While developing the industrial sound of his debut Fireside Favourites in 1980, the new album relied less on drum machines and found objects, introducing more traditional instruments such as accordion and jaw harp, as well as making more frequent use of female backing vocals.

"Blind Eyes" satirised keeping the world's problems at arm's length, with lines such as "Send a few pounds to a charity / Now we're feeling so much better" and a chorus intoning "Hear no, see no, speak no evil".

"Saturday Night Special" took its title from an American revolver and ruminated on the right of men to bear arms and rule their home.

At the time of its release in November 1981, NME remarked on the album's "brooding nature... offset by female vocals and exultant piano".

[4] More recently Trouser Press described it as possessing "more instrumental variety and better production" than its predecessor Fireside Favourites, but added: "Forgetting tripe like "Swallow It" and the charming title tune, some of this is interesting enough, but none is really involving; overall, the self-indulgent album rambles incoherently".