs are vital and alive, developing a new, unique voice within pop music. Though the Smiths continued to improve over the course of their career, their debut remains startling and exciting.

(Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AllMusic.com)