Side one starts with "I Sweat (Going Through the Motions)", a high energy dance jam with a sweet blend of synths and percussion. It also appeared on the soundtrack of the 1985 movie Perfect starring John Travolta and Jamie Lee Curtis.
The steady, mid-tempo "Soft Targets" is up next. It has an aura of mystery and danger to it. The opening guitar and percussion of "The Life" reminds me a little bit of "Nasty Girl" by Vanity 6.
Side two begins with "To The Bone", a funky groove about a betrayal of love that cut deep.
"Electricity" is a low-key jam that takes its time to infuse you. Even the guitar solo, which smolders, stays within a tight range rather than going overboard. I think that all makes for a more intriguing cut.
"Ghost Love" reflects upon a relationship that lacks substance. With just a few tweaks, it could easily have been a jazz number; I would like to hear that kind of take on it.
The original vinyl release closes with "I Want You". I like the prominence that the piano gets in this dance track; it is nice to hear that in music from a time period where synthesizers tended to dominant club tracks.
Like a lot of her catalog, The Art of Defense is a tough one to track down. There was a 2012 CD release though that includes six bonus remixes. Thanks again to the YouTube community for giving me some place to give it a listen to it online for the review. It was my first exposure to the record, and I instantly liked it from start to finish. This was exactly the kind of dance music I was into during my college days in the mid-80's. As with her previous album Nona (click here), this is one I definitely will be adding to my to-buy list.
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