The Church Starfish

Recorded in Los Angeles at a time when The Church felt stranded and miserable, Starfish ended up being their most successful and accessible album. The luxuriantly somber “Under the Milky Way” is a slice of post-punk/rock crossover perfection, but the lesser-known songs are just as sweet, especially the swirling romance of “North, South, East and West” and the funeral prom dance of “Antenna”. “Reptile” is as galvanising as any U2 riff, but it’s “Hotel Womb”—with its debauched expressions of narcotic-soaked euphoria—that best embodies The Church’s sinister sensuality.