It's been 30 years and a month since the first Rocketship album dropped. For some of us, we came to this band thanks to their appearance on the seminal Why Popstars Can't Dance comp. on Slumberland Records. The same legendary imprint has now reissued the group's debut record, A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness on vinyl, CD, and digital formats.
Remastered and sounding better than ever, A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness bursts open with "I Love You Like the Way That I Used to Do", a chiming and jangling masterpiece. While that one is full of exuberant energy, there's more nuance in "Heather, Tell Me Why", a down-tempo, Stereolab-ish gem. And even better is the moody "Let's Go Away", a track which recalls some numbers from label-mates Velocity Girl. Dustin Reske had a knack for blending some good influences in his own music while still crafting material which seemed a little mysterious; I can remember getting this CD in 1996 and not knowing much about the band, or where they were from. They were on a good label, yeah, but A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness had this oddly special vibe about it. The tunes inside, all bright and shimmering with youthful promise, only added to that vibe. And for all that you remember here being as boisterous and peppy as "I'm Lost Without You Here", there was always a bit more to the charm of this first Rocketship record.
Here we are 30 years later and it's not a stretch to say that some of us have been chasing the thrill of hearing this debut from Rocketship again with other bands. The sad thing is that few other bands could deliver something as good as A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness. This is a classic album which always stood a little bit on its own. I didn't really need to know much about Rocketship in 1996 to love their music, and even now, 30 years on, when I do know more, that same pop promise rings in these grooves. Chiming and melodic, the Rocketship songs on A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness remain absolute gems.
A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness (30th Anniversary Edition) by Rocketship is out now via Slumberland Records. Details below too.
[Photo: Rocketship / Slumberland Records]