Yeah, Whatever

Album Review

When guitarist Mark Jowett left Moev to focus on the day-to-day operations of Nettwerk (not coincidentally the label that was formed to allow Moev to release records), and both Cal Stephenson and Michela Arrichiello abandoned the fold entirely, that left only one original member in the band. Tom Ferris rebuilt the band in time to record Yeah, Whatever, bringing Kelly Cook in full-time on bass, adding mixmaster extraordinaire Anthony Valcic, and borrowing a couple of members of the band After All for the session. The most notable new addition, though, was vocalist and lyricist Dean Russell; not only did this mark the shift of the band from a female-fronted outfit to one with a strong male presence, it also brought a much darker, even gothy, feel to the band. Most of the songs on this one are pretty drum- and bass-heavy — hell, "Wanting" sounds like a Peter Hook tribute — and it was a nice enough update of the band's sound for the end of the '80s. All fine and dandy if your only concern is dancing, but to be blunt, the material has dated fairly badly and the ominous religious overtones of the lyrics add a touch of cheese to Yeah, Whatever that was surely never intended. "Agony is borne of desire"? "Why won't you crucify me"? Yeah, whatever.