When I heard that Bauhaus were releasing a new record, I was beyond excited.  A new Bauhaus album during my lifetime, who would have thought?  Unfortunately, my reportage must be one of disappointment.  The problem with Go Away White is that the band is far too restrained for its own good.   Where are the inventive stabs of sound coming from Daniel Ash’s guitar?  Why is Kevin Haskins playing to formula?  Why isn’t David J’s bass menacing me with its deep, portentous rumblings?  And why does Peter Murphy sound so utterly respectable?

What I want out of Bauhaus is danger.  In the Flat Field sounds dangerous.  Burning from the Inside sounds dangerous.  Go Away White sounds…well-heeled.  The boys do get close to their former grandeur in a few places—”Endless Summer of the Damned” and “Black Stone Heart” provide some measure of illicit thrill—but overall the boys sound more dependable than decadent.  Which is not to say that this is a bad album; it just sounds much more like a good Love and Rockets record than a great Bauhaus record.

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