All the Wrong People Are Dying collects about everything the Cleveland band
the Styrenes released from 1982 to 1993: the 1989 LP
A Monster and the Devil, plus 1982 and 1996 12"s and a 1991 compilation track. The band was fronted by
Mike Hudson, a teller of down-to-earth urban stories dealing with death, violence and stupidity. His narration was backed pianist
Paul Marotta's music, rock numbers adapting to
Hudson's moods. Most of the songs (vocals apart) sound like a less structured
Mott the Hoople or
David Bowie circa
Aladdin Sane. There is a glam rock feel to some of the music that is vehemently contradicted by
Hudson's detached anti-star delivery. The exception is "Jetsam," a 20-minute story backed by incidental free improvisation. The core of the band is made of
Hudson,
Marotta, guitarist
Jamie Klimek, drummer
Paul Laurence, and cellist
Fred Lonberg-Holm (who would become a hot free improviser in the late '90s). The CD also features contributions from
Marty Ehrlich,
Tom Kirchmer, and
David Licht, among others. Except for the older song "True Confessions,"
All the Wrong People Are Dying is a very cohesive record. The gloomy atmosphere, the avant-gardist arrangements backed by straight rock structures, and
Hudson's strange stories hold it together and make for a unique listening experience. The stories are included in the 12-page booklet.