Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark - Architecture & Morality - 1981

 

I've been looking forward to posting this one for quite some time.  This album is quintessential OMD.  This is OMD at their most creative.  When I think of OMD, this is the album that I go to.

I've mentioned previously that If You Leave and The Pacific Age were essential listening for my Freshman and Sophomore years in High School.  This one didn't come until my Freshman year in college, and that was only because I was horribly disappointed with Sugar Tax and needed to purchase something new (to me) and different by OMD.  Sugar Tax had resparked my interest in them, and I went on a hunt after being let down by such a lousy album.

Needless to say, this album did not let me down.

SO.....

When they re-released this album back in....  2003 (?) I noticed right off the bat that their "Deluxe Version" had left off a few key points.  After years of listening and research and collecting, I realized that there was more than enough material to make two discs worth, well more than they had released on the Deluxe.  Add on to that, you had that delicious Dreamtime mix of Maid of Orleans, and then that Deno mix which isn't that bad.  So, had to gather it all up together, and put my deluxe stamp on it.  I'm not sure about the color of my version, as every version seems to change color anyway, but I held true to the design.  And, as for the bonus disc, I used some 7" sleeve graphics that are fan made and were never actually released.  Still looks pretty damn good.

Again, I'm 99% certain I have everything there, but let me know if you find something I missed.....

OMD - Architecture & Morality - 1981 - Disc One

OMD - Architecture & Morality - 1981 - Disc Two

A Flock Of Seagulls - Self-titled Debut - 1981

 

Happy 4th of July, one and all!  To my international friends, this day probably means nothing to you (I don't want to speak for everyone, though) but it is my second favorite holiday behind Christmas.  I consider myself a true patriot for my country.  I'm a Originalist Conservative, who believes strongly in our founding, and our freedoms and benefits to all mankind.  I understand that some of you may feel that our founding was immoral and wrong.  I agree that America has done some evil things in the past.  But, in the 21st century, we have and are working through issues to rectify our wrong doings and to bring our country together.  Despite all of our differences, we are Americans and should be proud of the positive accomplishments that we've made.  Because, if it weren't for our independence and freedom, we wouldn't be able to right the wrongs that we've done.

It bothers me that I have to even acknowledge our wrongs on this day.  Our political landscape has become so toxic, it's impossible for sides to find common ground to discuss issues and our future without killing each other.  We've become so polarized we are on the verge of destroying the freedoms that were given to us more than 200 years ago.  Again, we need to come together and work together to make our country the best it possibly can be.

On to AFoS....

I Ran is in the top 20 videos I remember watching as a kid.  It was bizarre and weird, but the song was magnetic.  I had the 7" 45RPM as a kid, and played it over and over and over.  I didn't get the album until well into the 90s, as back then we had to pay money for our music, and at the time I wasn't a big enough fan to justify purchasing the album.  That was because I hadn't heard it.  Had I known the spectacular tunes on that magic disc, I would have had it well before I did.

Even though there were only 4 or 5 singles on this album (which is a large number anyway), listening to the album is almost like a greatest hits, as every song is superb.  A classic slice of New Wave, you can get sucked into the New Wave pablum with ease, and enjoy every minute of it.

Although most of the band members either set the style for fashion in the early 80s or reflected the style, Paul Reynolds really stood out to me as almost ruining the image of the band.  I hate to pick on the guy....  Well, no I don't hate it.  He really REALLY should have gotten rid of those stupid-ass glasses.  They are true Birth Control Glasses.  Meaning, when he wears those glasses, ain't no one gonna fuck him.  I don't know what he was thinking, as they did nothing to enhance his image.

Separated into two discs, my version is slightly different than the 2011 version, picking the best and arranging somewhat differently.  I really had to get the Deno version of I Ran on there, as he mixed and extended the crap out of it.  You could really loop that track for an hour, and not get tired of it.  I apologize for the cover of the album proper, as there really isn't any decent scans of the cover online that I could find.  This was the best I could do.

Enjoy the album, enjoy the holiday, and I'll see you on Friday.

