Endangered Species

The bottom fell out of Klaatu by this time. Forced by Capitol into moving to Los Angeles and working with a unknown producer, the three Canadians actually wrote a song called "Sell Out, Sell Out" that summed up their experience. Even the album title is a pun on how they felt about themselves and their music. They actually came out of the closet this time, splashing their photos and names on the album insert and advertising a Klaatu fan club, but it didn't help. Most of the tunes are pretty dismal. Exceptions are "Hot Box City," a bouncy cameo of L.A. life, and the coda "All Good Things," which has a sweet, albeit derivative, melody line. The only song that fully succeeds is a Bread-influenced track called "Knee Deep in Love." Fortunately, the group resurrected themselves for their final effort, Magentalane. It's no coincidence that they left L.A. for Canada to do it.