Overview
Magnets is the second album by British rock band The Vapors, released in 1981.
Song details
The album continued The Vapors' dark lyrical themes, taking them to a slightly darker level, with "Jimmie Jones" being about American cult leader Jim Jones, "Isolated Case" about state oppression and disillusionment with politics, "Civic Hall" about the assault Dave suffered at the hands of overzealous Metropolitan policemen, "Spiders" and "Can't Talk Anymore" about mental illness, and the title track being about the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy. Even those songs about relationships - "Daylight Titans", "Johnny's in Love (Again)" and "Lenina" - are tinged with an edge of being in a suffocating society and a malevolent state apparatus.
Artwork
The cover was designed by Martin Handford, later famous for his Where's Wally? books. It depicts an assassination scene close up, but from a distance looks like a human eye. The assassin can be seen on the roof at the top right of the album cover, putting away his sniper rifle.
Reception
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).