Smiths, the Meat Is Murder ( remaster 180g vinyl LP )

Release date 09-01-2014 ( Originally released in 1985)

2014 EU ( remaster 180g vinyl LP ) -Inspired by can riffs bookended by lengthy brutal songs about corporal punishment and the horrors of the cattle industry the Smiths 1985 disc is the darkest entry in the UK groups catalog On How Soon Is Now Morrissey sums up with great pathos and hilarity what a drag it is to be shy More pathos would come Features the classic hits That Joke Isnt Funny Anymore and Barbarism Begins At Home

Tracks:
A1 The Headmaster Ritual 
A2 Rusholme Ruffians 
A3 I Want The One I Can't Have 
A4 What She Said 
A5 That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore 

B1 How Soon Is Now
B2 Nowhere Fast
B3 Well I Wonder 
B4 Barbarism Begins At Home
B5 Meat Is Murder

With their second proper album Meat Is Murder, the Smiths begin to branch out and diversify, while refining the jangling guitar pop of their debut. In other words, it catches the group at a crossroads, unsure quite how to proceed. Taking the epic, layered "How Soon Is Now?" as a starting point (the single, which is darker and more dance-oriented than the remainder of the album, was haphazardly inserted into the middle of the album for its American release), the group crafts more sweeping, mid-tempo numbers, whether it's the melancholy "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" or the failed, self-absorbed protest of the title track.

While the production is more detailed than before, the Smiths are at their best when they stick to their strengths -- "The Headmaster Ritual" and "I Want the One I Can't Have" are fine elaborations of the formula they laid out on the debut, while "Rusholme Ruffians" is an infectious stab at rockabilly. However, the rest of Meat Is Murder is muddled, repeating lyrical and musical ideas of before without significantly expanding them or offering enough hooks or melodies to make it the equal of The Smiths or Hatful of Hollow- All Music Guide