The Strain Was Evident

Review Score: (6/10)
"Door to Door" ended up being the Cars' last CD. Based on the dynamics of the band at that point in time, it really came as no surprise. According to an article in Rolling Stone around the time of "Door to Door"'s release, there was an impression that all was not well with the band, and there appeared to be some degree of friction among the members over principal songwriter/guitarist Ric Ocasek's leadership role. The situation at this time was not unlike the eventual breakup of Creedence Clearwater Revival slightly over a decade earlier.

The songs on "Door to Door" are a little less cryptic in lyric and perhaps a little less quirky than on other Cars albums, particularly "Heartbeat City", which had been released just two years or so previously. Still, they are readily identifiable as Cars songs, especially "Strap Me In", "Double Trouble", "Leave or Stay", and "You Are the Girl", the latter of which was largely ignored as a singles release. "Coming Up You" provided an interesting departure and was actually a pretty decent song. "Ta Ta Wayo Wayo" is an update of one of the band's earliest songs (the demo appears on the "Just What I Needed" box set), and "Everything You Say" is a folky sounding song that sounds distinctly un-Carslike but is not really objectionable.

Although "Door to Door" is still a pretty good CD, I would rate it as merely satisfactory compared to the band's other works, most notably the excellent "Candy-O" album. Hard core Cars fans will probably like this album, others may find it rather drab and inaccessible.

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