Curve Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
Curve has had more of their share of ups and downs. Yet even when their career looked its bleakest, the band continued to make great music. When Estupendo/Universal told the band that their album Gift would be shelved, they continued to write and record. After posting several mp3s on their website, Toni Halliday and Dean Garcia had enough material to fill another album. As Gift was still tied up in legal battles with the major label, Curve independently released Open Day at the Hate Fest through their website. As the band enjoyed brisk sales of their self-release, they received word from Universal that Gift was put back on schedule and would be released on their Hip-O imprint. It's interesting to consider that Gift almost never saw the light of day. While it does fit in well with the band's efforts, it sounds different enough to reveal that the duo has fresh ideas and an ability to write great melodies without recycling old ones. As Come Clean kicked things off with "Chinese Burn," a gritty track featuring slick production, skittering beats, and a dirty, guitar-driven sound, "Hell Above Water" impressively introduces Gift with an edgy riff reminiscent of late-'90s Nine Inch Nails. Gift's title track follows and reveals one of the band's slickest choruses, perfectly combining their up-tempo instrumental intensity with Toni Halliday's sultry vocal work. Seemlessly flowing from menacing tracks like "Chainmail" and "Polaroid" to smoky, electronic-laden ballads like "Perish" and "Hung Up," Gift is classic Curve with modern arrangements and energy. While mixing elements of rock and electronica together is old news for Curve, their songwriting seems more natural on this outing. Perhaps due to their more personal nature, Gift's ten tracks are among Curve's best. While bringing together an all-star mix of producers and performers, including Alan Moulder, Flood, Alan Wilder (Depeche Mode, Recoil), and Ben Grosse (Filter), Halliday and Garcia showcase their unique knack for recording songs that feature an underlying darkness, even in their lighter moments. As Garbage and Sneaker Pimps have each scored commercial success with similar blends of female lead vocals, big beats, samples, and electric guitars, Curve shows that they are among the innovators of the form and prove themselves with one of their finest efforts. ~ Don Kline, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Just as fans were beginning to wonder if the duo Curve would ever return from their self-imposed exile, they returned with their best album to date, Come Clean. Still combining largely electronic music with alternative hooks and lines, members Toni Halliday and Dean Garcia returned to a now-popular form of music they helped create years ago. Although the album's two best tracks had previously appeared on their late-1997 EP Chinese Burn (the title tracks from both the EP and the full-length), there are plenty of other strong tracks in attendance. "Something Familiar" may be the band's most melodically accessible track yet, while the extremely overdriven distortion and abrasive tones of "Dogbone" are just the opposite. Unlike many electronic bands, the duo makes it clear that they don't just go for musical overkill, as evidenced by the slow electronic groove contained in "Killer Baby," and the mid-paced dance-rock of "Cotton Candy." Come Clean is the welcome return of a band that deserved attention when it first appeared years ago, and may get it in the electro-friendly late '90s. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Curve's second record finds more midtempo songs and a more electronic feel, although producer Flood still manages to bring out the band's dense sonic tendencies. While the music on Cuckoo is less aggressive than on Doppelganger, singer Toni Halliday's lyrics are well defined and still pack a punch. Often playing the woman spurned but not broken, Halliday takes no quarter. On "Super Blaster" she warns a companion not to start anything that they can't finish and she reads an ex-lover the riot act on "Left of Mother." The music shows more diversity, with a bit of funk injected into the guitars on "Crystal," while "Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus" is a hypnotic midtempo march. The album closes with the achingly confessional title cut, with Halliday showing a rare sense of vulnerability that is quite effective. Not as immediate as their earlier material and not quite as fulfilling, Cuckoo nonetheless will please longtime fans and is a solid introduction for potential converts. ~ Tom Demalon, All Music Guide
'Doppelgänger'
Release Date 2/1/1991
Tracks 11
Label Anxious/Charisma
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Following a series of single and EP releases that had found chart success in the U.K. and indie credibility in the States, the British band Curve released their full-length debut Doppelganger on Dave Stewart's Anxious label. Led by lead singer Toni Halliday and guitarist Dean Garcia, both of whom had toured with Robert Plant, Curve enlisted production help from Flood for this record. Roaming the same sonic landscape as My Bloody Valentine, Doppelganger features the breathy, dreamy vocals of Halliday over top layers of throbbing guitar, dense keyboards, and sledgehammer drumming to create formidable aural textures. At times meandering and unrelenting, tracks like "Already Yours" and "Wish You Dead" are stellar workouts full of rhythm and attitude. The few slower numbers are a nice change of pace with the best results on "Fait Accompli" and the quiet, almost dirge-like "Sandpit," where the less dense instrumentation allows Halliday's vocals to become the focal point. At times menacing and dark and other times more playful, Doppelganger is a bracing listening experience that earned Curve well-deserved attention on both sides of the Atlantic. ~ Tom Demalon, All Music Guide
