My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything (1993 Reissue) (CD)

Review

Even more than the greatness of the individual tracks, Isn't Anything crystallizes MBV's unique dynamic. It's an essential document in the noise-pop sphere that was by then already called shoegaze, and much of MBV's influence can be found here rather than on Loveless. But it's also distinctly the work of this one band. At the heart of My Bloody Valentine was the mixture of the crushing power of Dinosaur Jr. and Hüsker Dü and the delicate vulnerability of indie pop; the masculine/feminine dynamic was accomplished not through the brilliant interplay between Kevin Shields and singer/guitarist Bilinda Butcher (whose voices complement each other but often sound quite alike) but by the effect of their voices against the guitar noise. - Pitchfork 5/5