by John Bush
Beginning with &Godstar,& Psychic TV's tribute to Brian Jones complete with Stonesy guitar licks, Allegory and Self balances surprisingly straight-ahead alternative pop with more experimental tracks using tape cut-ups or extended synthesizer freeforms. P-Orridge makes for quite an ambitious frontman, crooning like Love and Rockets' Daniel Ash on &We Kiss& and producing a series of guttural roars for &Southern Comfort.& &She Was Surprised& even bears the first fruits of Psychic TV's fixation with sampladelic acid-house. It may not be characteristic Psychic TV (if such an animal exists), but Allegory and Self may well be the best introduction for beginners.