• Artist: INXS
• Rating:
• Styles: Club/Dance, Rock & Roll, Pop/Rock
• Track Picks: "Bitter Tears," "Disappear," "Suicide Blonde"

Review

The seventh album from Australia's INXS basically sticks to the formula set up on Kick, mixing solid remixable dancefloor beats with slightly quirky production tricks, Michael Hutchence's rough-edged, bluesy vocals, and some good solid song hooks. The most immediate numbers are, of course, the two singles, "Suicide Blonde" and "Disappear," but other tracks stand out as potential hit material as well, including the anthemic "The Stairs." The biggest problems with the album are a tendency to play it safe, sticking to the tried and true -- echoing a line in the thumping "Who Pays the Price," when Hutchence sings "it's all been felt before" -- and the fact that there's very little in the way of subtlety on the entire album. All of the songs are designed for immediate radio contact -- they don't really give you a chance to grow into them, they just grab you by the throat and start shaking. "Know the Difference," as an example, threatens to be sneaky but immediately switches to an obvious assault instead. In the finish, the overwhelming lack of subtlety and sense of sameness overcomes the album as a whole. It's not that's it's a bad album. It's just nowhere near as good as it could -- and should -- have been. [The 2002 reissue features four previously unreleased versions of "Deepest Red," "Salvation Jane," "Who Pays the Price" and "Dark of Night."] ~ Steven McDonald, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	iTunes	Composers	Performers	Time
Suicide Blonde		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:52)
Disappear		Jon Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(4:10)
The Stairs		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(4:56)
Faith in Each Other		Jon Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(4:09)
By My Side		Andrew Farriss, Kirk Pengilly, C. Thomas	INXS	(3:06)
Lately		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:37)
Who Pays the Price		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:37)
Know the Difference		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:17)
Bitter Tears		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:49)
On My Way		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(2:55)
Hear That Sound		Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(4:10)
Waiting to Be Free [*]	...	Andrew Farriss	INXS	(3:11)
Deepest Red [*]	...	Jon Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:24)
Salvation Jane [*][Demo Version]	...	Andrew Farriss	INXS	(3:22)
Who Pays the Price [*][Demo Version]	...	Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence	INXS	(3:15)
Dark of Night [*][Demo Version]	...	Andrew Farriss	INXS	(2:29)

Credits

Charlie Musselwhite (Harmonica), INXS (Main Performer), INXS (Reissue Producer), Greg Allen (Design), Greg Allen (Reissue Art Director), Gary Beers (Bass), Nick Egan (Art Direction), Nick Egan (Design), Andrew Farriss (Guitar), Andrew Farriss (Keyboards), Andrew Farriss (Producer), Andrew Farriss (Remastering), Andrew Farriss (Creative Consultant), Jon Farriss (Percussion), Jon Farriss (Drums), Jon Farriss (Programming), Tim Farriss (Guitar), Michael Hutchence (Vocals), Michael Hutchence (Producer), Mark McKenna (Project Assistant), David Nicholas (Engineer), Mark Opitz (Remixing), Mark Opitz (Remastering), Kirk Pengilly (Guitar), Kirk Pengilly (Programming), Kirk Pengilly (Saxophone), Kirk Pengilly (Vocals), Tim Young (Cut), Chris Thomas (Producer), Andy Strange (Assistant Engineer), Tom Bouman (Design), Don Bartley (Remastering), Michael Halsband (Photography), Michael Halsband (Cover Photo), Steve Woolard (Project Assistant), Emily Cagan (Product Manager), Grant Matthews (Photography), Karen Ahmed (A&R), Dan Jones (Reissue Producer), Wendy McDougall (Photography), Randy Perry (Project Assistant), Ginger Dettman (Project Assistant), Leigh Hall (Project Assistant), David Eugene Edwards (Reissue Producer), Cory Frye (Editorial Supervision), April Milek (Project Assistant), Scott Cresto (Project Assistant), Brendan Morley (Assistant Engineer)