After making their debut in 1982 with the self-produced and released album
Blaze of Glory,
Game Theory clearly wanted to aim for a more polished and professional sound on their next releases; for the 1983 EP
Pointed Accounts of People You Know,
Scott Miller took the band into a real studio (admittedly a modest one), and the 1984 EP
Distortion found them working with an outside producer for the first time,
Michael Quercio of paisley underground psychedelic heroes
the Three O'Clock. The French indie label
Lolita Records, then enamored of the paisley underground scene, licensed the two EPs and fashioned them into an album,
Dead Center, making it the curious follow-up to
Blaze of Glory, flown in from across the ocean to the group's homeland. While
Dead Center doesn't cohere as an album as well as one might hope, the individual tracks show that
Game Theory were growing past the home-brewed sound of
Blaze of Glory, and "Penny, Things Won't," "Metal and Glass Exact," and "Life in July" are smarter and better executed than nearly anything on
BoG, while
Quercio's production was a great complement to songs like "The Red Baron," "Nine Lives to Rigel Five," and "Shark Pretty" (the latter featuring a guitar solo from
David Bowie sideman
Earl Slick). And while
Miller was clearly the leader of this band, bassist
Fred Juhos, keyboardist
Nan Becker, and drummer
Dave Gill were more than capable accompanists who gave these songs the flavors they needed. One could certainly hear
Game Theory's talent and potential on
Blaze of Glory, but the material that formed
Dead Center represented a major step forward for
Miller and his group, and this music suggested they were maturing into the great smart pop band that would emerge on 1985's
Real Nighttime. [In 2014,
Dead Center was reissued -- and received its first proper American release -- in a remastered and expanded edition from
Omnivore Recordings. While this edition is missing a few
Pointed Accounts and
Distortion tracks --
Fred Juhos opted not to allow three songs he wrote to be used here -- this version more than compensates by including a whopping 11 bonus songs, including demos, live covers, radio performances, and an alternate version of "Dead Center" that includes interview chatter from the band in which
Miller professes his fandom of both
Elvis Costello and
James Joyce. Hearing
Miller covering
Badfinger,
Cat Stevens,
Roxy Music, and
R.E.M. points not only to his eclectic taste but his gift for something interesting in a song, and the live performances of "Penny, Things Won't" and "Shark Pretty" show this edition of
Game Theory could deliver powerfully on-stage.
Omnivore's edition of
Dead Center also includes fine liner notes from
Dan Vallor and a short remembrance from
Michael Quercio, as well as plenty of rare photos. Assembled with a historian's care and a fan's enthusiasm, this version of
Dead Center is a real treasure trove for
Game Theory fans.] ~ Mark Deming
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![Dead Center [Bonus Tracks]](//prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0816651016549_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg)
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![Dead Center [Bonus Tracks]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0816651016549_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg)
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![Baroque Hoedown [Expanded Edition]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0634457086005_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "Baroque Hoedown [Expanded Edition]")
