Melody Maker 22/9/79 
Album review by James Truman 

PENETRATION: "Coming Up For Air" (Virgin V2131). 

  Oh dear... so soon... second albums... dear me. To be polite, this
isn't very good. To be truthful, it's plain inadequate and, as a 
successor to last year's excellent debut, hugely disappointing.
  In the beginnning it all looked so promising: five young people from 
a remote Northern village, unaligned, untainted by London fashion, 
fuelled by the spirit of a movement in it's prime (an early Sex Pistols 
gig) into collective action. And it got better. Simultaneously naive
and accomplished, forceful and resourceful, "Moving Targets" was as
potent a confirmation of that spirit as anything that came out of 1978.
  Not even the band's occasional lapses into heavy metal on the album
(rarely) and on stage (too aften) could detract from the light, 
infectious charm of the songs. Nor did they hint at the aimlessness or
drastic lack of new ideas that surface on "Coming Up For Air".
  It may be no more than a severe case of second album depression, a
reaction to the pressures of having to produce another 40 minutes' 
worth of material in a short space of time and, where necessary, fill 
in the gaps with previously discarded tracks. It may be the more 
fundamental problem of being faced with nothing to say and a contract 
that demands it be said.
  Whatever, the problem is evident from the start. "Shout Above The
Noise," along with the majority of the songs on side one, constantly
threatens to burst out into the delicious cascading chord sequences of
the best Penetration, but doesn't. Instead, beneath a fairly 
insubstantial melody, it degenerates into a muddy, overproduced mish-
mash of guitar overdubs and clattering dustbin lids, possibly cymbals.
  "She Is The Slave", "Last Saving Grace" and "Killed In The Rush" are
similarly overburdened with excessive arrangement, denying the songs 
the clarity they need to make any impression. Pauline Murray's 
fanciful, fairy-tale lyrics aren't too hot either, and in places 
unbearably precious. 
  The last track, "Challenge" and the first on side two, "Come Into The
Open", are the twin peaks of the album, though unfortunately they seem 
to share the same tune, albeit differently applied on each. But both 
have sharp, catchy choruses, driven by a more restrained, melodic
performance from the band and a less cluttered production.
  Without Pauline's soaring vocals, "What's Going On?" would be a 
standard piece of heavy metal. With them, it's a sub-standard piece of 
heavy metal. Only marginally prefereble.
  "Party's Over" is a fairly silly slice of electric nursery-rhyme/
baroque pop, depicting some sort of nightmare fantasy in a maze of
special effects and unnecessary ornamentation. "Lifeline" and 
"Reflection" are puny, ineffectual attempts at forming "progressive"
pop songs out of endlessly repeated, unmemorable guitar riffs.
  And that's it. I'd like to think it wasn't, but there's really 
nothing on "Coming Up For Air" that suggests either a return to
previous form or a new and worthwhile departure. Penetration need to
have a major re-think. I need an asiprin.
- JAMES TRUMAN.