I am a big Fixx fan but I have to say this is their most disappointing release. Actually because "Secret Seperation" is such a great song it saves this from being completely worthless but outside of that and the title cut, "Built For the Future" and "Sense the Adventure" nothing else is memorable. Kind of surprising since it had been 2 years since their last release.

Again the Fixx were treated like they were just the worst band in the world by critics back when this was released but the truth is they probably showed more range even if this isn't quite as cohesive as "Reach the Beach". What really was impressive was the ballads "Wish" and "I Will". They showed a geneuine warmth from a supposed cold synth band. Other great cuts are the One thing like "Are We Ourselves", the should have been a single "Lose Face" and "Sunshine In the Shade but there is a lot more including the dark brooding "Less Cities" and the bombastic rock of "Lost in Battle Overseas". Overall another superb effort from the Fixx.

I for one have never understood why the Fixx is like a bastard stepchild as far as new wave bands. They were great and this is thier best. "One Thing Leads To Another" despite being played to death still has a uniqueness about it to this day. For as deritive as they supposedly were they have a sound that can only be described as "The Fixx" It is in full evidence here and while some of the songs have a sameness about them there is really not a terrible one in the bunch and it has other classics "Saved By Zero", "The Sign Is Fire", and "Changing"

It appears as though this was rushed a bit due to the success of "True Colors" so what you get are 6 great songs and 4 what I consider filler songs (in particular the two instrumentals). Still "History Never Repeats" may well be their greatest acheivement and certainly "One Step Ahead" and "Iris" are brilliant pop ballads. A step back from their debut but still great.

The songwriting and musicianship on this is incredible. It is very atmospheric, especially on Side 2 where the songs flow together. Dirty Creature was the near hit but the best songs are "Giant Heartbeat" and "Take A Walk". A Perfect soundtrack to a summer afternoon at the beach, it is definetely a "Desert Isle" disc.