The second album from Rob Aldridge and Tim Smith, the latter of whom was a one-time member of Jellyfish, turns out to be a departure from the duo’s previous work. Their debut album Demolotion was a trippy but rockin’ mix of catchy songs, often in the best tradition of Jellyfish, but that style has vanished for their second outing, which largely consists of acoustic ballads – or at least it seems to. Truth be told, only half of the album fits that mode, but the preponderance of such material had the effect of tricking my mind into thinking that the entire album was pretty sleepy. I don’t mind acoustic ballads, or even entire albums of them, but that’s just not what I had in mind when I shelled out money for an Umajets CD. That’s not to say that there isn’t good material on here, though – my favorite number has to be the jaunty, galloping “Hang Ten”, which seems to concern the dying thoughts of a surfer who finally encounters a wave that’s more than he can 
handle. There’s also a gentle cover of Thomas Dolby’s “Screen Kiss”, with vocals that sound very much like Howard Jones (how’s that for a bizarre mix of 80’s new wave icons?). So, to recap, there is good stuff on the second Umajets CD, but the band sounds vastly different this time than they did the first time around – there’s nothing here to compare to “Daphne’s Disease” or “Fly”.
- When I Wake Up (3:54)
- On The Moon (3:05)
- Screen Kiss (5:08)
- Mr. Combination (3:37)
- Boxes (3:11)
- Butterfly Mind (4:25)
- Life Moves On (5:06)
- Inside (4:25)
- Congratulations (2:56)
- Hang Ten (2:49)
- Long Way Home (3:25)
Released by: Clearspot
Release date: 1999
Total running time: 42:03
