PKD / Simulacra

To say that this retrospective compilation of Bunnydrums tracks is long overdue can be construed as both praise and criticism. It's praise in the sense that this band deserved more attention than it got during its six-year lifespan. And it's criticism in the sense that time has not been especially kind to this music; this compilation would have sounded better ten years prior to its 2003 release. It's very difficult not to hear Bunnydrums' fusion of musical elements from Joy Division, Gang of Four, Killing Joke, Wall of Voodoo, and Wire as anything other than a period exercise. And yet despite its anachronistic flavor, this reissue of the PKD album (with additional material from Holy Moly, the On the Surface EP, the Feathers Web EP, and the "Win"/"Little Room" single) is both a welcome piece of pop music history and an enjoyable musical experience in its own right. Highlights include the affecting "Smithson," a very Gang of Four-ish punk-funk interlude called "Ugh," "Holy Moly," and "Frozen Hands"; less convincing are the waste-of-time instrumental "Switchblade" and the unlistenable "Too Much Time." All of it is worth hearing at least once, though, especially for anyone who forgets how much fun '80s post-punk experimentalism really could be.