As free Ron and Russell Mael may be as Sparks: for more than 50 years they have to prove their craziness again and again. With the album The Girl is Crying in Her Latte, in 2023 you pushed to a border. The record was cool and funny, but musically weak, because there were no good songs behind the ideas. It looks briefly as a suffering Mad! Under the same problem. The album begins with a few statement tracks: nobody is like us, nobody else writes songs about sports bags. That’s right, but not without reason.
From the second half of Mad! the mood changes. The Maels now show their sense of songwriting, even for romance. Well, the love song “I 405 Rules” is devoted to a city highway, “A Little Bit of Light Banter” is the late -evening small talk before the light runs out. But the bubblegum pop makes very good sounds.
In the end, Sparks even treats themselves to a little pathos: “Lord Have Mercy” is a glam-pop gospel, placed in a country between Abba and Nick Cave. Only Sparks know the way there.
You can find out which albums were still published in May 2025 via our monthly publication list.