PS - Started the new job yesterday.  Interesting.  Not what I expected, and can't wait to get out of training and on the road.

A Flock Of Seagulls - Self-titled Debut - 1981

Space Age Remixes

Daniel Amos - Alarma! Chronicles Vol 1 - 1981

After yesterday's bleh review of a good album that I didn't really think was stupendous, simply because I didn't have a personal connection to it, I'm going to swing out into the other direction.  Now I've got a great review of a mediocre album that I absolutely love, simply because I did have a strong personal connection to it.

This album is Part One of the four part Alarma! series by Daniel Amos.  Daniel Amos is the name of the band, and there's no one in the band named either Daniel or Amos.  Weird, huh?  I've already posted Part Two and Part Three, previously.  Here are the links to them...

Doppelganger - Alarma Chronicles Part Two

Vox Humana - Alarma Chronicles Part Three

I have yet to post the fourth part, called  Fearful Symmetry, but that will come later this summer.

As a whole, listening to the albums in chronological order, the breadth of Terry Taylor's writing is admirable.  He plays across all musical genres, with an obvious Christian slant.  But, it's not overpowering or a turn-off.  The style mesh well, and the melodies are always catchy.

This first album in the series still smacks of late 70s Classic Rock/Pop Rock.  The band wouldn't head into their awesome 80s New Wave sound until the next album.  But, after a touchy start, the album picks up momentum and comes out on top.  Although I love this album, it is not as good as the other two.  I prefer Vox Humana, followed by a close second with Doppelganger.  Part One falls shortly behind that.  Part Four, on the other hand, is a little jilty to me.  But, by then I had moved back into secular Rock, and mostly forgot about Christian Rock altogether.

I do have a personal connection to this album, though, as it's one of the albums that I listened to repeatedly during my exile from mainstream Rock and Roll.  I still had (have) music in my soul, so I had to listen to a lot of Christian artists that I quickly learned to love.  Artists like Steve Taylor, Petra, Crumbacher, Rez Band, Farrell & Farrell, DeGarmo & Key, Stryper and Daniel Amos.  I often think that it was wrong for my parents to do force me into that exile, but then I sometimes am happy that it happened, as it exposed me to some more great music out there that I wouldn't have normally listened to.

Notice I went through my entire Christian Rock post without using one vulgar word?  Weird how that subconsciously happens...

Give the series a shot, and I'm sure you'll at the very least find it amusing....

Daniel Amos - Alarma! Chronicles Vol 1 - 1981

Simple Minds - Sons and Fascination - 1981

Yes, this one does not include anything from Sister Feelings Call.  That will be a different post.  Doing it this way, I get all of the S&F material on one disc.  In fact, am only posting this as an expanded deluxe edition so I can add the Dreamtime mixes to it.

Ah, the Dreamtime mixes.  I listened to this album a couple times, and thought it was okay, but didn't really get much out of it.  Then, Mr Dreamtime released his GLORIOUS versions of some of these tracks, and this album has become one of my favorite SM albums.  The album is a good, solid piece of SM perfection.  Not because there are any particularly pop-hooky tracks or singles, but because of the flow, consistency, and arrangement.  The album plays without a hitch, with no shocking shifts in style or sound, and it feels that each track leads smoothly into the next.  I could play the whole album in my head from beginning to end without getting lost or distracted anywhere.  It is one piece of art, chopped into eight lovely parts.

And, that's all I have for tonight.  Time for supper.  I think I'll make Italian Sausage with Marinara and pasta.  Maybe some green beans on the side.....

Simple Minds - Sons and Fascination - 1981

Autumn - Synthesize - 1981

This is going to be the first entry in the "I try it, You try it" posts that I will start having more often (as my selection of personally great albums diminishes.)  As I am still constantly on the lookout for great music, new and old, I may stumble on something that I've never heard before, but think I might like, and you might like.  I'll post it, we'll listen to it, and then I want some solid feedback on what you think.  And, don't be shy, I can handle good constructive criticism.  I just can't handle ignorant flamers out to stir the pot.  But, solid opinion on music is a must for posts like this.....

