First things first, so let's make it clear that Polly Jean Harvey looks absolutely great on the sleeve of this album, sporting cool shades and a huge handbag as she crosses a busy city street. And it's by no means irrelevant to emphasise that highly stylised image.
This time around Polly's drama school project is playing a Rock Star, and therefore this must be a Rock Record. And from the opener 'Big Exit', a simplistic, effective stomper so swathed in echo that she seems to be singing from the bottom of a pit, to the raucous semi-bonus 'This Wicked Tongue', it's just that, a back to basics special.
Alright, 'Good Fortune' sounds like the Go-Betweens (well, not quite that bad), and 'This Mess We're In' is sung by Thom Yorke, with all his usual life-affirming enthusiasm, but programme that pair out and this is a fine album. 'Beautiful Feeling', Polly, her guitar and Mr Yorke again, this time bringing the drinks and providing perfectly judged oohs and aahs, is just gorgeous, 'This Is Love' chugs along in a stadium friendly fashion, and 'A Place Called Home', dominated by a wall of scratchy acoustic guitars, is relentless.
The lyrics throughout are shocking incidentally, Patti Smith soundalike 'The Whores Hustle And The Hustlers Whore' only the worst offender among many atrocious geographically specific (i.e. embarrassing) attempts. But what the hell. Polly is playing a star here, and stars travel, and stars write tunes in hotel rooms. She's still great live too, as that recent Radio One show proved. Whatever happened to Kate Bush anyway?
