Kitchens of Distinction
Love is Hell

THE REVIEW

How immature does a title like Love is Hell sound? How outdated does Kitchens of Distinction sound as a band's name? Love is Hell is the debut of the Kitchens of Distinction, released in 1989, but it’s not really immature. It’s the work of people who know exactly what they’re doing and are fully aware that the genre they play has never really been in vogue, but is always resurfacing in some revival here and there. Love is Hell is a small great album. It sounds somewhat immature only in hindsight, and only because the Kitchens oD will achieve perfection with the next album, that Strange Free World, which in its way is a favorite of the one who writes.

Who were these Kitchens of Distinction? One of those bands that made noisy but not aggressive music, to express existential angst without being neither angry nor depressives. Youthful or youth-oriented angst, of course. But if your angst isn’t youthful, you wouldn't play this stuff. What’s special about the Kitchens oD? They were particularly good at sounding melancholy and atmospheric (but in a different way from Ride) and they had Patrick Fitzgerald on vocals, who was great at singing like Ian Curtis without seeming like someone imitating Ian Curtis.

So, is Love just an uglier Strange where the Kitchens hadn’t yet perfected their recipe (hehe)? Not quite. It’s pointless to bring up irritating terms like songwriting, unnecessary to nitpick how the debut’s sound doesn’t reach the formal balance of their second album. You know, that ethereal and airy rock, moving in a spectrum of nuances ranging from dream pop to shoegaze. You tell me when one starts and the other ends. I’ve told you this is stuff that can fit into any revival. If we want to find a limit to Love is Hell, it’s that the full atmosphere that makes Strange Free World so special isn’t there yet. Those who don't understand what I mean by atmosphere just need to listen to the album.

On the other hand, in the absence of atmosphere, Love is Hell retains a jangle pop aftertaste that the Kitchens will somewhat tend to lose later on. In short, it's shoegaze that at times reminds of the Smiths, other times leans more towards post-punk. You decide whether that’s a flaw.