Sparkle in The Rain - Musical Style

Musical Style

Sparkle In The Rain is a generally rock-oriented album, a departure from the New Wave aesthetic of its critically acclaimed predecessor New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84). Kerr, before its release, described the forthcoming Sparkle in the Rain as an "art record—art without tears with masses of muscle". The band's new drummer Mel Gaynor, who had contributed for some tracks on the previous record, agreed on the album's aggressiveness: "On this album I'm getting a few of my ideas across, not only in the drumming field but in other fields as well. It's a lot different from New Gold Dream, both sound-wise and material-wise. The last one was very smooth, very polished. This album's got a bit more dirt in it." Regarding the role of producer Steve Lillywhite, Brian Hogg wrote that Sparkle in the Rain "captured the bravura of their in-concert sound" and Lillywhite "introduced a dynamic, often contrasting, perspective quite unlike the panoramic standpoint of its predecessor, but there was no denying the resultant brash excitement." Adam Sweeting described how, during the recording process of "Up on the Catwalk", "Forbes and Gaynor had combined to create a steamrolling rhythm track which came hammering out of the opening chorus like a runaway train."

MacKenzie Wilson of AllMusic described the album's musical style thus: "Synth-beats throb over Charlie Burchill's new wave third-chord guitars and swooning basslines...Piano vibes are pinch-hitting and Kerr's songwriting thrives on celebrity and the falling grace that coincides that." The overall effect of the instrumentation is a "densely-packed juggernaut of an LP", with Adam Sweeting describing the "big, spacey feel" of "Waterfront" as atypical. Other slower tracks include the instrumental "Shake Off the Ghosts" and the "pensive" "'C' Moon Cry Like a Baby", while the punk-revivalist "The Kick Inside of Me", "straining vocal and stinging guitar" of "Speed Your Love to Me", and "pounding percussion and keyboards" of "Up on the Catwalk" and "Book of Brilliant Things" emphasize the album's more intense sound. Matt White of PopMatters described the band's transformation into "soaring, grandiose rock": "The electronic elements are pared down in favor of more standard piano flourishes, the guitar now having won the battle of dominant instrument."