Plastic Fantastic

Flesh for Lulu brings the noise in Plastic Fantastic to gain more fans in America, but ironically it's only the album's two most poppy love songs that found airplay in the United States. They also salvage a somewhat disappointing LP from a band who was finally able to attach hooks to their marriage of glam and goth on Long Live the New Flesh. But released in 1989, when spandex metal was dominating AOR stations, Plastic Fantastic turns up the amps. "Decline and Fall" and "House of Cards" are passable rockers; they're much slicker than anything in Flesh for Lulu's early discography, so purists should be forewarned. Hidden in the rather forgettable material on Plastic Fantastic is the romantic "Time and Space" and the sultry "Every Little Word." "Time and Space" has Nick Marsh crooning love-stricken lyrics as dreamy new wave keyboards shimmer in adoration. "Time and Space" could've been as fondly remembered as new wave ballads like Depeche Mode's "Somebody" and the Psychedelic Furs' "The Ghost in You" if it was released earlier in the decade. It's hard to chastise Flesh for Lulu for attempting to increase their audience on Plastic Fantastic; nevertheless, it's almost painful to hear gems such as "Time and Space" and "Every Little Word" surrounded by faceless guitar rock. And it flopped, too.