''Junk Puppets'' is the second album by the Irish band

An Emotional Fish An Emotional Fish are an alternative rock band from Dublin, Ireland. An Emotional Fish were formed in 1988, and consisted of Gerard Whelan (founding member, lead vocals, percussion), Enda Wyatt (founding member, songwriter, bass, vocals, key ...

, released in 1993. "Rain" peaked at No. 15 on ''Billboards

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart. The band supported the album with a North American tour.

Production

The album was produced by

Alan Moulder Alan Moulder (born 11 June 1959) is an English record producer, mixing engineer, and audio engineer. Early life Moulder was born on 11 June 1959 in Boston, Lincolnshire. He was educated at Boston Grammar School. He had an interest in music from ...

David A. Stewart David Allan Stewart (born 9 September 1952) is an English musician, songwriter and record producer, best known for Eurythmics, his successful professional partnership with Annie Lennox. Sometimes credited as David A. Stewart, he won Best British ...

, and the band. Like ''

Achtung Baby ''Achtung Baby'' ( ) is the seventh studio album by the Irish rock music, rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 18 November 1991 by Island Records. After criticism of their 1988 documentary film and ...

'', to which it was often compared, ''Junk Puppets'' presented a more dance-oriented sound.

Critical reception

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'' thought that the album "maps out a dramatic, kinetic surge of pointed, textured rhythmic noise-pop that is, at times, not entirely unlike the clamorous sound of U2's ''Achtung Baby''." ''

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'' opined: "Practitioners of the sort of eclecticism that doesn't seem to add up to much, the members of An Emotional Fish make music on their new ''Junk Puppets'' that ranges from electro-noisy ('Rain', 'Yeh Yeh Yeh') to conventionally bombastic (the string-laden 'Careless Child')." The ''

Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 20 ...

'' concluded that it "never really steps out of the shadow of he U2comparison." ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' deemed the album "good Celtic rock with a real kick," but acknowledged that "the bold, anthemic qualities of some numbers may not be to everyone's taste." The ''

Calgary Herald The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network. History ''The C ...

'' determined that the band "keep the edge on an otherwise unstable amount of musical aspects ... The intense mixture works because the songs flow naturally from beginning to end." ''

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'' called the songs "pleasant, boring and forgettable—just the ticket for 'alternative' stations."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

wrote that the band "scrounge bits of epic pop, psychedelia, funk, and electro-dance and scatter them on the display shelf in a prize fusion of guitars and technology, modern swagger and respectful acknowledgement."

Track listing

References

{{authority control An Emotional Fish albums 1993 albums Atlantic Records albums