The Kinks - Soap Opera (New Vinyl LP)

The Kinks' fourteenth studio album, from 1975, and a continuation of the band's theatrical musical style from Preservation Acts 1 & 2. Soap Opera is the grandest concept album the Kinks ever made, in which Ray Davies tackled the topic of how "ordinary people" escape the doldrums with dreams of stardoms. In it, a musician called "Starmaker" swaps lives with an ordinary man named Norman to better understand life. Standout tracks are "A Face in the Crowd," "Underneath the Neon Sign" and the excellent "You Can't Stop the Music." A faithfully reproduced gatefold heavyweight black 1LP, this is the album's first re-press since the limited edition U.S. pressing in 2008.