Dulcinea (1994)

Dulcinea was Don Quixote's hallucinatory notion of the perfect woman, stunning and good, whom Cervantes actually described as a ''stout-built sturdy wench.'' By its own admission, Santa Barbara's Toad the Wet Sprocket strives toward unattainable musical perfection, and this follow-up to 1991's Fear (which begat the hit ''All I Want'') is the result. It's fortunate these R.E.M.-lite poseurs know greatness eludes them — their mindless melodies and forgettable lyrics should send these minstrels on a quest for better songs. C

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