He knows his way around a hook, and Diagrams Without Instructions (Hi-Fi Alliance) has one masterpiece – “Very Elbow” – which has the Big Music vibe of U2, Echo and the Bunnymen, and the Verve. But Lunch and co-conspirators fail to mine their raucous, experimental, and ultimately uninteresting sound for more than a few radio-ready would-be singles.
“Tator Tots & Robots” sounds enough like the aforementioned Dolby to make you miss the clever lyricism Dolby would have brought. “Oh My” is a fun thought exercise (what if Kurt Cobain had taken cues from Robert Fripp?), but overstays its welcome by a full minute. Lunch channels Cobain again in “Centipede Centerpiece,” which is a fine song arriving too late (on the CD and in the pop music timeline).
There are a couple of dandy instrumentals, and even the worst songs show glimmers of talent. As it is, though, recognizing that talent is like knowing the chef used sashimi-grade yellowfin to make an under-seasoned tuna noodle casserole.
– Lyam White
Thomas Lunch (Hi-Fi Alliance)