A few years ago, Miles Hunt spent his time suffering at the hands of cruel poetic justice: Once the egotistical, standoffish frontman for the critically acclaimed, occasionally too-clever English pop band The Wonder Stuff, Hunt found himself at work interviewing egotistical, standoffish English pop stars for MTV Europe. The experience reportedly inspired him to cool his pretensions, and his new, independently released Hairy On The Inside finds Hunt's music sounding refreshingly stripped down. But it's no less grandiose: Forceful and spare, and often built around little more than the singer and an acoustic guitar, the album nicely mixes dark subject matter and shimmering beauty: "Getting Over You" is worthy of Morrissey ("It's no good wishing you were dead / I'm no good at dealing with tragedy"), but even when the lyrics fall flat (as on "Someone Like The Kingbird"), Hairy On The Inside benefits from its crystalline clarity. "Manna From Heaven" and "Everything Is Not Okay" open the album on bleak notes, but Hunt wears them well, and he quickly shifts gears on the sparkling "Immortalising Chase." "The Slow Drowning" is carried aloft by a lovely string arrangement, while "Amongst The Old Reliables" is a sad, late-album highlight. Hairy On The Inside's barrenness isn't for everyone, but Hunt's apparent reformation works wonders for him here. (Gig, 520 Butler Ave., Point Pleasant, NJ 08742)