Thriller

NME - 5 (out of 10) - "...Lambchop's quest to map the new country has come to an end....all the half-baked theorising and duff second half filler leaves you, er, hankering after more of the wistful porch songs of old..." Magnet - "...Head songwriter Kurt Wagner effortlessly fuses Nashville fried soul to traditional country, with rich veins of blues and pop piercing the strata..." Melody Maker - "...[Lambchop] draw a line under the teeth-and-rhinestones horror of 'new country' and rebuild Nashville's eminent skyline tall and proud." Uncut - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he band augmented their idiosyncratic indie-country style with lounge muzak and musique concrete..." Melody Maker (9/27/97, p.50) - "...[Lambchop] draw a line under the teeth-and-rhinestones horror of 'new country' and rebuild Nashville's eminent skyline tall and proud." NME (9/27/97, p.55) - 5 (out of 10) - "...Lambchop's quest to map the new country has come to an end....all the half-baked theorising and duff second half filler leaves you, er, hankering after more of the wistful porch songs of old..." Magnet (1-2/98, p.73) - "...Head songwriter Kurt Wagner effortlessly fuses Nashville fried soul to traditional country, with rich veins of blues and pop piercing the strata..."

While THRILLER retains the folk- and country-influenced, lushly arranged, laconic alt-rock sound of Lambchop's previous work, an important stylistic element (that would blossom in the group's future work) takes root here. The introduction of R&B/soul sounds distinguishes THRILLER as one of the most important releases in Lambchop's impressive canon. The peppy, staccato horn section that punctuates "Your Fucking Sunny Day" and the languid Philly Soul rhythms and harmonies of "My Face Your Ass" stand in stark contrast to the dreamily orchestrated folk-rock the band was previously known for. F.M. Kornog (elsewhere known as East River Pipe) contributes several strong compositions here, but mainman Kurt Wagner's metaphysical musings on the aforementioned "My Face Your Ass" and his ominous, poetic "The Old Fat Robin" steal the show.|