This Is Hardcore: Deluxe Edition

Amazon.co.uk Review
Pulp's much-anticipated follow up to Different Class seemed, at the time, to disappoint those who'd expected more of Jarvis Cocker's turbulent kitchen-sink scenarios. Instead, in This Is Hardcore the band dished up 12 tracks of introspective claustrophobia based around the fall-out of the dramas they'd previously essayed, as well as Cocker's own double-edged popularity. Most of the tracks have hints of sleazy sex - the title track and the sublime highlight "Seductive Barry" being the most overt - but the perils of being the ageing partygoer are equally realized in "Party Hard" and the opener "The Fear". Likewise, the music is suitably ominous; possibly due to guitarist Russell Senior's departure, there's plenty of dense soundtrack moments and plenty of electronic flourishes that complement the mood well.
That's not to say it's all doom and gloom; the broken-hearted man about the house in "TV Movie" or the cathartic "The Day After The Revolution" are both classics. Indeed the only real mis-step is the lengthy running time. The bonus disc collects all of the excellent B-sides from the singles, most notably the essential "Ladies Man" and "The Professional", and while the unreleased demos aren't as enticing as those on the concurrent reissues, they'll certainly be well received from Pulp's ever-loyal fanbase. --Thom Allott