The Tragically Hip "Fully Completely" (1992) review
(The fourth in my series of Tragically Hip album overviews, in which I investigate the discography of this criminally undervalued Canadian band). Fully Completely was the Tragically Hip's artistic and--at least in Canada--commercial breakthrough. Recorded in England with producer Chris Tsangarides (best known for his work behind the boards for heavy metal bands), Fully Completely was the slickest recording of the Hip's career to that point. Some, myself included, argue that the album is overly-produced and too slick, but the point of the album was to break the band commercially, and perhaps a conscious effort to break away from spontaneous, live feel of the first few albums and make an obvious "studio" album. Whatever the Hip or Tsangarides were thinking, and I can't pretend to read their minds, the strategy worked brilliantly in Canada, where the album hit #1 on the charts and spawned six singles. Unfortunately, the United States and the rest of the world rem...