Listening to Courtney Love's first official solo album is a bit like watching a car crash - ugly, gruesome, but also strangely compelling. The widow of Kurt Cobain has clearly been through the mill recently, and she lets all her anger out on these noisy rants about everything from her drugs psychosis to her ongoing custody battles. Unfortunately, the songs' lyrical impact is blunted somewhat by the primitive rock arrangements that back them up. Love clearly revels in her outlaw image, but her sulky rock-chick posturings, entertaining in small doses, aren't quite enough to sustain a whole album. And ripping off the riff to Nirvana's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' on the sleazy 'I'll Do Anything' will strike many as being in bad taste. Ironically, it's only when she drops the rage and actually deigns to sing on a couple of uncharacteristic ballads that a new, more appealing voice shines through. So, Love doesn't quite conquer all - but she's a pretty hard woman to ignore all the same.

Your Comments

No comments have been posted for this article yet. Be the first!