This is another album I usually listen to in the fall. I have no idea why this band isn't more well known. The Chameleons were a post-punk outfit from the UK in the '80s and this was their first LP. There is a somber and melancholy tone throughout the music in these songs that is only bolstered by the singing of Mark Burgess who is hands down one of my favorite lyricists and singers. Be advised that the music is not just your standard post-punk fare. These songs are haunting and will stay with you for days, even weeks. In the mid '90s I had seen a L.A. punk wearing a huge back patch for this very album and it caught my eye so I sought it out. I remember the first time I listened to this album. I turned it on expecting to hear some fast UK punk and when I didn't I turned it off abruptly. I later heard them mentioned in the same sentence as Joy Division which caused me to go back and revisit the album as JD are one of my top 3 favorite bands. Luckily for me they didn't sound like them either... The Chameleons are much, much different and stand firmly on their own merits. The song 'Second Skin' is almost deserving of its own post. Coupled with the rest of the brilliance on this album, this one's a no brainer.
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