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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Tense Drive Down the Highway with B.O.C., February 24, 2004
"Mirrors" is a look at what Blue Oyster Cult would have sounded like if they had conformed into a radio-friendly rock group when they began in the early 70s. But the word "conform" is not appropriate at all, since the album still finds BOC in a world of their own. Nonetheless it remains true that, if any of their previous albums were to be played on the radio (then or now), they would come off like nothing else being played. Their first hit 'Don't Fear the Reaper' had proven that. Therefore, "Mirrors" is as "radio-friendly" as a BOC album can get.
Certainly Blue Oyster Cult at its most melodic, "Mirrors" is a fascinating find for listeners. The menace that haunted earlier works is found only in moments of 'Dr. Music' and 'I Am the Storm' (one of the few songs here that would have fit perfectly on albums like "Tyranny and Mutation" or "Secret Treaties"). But the talent is still obvious, not to mention BOC's trademark use of sci-fi themes in 'The Great Sun Jester,' or even 'Moon Crazy.' 'In Thee' meanwhile became a much-appreciated song to the fans, being one of their few songs that melted into the grooves of radio-friendliness with such ease. It should also be noted that 'Lonely Teardrops' is bizarre (even for this band), but in an alluring and listenable way.
Even though it's a great recommendation for newer fans, hardcore BOC listeners will embrace the album most, and will not be able to take it out of their disc player; "Mirrors" defines the term "lost classic."
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14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Unheralded, but BOC at their height, November 8, 1999
The greatest Blue Oyster Cult album is not Agents of Fortune. Nor is it the debut album or Fire of Unknown Origin. It's not even the debut or Spectres or Secret Treaties. No, the greatest Blue Oyster Cult album is Mirrors, the one often derided as a pop sellout. Those who label it thus do a great injustice to the album's versatility and energy. This is simply a collection of great songs which has a consistency none of this band's other efforts never quite reached. From the heart-rending "In Thee" to the playful "Moon Crazy" to the soulful "Lonely Teartrops" to the guitar-laden "You're Not the One I Was Looking For" to the angry "In Thee" to the fantastic "Great Sun Jester", a song that relates how the truly joy-bringing people of this world are beaten down and destroyed by the "cynics and the jackals", this album is full of vitality and ideas. Yes, it's the most atypical BOC record, but I for one wish they had made more like this.
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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Try it. Who knows? You might even like it., April 13, 2002
I came to this in some trepidation. Everything I'd heard seemed to suggest this was an inferior BÖC product. Open-mouthed with incredulous shock I heard the opening bars of `Doctor Music'. In my haste to fumble for the remote in order to immediately switch off and eject the CD I dropped it - lucky break that. It meant I heard rather more than the superficially poppy/disco opening. The penny rather quickly dropped. Oh yes. The Blue Öyster Cult strikes back. If they want disco, we'll give `em disco BÖC-style with a twist. Some of the most cornily compulsive rhythms to suck you in and then you might just not notice the lyrics are about as deliciously perverse as you can get and that underneath there's some pretty down and dirty riffing. Did any of you critics, you diehards, you dyed-in-the-wool hardcore `fans' - and I use the term loosely - ever pause to give this album a second chance before ripping it to shreds? Any of you ever hear of irony? OK, listen up - this is not BÖC's answer to `Night Fever' no matter what you've been told. This album probably contains some of Blue Öyster Cult's finest work and conversely some of their worst. Oddly Mr Self-Effacing himself, Allen Lanier, comes under the spotlight for both reasons. Can anything excuse the criminal lapse that is `Lonely Teardrops'? Only the incredible virtuoso piece `In Thee'. For that I'll forgive him anything. The only co-contribution made by the normally prolific and brilliant Albert Bouchard is the jaw-droppingly appalling track `You're not the one...' Was this the sign of things to come? The beginning of the end for Albert? In contrast Joe, usually considered to be somewhat erratic in his contributions veering wildly between flights of inspired genius and the most dreadful mediocrity, gives us some of his finest stuff on this album. `Moon Crazy' is delightfully, weirdly compelling and `I am the Storm' conveys a convincing menace. The title track `Mirrors' is a pleasant and inoffensive song which bears repeated hearing as does `The Vigil' - not vintage Roeser stuff perhaps but certainly not to be despised for all that. With `The Great Sun Jester' Eric Bloom proves once again that his contributions were often unfairly underestimated or overlooked in the wider shadow cast by the work of Donald Roeser and Albert Bouchard (both admittedly Masters). I am torn between the haunting `Sun Jester' and the captivating `In Thee' as to which is my favourite on the album and have finally reached the conclusion that it is which ever of them I happen to be listening to at a given time. Give `Mirrors' a go, it's worth persevering with.
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