I've never seen anyone as into a band as GW is. Ya gotta admit, the Oils are cool.

Darkness on the edge of town is quite good, probably more cohesive than The River, although probably not blessed with as many hooks and melodies. But then again it's not the sort of album that's about hooks and melodies - it's the sort of album that's about Adam Raised A Cain. Of course, there's Badlands, one of those lovely opening tracks that sort of blows you away with pomp and bombast. Something of an aberration though, because the rest of the album is very much a tired Springsteen - just look at the cover! He starts deviating from the traditional working-class-hero formula and gets a bit edgier, which is of course a good thing. For one, the songs are a lot more resonant, and can be considered a bit more sreiously. It's a pity that there don't seem to be any other Springsteen albums that are favoured by my good friend Starostin; not that Starostin's word is God, of course.