The Church - Forget Yourself (2003)

[9 x Fined]

With label woes, a rotation of drummers, and Stateside disinterest, the 1990s were difficult for the Church. Tough enough that most would have expected the veteran Australian rock act -- cursed in North America as a one-hit wonder for 1988's "Under the Milky Way," despite an impressive catalog that dates back to 1981 -- to throw it all away by now, or at least cash in through some nostalgia tour. Not so. Instead, the quartet took to the studio for three months, jamming with one another unhindered, and then piecing together the fruits of their labor. The resulting Forget Yourself, the Church's 17th album, is a timeless, magical disc that is easily as strong as anything from their 1980s peak. The group's most notable trademarks -- Steve Kilbey's distinctively deep, resonant voice, and Marty Willson-Piper's shimmering guitar roar -- are immediately audible on tracks like the stuttering, melodic "Sealine," and the dreamy "Song in Space." As Forget Yourself evolves, however, the real brilliance peeks through on lush numbers like "Telepath," "Maya," and "June," all boasting the ethereal moments that made early discs like Remote Luxury and Heyday fan favorites. That's not to say the brooding drama of "The Theatre and Its Double" gets the group off course, but there are enough super tunes here ("Don't You Fall" and "I Kept Everything" are some more) to tag their latest a tremendous return to form. -amg

http://www.sendspace.com/file/c63ruv

[9 x Fined]

Be interested what people think of this. I think it's one of the best albums so far this decade. Besides the Moz ones, of course.

[SergeSerge]

Hi there! I'm a huge fan of The Church since day one. A great, great, great band. "Forget Yourself", by the way, is an essential album.

[9 x Fined]

Good to hear! I uploaded this because I figured the average person on here would probably never get to hear it. I think it will appeal to many a Morrissey fan.

[skellngtn]

This is a great one by one of my favorite bands.
Hard to say if this is my post-80s fave by them or not...
Priest=Aura still ranks up there, among others.
However, June always makes an appearance on mellow mix playlists i whip up for people. And Cantilever, from the bonus disc of this album, became a favorite after seeing them perform it live. I also recommend their last two acoustic albums, not only for their reworking of old classics, but each disc has a handful of great new tunes as well. 1408 became one of my favorite songs by the guys.

[Mars_Rover]

Very kind of you, 9x! I love The Church, but didn't have this particular album -- they're just so darn prolific it's hard to keep up with them. Steve Kilbey is one of the most underrated songwriters ever, IMO.

[skellngtn]

...and this was a disc released in most decent record/cd shops.

All those import or Church-website-only releases were coming out left and right for a while there...Back with 2 Beasts, Beside Yourself, the 2 El Momento discs, Jammed, Tin Mine etc etc.

I've been negligent in their solo works, as they've been rereleasing stuff with a few extra tracks...and the ol' wallet just doesn't wanna cooperate.

[Johan de Witt]

Be interested what people think of this. I think it's one of the best albums so far this decade. Besides the Moz ones, of course.

I, for one, prefer The Church' After Everything Now This, but this one's pretty good too