Well, I bought four new CDs last night in hopes of spicing up my forthcoming vacation with some tasty new gems. I really enjoy some Split Enz, some Crowded House; and Neil Finn's TRY WHISTLING THIS and concert were really quite good! I knew it was only a matter of time before I finally gave in, spent the extra bucks and bought his second album ONE NIL as an IMPORT. And I, like others, was shocked that the U.S. labels hadn't picked up the bloody thing -- until I heard it!!

I'm sorry, but this music sounded really, really bad to me. Accidental participants of my CD preview were also aghast. Many songs we couldn't bear to listen to all the way through. Thus, sadly the American labels haven't picked this up for good reason? I never dreamed I would hear something like this come from Neil Finn. Now, to be fair, the last two songs were much better than the rest of it, but they were still very mediocre and not worth a purchase (at any price). Even his (otherwise) gorgeous voice - possibly my favorite male voice in popular music - is barely performing and *not* pleasurable to listen to.

Please, may I simply advise the potential buyer to *atleast* take a preview listen of this disc before you buy it. Some fans seem to love it, but not all of us!

I can't say this is a truly bad album, just that he's got a lot of better work out there. It comes nowhere close to the beautiful complexities of "Try Whistling This" or "Woodface"; in fact there are very few complexities on this straightforward album. But even being straightforward, it isn't nearly as catchy as you might expect from Crowded House's driving force. I guess the songs are sweet enough, but without much substance to make me want to to come back for another listen. American fans searching for a fresh dose of material from Neil might be better advised to look at the interesting re-works and covers on "Seven Worlds Collide."

I bought this album in April of 2001 on-line as an IMPORT. I listened to it probably twice all the way through in the period of one year. It wasn't as "catchy" as "Try Whistling This". I felt so bad not being able to get in to it, being a Neil Finn fan and all. Then earlier this year when "Seven Worlds Collide" came out I bought that. Loved it. Realized these same songs were on One Nil. I wanted to kick myself for not giving it a better chance. But it is my current favorite album.