Following the disappointing first album, 1982's Harmony, Factory Records sent Glasgow-based indie poppers the Wake down to the minors, releasing their next single on their Factory Benelux subsidiary. The move seems to have had a galvanizing effect on the quartet, though, because this 12" is clearly a huge improvement on the doomy and derivative Harmony. "Something Outside" lightens Harmony's gloom to a more acceptable level of rainy-day melancholy. The tempo's considerably speedier than anything on the album, and a recurring instrumental section featuring a naggingly insistent keyboard-and-drum riff is a much better hook. Guitarist Caesar has put his old Ian Curtis impersonation on the shelf, singing in a pleasingly higher and more conversational register. The flip side, "Host," is less impressive, temporarily backsliding a bit to the sort of Joy Division worship that made Harmony so leaden. However, the contrapuntal harmonies by keyboardist Carolyn Allen raise the song above anything on that album, as do her Mellotron-like keyboard interjections during the extended instrumental fadeout. In the tradition of circa-1983 12" singles, both songs are nearly eight minutes long. "Something Outside" does enough with its allotted time to keep from dragging, but "Host" would have been much improved by losing about two and a half minutes from its middle. Bassist Bobby Gillespie left the Wake shortly after this single, forming Primal Scream while also serving a brief stint as the drummer for fellow ‘wegies the Jesus and Mary Chain.
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