thestar.com

Many bands start out as idealistic and individualized punks, and then slowly go corporate after hitting it big. Pearl Jam, though, seem to have gone the other way. Their debut album Ten was a smash because it cloaked corporate AOR (proven seller) in Seattle grunge (current hot thing). On the new album, though, the group has discovered the punk roots that grungeophiles like to brag about, and they've crafted a far, far superior album.

Unwilling or unable to further develop the Celtic sounds they've flirted with in the past, [Miles Hunt] and his mates spend too much of Construction for the Modern Idiot either repeating themselves or falling back on cliched dance beats. Cabin Fever, for instance, sounds like almost any Wonderstuff tune circa 1989, while Change Every Lightbulb and Wish Them All Dead work that tired Manchester groove.

On their major label debut, Flop bring their hard-working, hard- rocking guitars to songs that evoke the post-psychedelic '70s: a time when the Beatles were still everything to everyone. Accordingly, Whenever You're Ready is crammed with wonky lyrics (like "You turned into a jellyfish, discovering the flow of time"), self-consciously clever song structures, and earnest vocals.