Rubbing Doesn’t Help by Magnapop

Rubbing Doesn't Help, Magnapop's third album, came out in 1996 on Play It Again Sam and Priority, and it takes its title from a Ben-Gay slogan, which suits a record this sore. The Atlanta band's songwriting core, singer Linda Hopper and guitarist Ruthie Morris, cut it with producer Geza X at City Lab Studios in Hollywood late in 1995, after drummer David McNair walked out; session man Josh Freese sat in behind the kit.

It's the Magnapop formula at full strength: Hopper's sweet, sturdy melodies riding the punk-fired buzzsaw of Morris' guitar, with lyrics that hit harder than the tunes let on. Most critics loved the bite, though a few grumbled it sounded a lot like the last ones. "Open the Door" gave them a modest American foothold. Then the label went under mid-promotion, the band was contractually barred from recording under its own name, and Mouthfeel didn't arrive until 2005.

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