Trailblazing

CANTBELIEVEIMPAYINGFORTHISCRAP

Am I the only one who listens to this record and hears echoes of everything that came afterward? I am convinced Sunburst Finish set the stage for every art-pop album ever made. Listen to "Life In The Air Age" (1976), and then put on Rush's "Spirit of Radio" (1979). Tell me that isn't a stroke-for-stroke copy. But besides the innovation, these tunes are still majestic and incredible in their own right. "Beauty Secrets" is a masterpiece of acoustic longing.