One of those bands that you've never heard (or heard of) that has a really cool sound to go with their cool name, Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine is more than worth a bit of exploration. But, where do you start with this 90s British "alternative" band? It might be easiest to suggest the greatest hits package Straw Donkeys: The Singles, but I see no reason to take the easy route. Go with a proper album. And, despite my very great appreciation for 1994's Post Historic Monsters, I'd start near the beginning... 30 Something is Carter USM's second album and, possibly, one of it's most intense efforts. Having said that, I won't pretend that I have internalized each song with the meaning their authors intended. But, who cares? The album rolls out the gate with a sound clip ("big fat bastard" at 25?) followed by a pulsing, loud instrumental. Then, the listener is treated to a reading of My Second to Last Will and Testament, a humorous exploration of a "rough draft" accompanied by a driving beat. And, we're not released from either the song-craft or the "noise-intense" instrumentation for most of the rest of the album. Try not to turn the volume up for the last minute of Prince In A Pauper's Grave. I dare you. No reason to turn it down for Shopper's Paradise (do you think the band revels in materialism?). Next, Billy's Smart Circus has so many sound "layers" that you can't help but feel as if a blanket has been pulled over your head while the screamed lyrics at the end are absorbed by your happy brain... And, following all this loud and wonderful "dance pop," this album has my favorite ending of all the Carter albums (and that's saying something - this group knows how to finish albums). The two song finale (Falling On A Bruise and The Final Comedown) changes the effect entirely. Somber, with a sad tone, I always leave this album feeling as if I've had an experience... It's a victory worth sharing we should celebrate I think with the bloodiest of Mary's but I'm too fucked to drink If I step back to consider, I just maybe might have to admit that Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine won't appeal to everyone. I guess if they had, you would have heard of them. And, thinking back to my earliest listenings of this album, in particular, I'm not sure I liked it that much. A couple songs can't help but catch your attention, but is it too much... um... sound? I will stand here a decade later and say it is definitely something special.