I've recently been delving into Minimal Wave music.  Please inform yourself on the Wiki link I've provided if you don't know what the hell I'm talking about.  I think that there were (and in some cases still are) some great acts out there that had/have excellent potential, but were never discovered.  Whether they wanted to be discovered or not is an entirely different discussion.  Autumn happens to be one of those bands.

I discovered the cover of this album before I discovered the group.  I was searching for a New Wave album cover for one of my posts, and this album cover popped up in one of the searches.  I was instantly intrigued.  For one reason or another, it reminded me of a Roxy Music type album cover, or a pre-Duran2 cover, or something like that.  It definitely felt "New Wave".  I found the sight that the cover was on, did a little reading, and looked for their music on Youtube and the lot.  I instantly fell in love with the sound.  It is a cold, solitary sound that fit perfectly with the mood I was in when I found it, sitting alone after midnight in the dark with the glow of my monitor offering the only illumination.  Fantastic.

I researched the band and I find that there is an entire sub-culture of Minimal Wave bands, labels and groupies out there in the nethersphere of the Internet.  Bands that experimented greatly with the sound that New Wave offered, but pulled it back into the Gothic & Post Punk areas of music.  Imagine OMD as a dark, foreboding, isolated group, or Joy Division with nothing but electronic sound.  That is where this lies.  Autumn is a perfect example of the kind of work out there that I am thoroughly enjoying right now.

Autumn doesn't have many albums out there.  And most of it that you will find on Discogs is CDr at best.  This particular collection, Synthesize, was only ever released on vinyl (a luscious green tasty treat, I'd love to get a copy) and that was in 2011 and 2014, even though it was all recorded in the early 80s.  A superb set.

So, download, give it a listen, and give me your opinion.  I will be waiting with bated breath.....

Autumn - Synthesize - 1981

Cure - Faith - 1981

SO, nothing completely unique or spectacular about this post.  Just doing what's right for the album.  On their deluxe disc set, disc two was almost entirely unnecessary as the few tracks that were actually needed, could have fit on the first disc.  And, I eliminated Carnage Visors from this release, as well.  There are a couple tracks from the deluxe disc that needed to be added, and the b-sides to the singles.  I put Charlotte Sometimes on it for good measure, to give the single a home.

To me, this is an essential Cure album, but it is also something that is not necessarily breath-taking or earth-shattering.  It's just another Post Punk/Gothic staple that has several great tracks, with great performances by all.  What more could you want?

Anyway, rearranging the living room tonight with the wife, so I'm lucky I had the time to post this.  And remember...  Techno/Rave Week starts on Monday!!!!!!!!

Cure - Faith - 1981

Go-Go's - Beauty & the Beat - 1981

So, I've had this one ready to go for about 5 weeks now, and as I post it, I still can't believe I decided to make this post.  I know that I've had a secret crush on Belinda Carlisle ever since I was a kid, but that doesn't excuse me from posting something like this.

Maybe, it's because they started off as a Power Pop/Pseudo-Punk band with a little bit of swagger.  Maybe it's because they were initially picked up by Stiff Records.  Maybe because deep down in the sub-tricuspidal regions of my heart I might actually like listening to this music sometimes.  I don't know.  We'll have to see about that.

I do know that it's rather difficult to piece together an early 80s compilation without including at least one Go-Gos song.  Especially Our Lips Are Sealed.  Even McDoc the remix maestro took the effort to remix one of their songs.  So, at least it's not just me.

My sister used to have this tape, and when she'd play it, we'd make fun of the song Skidmarks On My Heart, and call it "Skidmarks From A Fart".  I think that version sounds better.  Don't you?

Regardless, after using the promo-art from their first album and changing up the font for the title and the songs, I think the cover looks spectacular.  This is one of my favorites, and I don't even like pink.

Go-Go's - Beauty & the Beat - 1981

Ultravox - Rage In Eden - 1981

I had heard of Ultravox before, but just out off in the periphery of my musical knowledge.  I knew nothing about them and I had never heard of them at all.  Once I got involved in music online via blogs, forums, torrents, etc, I learned more about them and collected as many albums and tracks as I could find.  They weren't bad, pretty good.  No D2, but they really captured that New Romantic sound that was obviously popular at the time.

