In Reverse

Despite the fact that it was his third outing, Matthew Sweet’s 1991 album Girlfriend provided the perfect introduction to his traditional but terrific combination of impeccably crafted songs, hurt vocals and glorious guitars. Sweet’s first two albums suffered from woefully misguided, electro-based production but Girlfriend’s optimism sounded the perfect antidote to the third-rate Heavy Metal and teenage grumbling of Grunge, cruising past the half-million sales mark in the States, confirming Matthew as one of the decade’s potential stars.

Things didn’t quite pan out like that unfortunately, even though Altered Beast, 100% Fun and Blue Sky On Mars each contained at least half a dozen reminders of the man’s ability to wring new wonders from the guitar/bass/drums format. Sweet’s profile has settled into that of a Power Pop superstar, a cult I’m proud to be a member of but a fringe sect nonetheless. Whether the new album will do anything to change his circumstances remains to be seen but it’s a fantastic piece of work.

Maintaining Sweet’s ’90s schedule of an album every two years, In Reverse sees him combining his usual stringent quality control with an obvious homage to Phil Spector’s Wall Of Sound.

‘If Time Permits’ and ‘I Should Never Have Let You Know’ are the most instantly appealing examples of this sonic experiment, the former sounding like nothing less than Spector producing the peak-period Byrds at their most harmonious and the latter recalling the full-on joy of The Crystals and The Ronettes.

Fans of Sweet’s more familiar Power Pop forays needn’t fear for their biennial fix either, as the opening ‘Millennium Blues’ blasts out of the blocks with all guitars blazing, backwards trumpets and trombones adding a dementedly psychedelic feel. ‘Hide’ and ‘Beware My Love’ are suitably bittersweet ballads, while ‘Faith In You’ is a superior stomp in the noble tradition of ‘Sick Of Myself’.

In Reverse is the sound of one of American Pop’s finest talents ripping through his and everybody else’s past with gusto, and is an unreservedly thrilling record.