Whale - We Care (1995)

Whale isn't necessarily a band, it's a studio project by a pair of Swedish television personalities, who also happen to be ex-lovers. In other words, it's a highly stylized and manufactured album that is proud of its artificiality. Even more than that, Whale is about sex, particularly dirty, tawdry sex. From the blunt come-ons of "I'll Do Ya," to the lesbian fantasies about Saint Etienne's Sarah Cracknell on "Eurodog," We Care positively seethes with sex. No matter how dirty Whale gets ("Young, Dumb & Full of Cum" is about as far as they go), there is a jokey sense of good humor that keeps We Care from being an oppressively sleazy affair. What also helps is their reckless mixture of styles. Taking elements of trip-hop beats, heavy metal guitars, sing-song pop, and football chants, the band creates a joyously noisy racket that emphasizes their humor and their sexiness. The sound might grow a little monotonous at various points on the album, but We Care succeeds on its own raunchy charm.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo