Listen to the opening lines of "The Loved Ones" and you hear Costello at his best. Snappy lines, sung with force and definitely dripping with caustic wit. Then we hit the piano "noodling" and the song starts to drift away from me. The CD is filled with moments like this; great lyrics and a solid melody often lost amidst overproduced musical adornments. Stripped down, this is some of Costello's best stuff; songs that walk the fine line between emotion and intellect. But every time I feel like I get close to the heart of the song, I feel lost in the middle of music that serves no purpose. This is definitely worth a listen and I still enjoy popping it in the machine, but I feel some of his other works is more deserving of the high praise given IMPERIAL BEDROOM.