I've seen this album referred to as the band's "White Album" in that a lot of different musical styles are featured, sometimes within the same song. You've got some danceable stuff ("When the Generals Talk", "Who Can Stand in the Way"), a little guitar blasting ("Best of Both Worlds", "Kosciusko"), two tracks that mix up acoustic with modern beats ("Sleep", "Minutes to Midnight"), a couple oddball (mostly) instrumentals ("Bakerman", "Bells and Horns in the Back of Beyond"), and three grim epics ("Jimmy Sharman's Boxers" - their longest song* and NOT about underwear, "Harrisburg" and "Shipyards of New Zealand"). And if that isn't enough, Peter Garrett lets drummer Rob Hirst take the mic for a couple tracks. Why not?
Nevertheless, Red Sails is a natural sequel to the transformative 10 to 1. Both albums clearly reject the Head Injuries era approach in favor of slicker production and more expansive instrumentation. While I'm not a giant fan of "eighties" style (whatever that is), the band's timing was impeccable when it came to moving with the times. From this point onward, the albums started getting further apart. Although Diesel and Dust continues the traditions established by this album and its predecessor, the band would once again sound-shift into the 1990's with Blue Sky Mining and its ilk.
I first heard this album way back in the early 1990's when my cousin shared some songs off a cassette tape version he owned. He claimed this was their first album, no matter how many times I tried to work Head Injuries (one of my earliest gets) into the conversation! Of course as I swept through the catalog I picked up the full album eventually and it currently stands as one of my favorites.
* - oops, technically that goes to "Nothing Lost - Nothing Gained", the closing track on their first album
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