Pitchfork

Sounding like twisted, lo-fi, carnival chamber punk is not something people would expect from Pulp. And it's nothing short of shocking that these songs were recorded during the 1980s. They're so defiantly and timelessly weird that they could have come from almost any scene except for a British, Reagan- era indie one. It's never very good, but consistantly interesting-- music that you can admire, but just not want to listen to very much.

Everything from Venitian chamber music to goth to post- punk to celtic ditties to melodic pop to gypsy picking to spoken work to Italian soundtracks is mashed together in one bizarre symphony of noise that leaves you feeling both interested and somewhat disoriented. Collecting the band's early singles and EPs, Masters of the Universe's quality ranges from the brilliant perverse pop of "Little Girl (With Blue Eyes)" to the aloof, avant- garde ranting of "The Will To Power."

Pulp have always been smart- assed, and at times here they're too smart for their own good, sacrificing a good song for a clever spit- in- the- face idea. But for its time, this stuff is quite briliant. Spare, cheeky, dark, punk (in spirit), lush, comic, weird, goofy-- it's the sound of a band trying to find themselves. After hearing these early recordings their eventual path to stardom is even more surreal and shocking. Leave your preconceived notions of Pulp at the door.