"When Osmium finally got a proper CD rerelease in America in 1992, it was retitled and expanded with singles from the same period (a number of them being alternate takes), resulting in the near disc capacity joy that is First Thangs. Fine enough remastering, it's not totally perfect but still a good thing to have around the house." NedRaggett@allmusic.com

With the arrival of Benjamin Britten on the international music scene, many felt that English music gained its greatest genius since Purcell. A composer of wide-ranging talents, Britten found in the human voice an especial source of inspiration, an affinity that resulted in a remarkable body of work, ranging from operas like Peter Grimes (1944-1945) and Death in Venice (1973) to song cycles like the Serenade for tenor, horn, and strings (1943) to the massive choral work War Requiem (1961). He also produced much music for orchestra and chamber ensembles, including symphonies, concerti, and chamber and solo works. Britten's father was a prosperous oral surgeon in the town of Lowestoft, Suffolk; his mother was a leader in the local ……
From Allmusic

The specter of Tom Waits lurks all over the sexy, cabaret torch songs on Eleni Mandell's second full-length, Thrill. Featuring members of X and Idaho, this album twists and slinks from the dingy dive of relationships gone awry to the cool seats of a "1970 Red Chevelle" with a neo-noir ambiance drenched in sex and longing. Mandell's come-hither vocals sound most like PJ Harvey, and songs like "Pauline" could be right off of To Bring You My Love. The lilting "Closer to Him," though, is closer to Billie Holiday swooning through a lament to some lost guy. "Action Is Action" evokes voyeurism so well, that it seems that we, the listeners, are spying on Mandell through her bedroom window.