Cake's 2nd major release was the one that made them popular, mainly from the strength of the single "The Distance".  The funny thing about that is that The Distance isn't even close to being the best song on the album, as their trademark sound, with super sarcastic lyrics, great guitar work, John McCrea's deadpan vocals and trumpet solos was fully established here.

The Distance is, of course, their first real hit single, and it's about cars.  Actually, a lot of Cake's compositions are about cars, but what sets this one apart from the others is the unbelievably clever lyrics and a fantastic guitar performance from Greg Brown.  I Will Survive, a cover of Gloria Gaynor's original, is fantastic, with some great basslines and McCrea's deadpan vocal performance.  A lot of people actually thought they were mocking the song with their cover, but I feel that they truly do it justice with their alternative version, and the band has even stated that they admire the original.  Stickshifts and Safetybelts is a departure from the rest of the album, a country style song about, you guessed it again, cars.  Nugget has some of the most clever lyrics and wordplay from Cake ever, with great performances from McCrea and Brown.  Italian Leather Sofa is one of the catchiest songs ever, although I can't really tell what the song is supposed to be about, except that the sofa is mentioned.  There's even a tasty little trumpet solo in the last half of it.  And finally, Sad Songs and Waltzes is a nice little mellow piece that's actually critical of artists that make their music too personal.

So all in all, a fantastic album from Cake, even if you don't like them, get it for the awesome cover of I Will Survive.