Believe it or not, Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline was the first Gomez album I bought. Yes, now I look back at it I laugh, and I imagine other Gomez fans who've heard this album to raise a smile at such a choice for a first time listener also.
In all honesty I hated it! After a brief listen it swiftly journeyed to the bottom of a somewhat 'thin on the ground' CD collection, to be later discovered and stolen by a sibling. But in hindsight I'm not surprised I disliked it at first. The album is definately a listen. A perfect representation of Gomez' highly sophisticated 'beyond their years' sound that so many critics went on about. Its fair to say that the bluesy, atmospheric, experimental features such an album contains weren't particularly appealing to someone not used to the Gomez sound. Oh yeah, not forgetting my age at the time. (I'm sure it was released earlier than 2002!) But like all Gomez albums, and like the finest of aingle malts it got better with age. A few more listens (after retrieving it from the sibling some months, if not years after) rendered the album a great listen. Something that fuelled my admiration for this truly unique slice of British music. Unfortunately i've lost the CD, but it still remains as one of my favourites, although to all those non familiar with Gomez, listen before you buy. And then listen to it again, and again, and...again!
