Failure Albums (3)
'Fantastic Planet'
Release Date 8/13/1996
Tracks 17
Label Warner Bros.
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Sometimes it makes one wonder how such similar ingredients can create such different results. Take Failure for example. You get the mourning vocals, the discordant wails of guitar feedback, the Steve Albini production -- yes, just about everything that fits the Nirvana template. Yet Failure seem to miss the point. Because even here on the band's third album out of the fire, Fantastic Planet is ripe with idolized ingredients but low on original flavor. One aspect that seems to be in the band's favor this time around is the choice to self-produce. While not exceptional, their ear towards the atmospherics (check out the Downward Spiral-like "Daylight" or interludes like "Segue 3") help create an effort that is more skilled than your average Kurt Cobain-worshiper. Another strong sign is that this album seems more guided by Greg Edwards' swaying basslines than most bands' reliance on angry guitars. However, these high marks can't hide the normally weak songwriting. The lyrics go from quoting Russian films to clumsy metaphors about carpet stores ("Go ahead roll me up in your detachment/I'm here to decorate your fear for awhile") while the oafish musical structures leave little to the imagination. One crucial ingredient that might be missing is a talent for hooks. Because despite everything else -- and regardless of the true internal antipathy towards himself and his world -- Cobain still had an undeniable skill for crafting songs in the middle of all the "noise." An album like Fantastic Planet, on the other hand, shows how a different band can attempt to create the same "pained" dish, yet continue to burn themselves with almost every style-over-substance track. Failure might get there someday. It's just that until that day arrives, we are only left with albums that hint at a talent hiding behind another band's personality. ~ Dean Carlson, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Magnified represents the real emergence of Failure, perhaps the best post-grunge dirge-pop band of the '90s. Shedding the sonic intrusiveness of producer/engineer Steve Albini, Failure took on the production of this effort, revealing recording and songwriting skills hidden on the band's debut of two years earlier. Songwriters Ken Andrews (guitars, vocals) and Greg Edwards (bass, drums) are joined by drummer John Dargahi (filling in on tracks Edwards probably couldn't cover on his own). This 1994 release completely eclipses Comfort with its superior songs, vocal performances, and vast dynamic. The melodies and arrangements are both simple and elegant, something like the Beatles meet Pink Floyd meets Black Sabbath meets '90s modern rock. But all comparisons fail to describe the unique results of Andrews and Edwards' precisely executed vision. Despite minimal arrangements and instrumentation, Failure uses some extraordinary lyrics and hyper-melodic riffing to create a sprawling sound that retains a profound heaviness. "Moth" and "Wonderful Life" could be considered standouts, but these songs aren't cut from a substantially different cloth than any of Magnified's other entries. Along with Failure's swansong masterpiece, Fantastic Planet (although practically unknown, a record considered by a small but extremely passionate group of followers as the post-grunge bookend to Nevermind), Magnified is one of the best records of its kind. ~ Vincent Jeffries, All Music Guide
