Dark at the End of the Tunnel

The tunnel was a perfect metaphor for Oingo Boingo’s first album in the '90s, as group leader Danny Elfman later said that this album’s songs were dark: “Scary-dark, funny-dark, or just dark-dark.” The macabre musical and lyrical themes of “Skin,” “Flesh ‘n Blood," and “When the Lights Go Out” may have been influenced by Elfman’s work on Tim Burton’s films Beetlejuice, Batman, and Edward Scissorhands, all of which he scored in the lead-up to Dark at the End of the Tunnel. At the same time, not unlike Burton’s films, the prettiness of “Out of Control Are,” “Is This,” and “Right to Know” fits easily alongside the churning gloom of “Glory Be.” As if to assure listeners that Boingo wasn’t turning into a goth outfit, “Run Away (The Escape Song)” turns back to the band's ska roots, although the old rhythms feel murkier and more grown-up than they did on Boingo’s highly caffeinated early songs. While the album is fueled by thoughts of doubt and anger, it ends with an affirmation. “Try to Believe” is a beautifully crafted piece of Motown soul—one of the great underappreciated influences on Boingo’s music.