The album before this one, Where Meager Die Of Self Interest, was not my type of album. It was a raw album. The drums were quite hollow-sounding and the whole recording sounded as if it was done in a cellar. Still, it wasn't a bad album, though. With Short Hand Operation the band did it differently. It's no longer as raw and compromiseless. The drums don't sound hollow and over all it's more accessible. And the keyboards have a more prominent place on this recording. That is proven when the first song starts with keyboards that create a dark atmosphere. After one and a half minute the punkrock storm begins full force ahead and it's immediately clear that Ninety Pound Wuss didn't evolve into a poppunkband either. The songs still have something raw and compromiseless about them. But some songs did go that direction a bit, especially in Nostalgia with a catchy chorus. One of the fourteen tracks is more or less instrumental and is basically the keyboards playing and no second it becomes heavy. You wouldn't have heard that on Where Meager....! The same can be said of At The End Of It All with which the CD ends. It was the keyboards only and some distant vocals. Short Hand Operation gives a different impression of the band than their previous effort. It's a CD with experiments and various influences. For those into this and post-punk an interesting album. I started enjoying it!
Other coverage for this album
HM Magazine #78Reviewed by Ben MengdenI hope this album sells like crazy; easily my favorite work of 90 lb. to date. Short Hand Operation is along the same lines as their previous album, Where Meager Die of Self Interest, but is even more brilliant. Now if you still don't believe me, you can keep reading. Simply put, 90 lb.'s old school, punk sound and post-punk inventiveness (especially seen on Where Meager...) is portrayed in…The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Joe RockstrohGot Punk? Well, maybe. I haven't heard an album this confused in a long time. Ninety Pound Wuss, an established Christian punk band on T&N Records, continues to cultivate their widening range of influences with their latest release. One of the few things I expect to hear on a punk record is electronics. But the opening song, "Short Hand Operation", employs a spooky industrial electronic intro,…Similar sounding releases
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