2 out of 5

Label: Touch and Go

Produced by: Greg Gordon

Here’s why: Starcastic is a fantastic song, one of the best on Hocus Pocus – combining the funky pop of In This City with classic Enon / Schmersal wonky guitar hooks and soaring vocals from both John and Toko – but I just spoiled that it’s also on Hocus Pocus, and given that it is, as stated, one of its best, it generates quite a bit of hype for an average album. So either you bought this ahead of time or after, and either way, the only other bonus is B-side Birdnest, which might as well be a Blonde Redhead track: it’s muted, and much more of a Toko joint. Is that bad? No, but it confuzzles the puzzle of the Enon sound, which I felt like was the issue from High Society onward: figuring out exactly for what the group was aiming.

Singles don’t have to contain new material, of course, but I tend to evaluate on bang for buck, which thus does consider any non-album stuff, but also recontextualization of the otherwise available tunes. Since Starcastic, in my mind, is an almost negative presentation of its single – in the bought-before scenario, it’s a promise not met by the album, and in the bought-after scenario, your B-side is somewhat Enon adjacent – that’s what makes this pairing of a great and okay tune not a worthwhile purchase, except for completists.