You Turn Me On

People holding this up for its influence on later indie, but tbh I'm mostly just hearing a lot of influence points that came before this. Any case, all the songs wear out their welcome.

Enjoyed this one quite a bit and could see it being one I return to in the future

2.5

Beat Happening are one of those bands where some of the enthusiasm is about what they represent as much as what they sound like. The deliberate lo-fi aesthetic, the childlike simplicity and the conscious amateurism. Apparently all of it was genuinely influential on a generation of indie artists, and that cultural significance is real.

As a pure listening experience though, it's a pleasant three stars. You Turn Me On is genuinely cool, Calvin Johnson's baritone is distinctive and charming, and the mix of grittier songs and pop tracks gives the album enough variety to hold attention. Heather Lewis's voice is an acquired taste I haven't fully acquired yet.

I may be missing something. But I'm enjoying it on its own terms regardless.

There was a lot to like here, but nothing was different enough or perfect enough to hook me.