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| original cover |
release date: June 1981
format: vinyl (BEAT 3) / cd (1999 remaster)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,64]
producer: Bob Sargeant
label: Go Feet Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: A) 1. "Doors of Your Heart" (4 / 5) - 2. "All Out to Get You" - 3. "Monkey Murders" - 4. "I Am Your Flag" - - B) 2. "Walk Away" (4 / 5) (live)
2nd studio album by The Beat is like the debut produced by Bob Sargeant and originally released on the band's own label, Go Feet. The sextet remains intact, but it's quite evident that the style has altered since I Just Can’t Stop It from 1980. The tempo has slowed down and it's much more an experimentation with a huge fusion of styles.
Instead of the more original ska revival and 2-tone there's clearly more focus on reggae and calypso with steel band and dub.
The album was released to mixed reviews but still sold quite well reaching #3 on the national albums chart list and NME ranked the album #4 on its 'Albums of the Year' end list.
The album contains some very fine compositions, but the overall impression is a release with many loose ends - some fillers, and perhaps also what appears as an incoherent release, partly because of the strong debut with its tight original sound and sheer energy, but also because of an indistinct direction and blend of too many styles. That said, Wha'ppen? may not equal the strong debut but it's really no near a mediocre album - it simply contains too many fine compositions..
The '99 remaster has a different track listing and comes with several bonus tracks. [ allmusic.com, Records Mirror, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]
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| 1999 cover |
