Released in 1996 on the ForeFront label, Space is the debut album of the
Christian Rock/Grunge band Bleach. It consists of eleven
tracks.
- Eleven (3:02)
- Perfect Family (2:57)
- Epidermis Girl (3:57)
- Tea for Two (4:33)
- Cold & Turning Blue (4:18)
- Child of Sod (3:23)
- Crystals and Cash (3:43)
- Wonderful (3:54)
- Cannonball (3:56)
- Sugarcoated Ways (4:14)
- Space (3:43)
Many of the tracks on this album stand as critiques of the ideals
of modern society. The first, Eleven, scathingly
describes the shallowness of personal appearance, as Davy
Baysinger intones sharply
The outside's there, it's a thoroughfare
But on the inside there is not much there
You love your pretties and your things
Are you nothing more than just a fashion scene
Other tracks investigate the nature of
sexual desire
(
Epidermis Girl),
greed (
Crystal and Cash),
and
apathy (
Cold and Turning Blue).
Interspersed among the more depressing tracks on the
album are a few that delve into redemption and
strong relationships. Directly before Epidermis
Girl, Perfect Family tells the tale of a boy
and girl who fall in love, marry, and remain together
even with their faults. In Child of Sod and the anthemic
Cannonball a man recounts his path to salvation.
The title track, which closes out the album, is an
invitation that tries to avoid some of the usual nastiness of
prosetylization. The lyrics
I don't want to be your priest
I just want to be your friend.
sum up the song nicely.
As a first album, Space is surprisingly philosophic. Musically
though, it finds Bleach before they had truly settled into
their style. Subsequent works have been markedly warmer and
smoother.