Menswear - ¡Hay Tiempo! Mp3

Here's a completely forgotten sophomore (and final) album from a band that ended just as they found a solid sound. "Hay Tiempo" sought to be more in every way than its predecessor, "Nuisance", and succeeded hugely in all but one way: it was only released in Japan and, as a consequence, hardly anyone in the world ever heard it. As far as most people who even remember Menswear are concerned, the group only had the one album, "Nuisance".
"Hay Tiempo" is confident, unhurried, and surprisingly cohesive. The newfound country rock licks rest easily against the somewhat overblown orchestration that felt a bit pasted-on and saccharine on the debut album. The group earns the grand moments here, nothing feels as rushed, impatient or...well, cheap as it did on "Nuisance". Alas, this album assures us that Menswear could've been a damn fine band if only they'd not rushed things so hugely with the hyped UK press in 1995 and spent more time working out their sound and not feeding the scene the "product" they thought would meet with success. (And Johnny was a bit too constrained by the limitations of the voice he was born with — that's what happens when your main qualification is your pretty-boy looks, I suppose.) This one should be reissued with "We Love You" as a bonus track.