Out of all of their albums, I liked Rage In Eden the best, followed quickly by Vienna.  I'll be posting that one later...  It's a shame that I hadn't heard more of them before when I was younger, as learning and listening to them while they existed would've been great.  Who knows, I may have liked them more than D2....  Nah, I don't think so.

Anyway, I recently found these "Deno Edits" of their tracks from this album, almost all of them.  More fan edits that have taken the originals and simply s t r e c h e d them out.  They're fun to listen to, and gives US a reason to have a deluxe version of their best album. 

As you can see, Blogger still hasn't fixed what I've come to learn is a glitch in their system, or something like that.  So, from here on out, I will make sure to zip the covers up in the files along with the albums.  I know that I've been hit or miss on that, but now I will do it for sure...

Enjoy.

Ultravox - Rage In Eden - Disc One - 1981

Ultravox - Rage In Eden - Disc Two - 1981

The Beat - Wha'ppen - 1981

So, for the longest time, I judged The Beat by Mirror In the Bathroom, and chose not to listen to them.  Then by some freak chance, I happened to hear Too Nice To Talk To, and I wondered "Where have these guys been my whole life?"

Why is it, that a lot of bands out there get pigeon-holed by one or two songs, and no one can get past it?  As per my example, I heard one song, and it tarnished my impression of the band.  Our House by Madness?  Come On Eileen? Pretty In Pink? And even in some cases Rio by D2?  There far too many bands out there that are so much more than the one hit the low-information fans remember them for.  And, the English Beat is a prime example.

I didn't know ska when this stuff came out, and then there was that ska revival in the late 90s that turned me off to it.  I didn't actually listen to this music until 2008 or 2009.  I feel like such an amateur.  But, now I listen to it on a regular basis.  And, this album is one of them.

Great stuff, all of it.  My favorites are Too Nice To Talk To, Cheated, Psychedelic Rockers and Which Side of the Bed.  They had a bunch of non-album singles come out at the same time, so I've included them (and their b-sides) as well.

Listen Up...

The Beat - Wha'ppen - 1981

Pete Shelley - Homosapien - 1981

It's 85F and raining right now, 6:34 on a Friday evening.  I'm not too horribly thrilled about tonight's post. Well, honestly, I'm not horribly thrilled about anything right now.  It's the end of the work week and I should be going out and having a good time tonight, but all I feel like doing is sleeping.  I'm exhausted.

Regardless, the first time I heard the song Homosapien, the Simple Minds were singing it on their cover album in the oughts.  I liked it a lot, and did my due diligence to learn who originally did it.  And, so I found Pete Shelley from the Buzzcocks for the first time.

I knew of the Buzzcocks and had two Singles albums by them, and I thought they were pretty good.  I do think that Shelley by himself, though, really expanded, matured and grew his sound and style to something more than Punk and more than New Wave.

All in all, it's a pretty good album with some great tracks.  Here's the album, the mixes and the b-sides. 

Now, I'm off to the recliner and the remote control and the TV.  I'm done with today....

Pete Shelley - Homosapien - 1981

Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark - The Extended Versions - 1979-88

So, several months ago, I posted my "Singles Collection" of every OMD single, b-side and remix up through Dreaming.  I know, though, that listening to 6 discs straight through can be a daunting task.  I know because it's tough for me, even on a road trip.  So, I also made myself an extended/remix collection with one mix from each of their singles, if a mix exists.

It's hard to say which disc I prefer, as I have favorites on both of them.  Regardless, it's a good set, and playing through a 2-disc set doesn't take long.  Favorite tracks would include Never Turn Away, So In Love,
Messages, Souvenir, and of course the Martin Hannett mix of Electricity.

I've said before that I don't care for greatest hits collections.  I don't.  But, when it comes to OMD, and Art of Noise, a lot of times, that's the only way you can listen to them.  Don't know why.  But, as far as albums go, neither of them can really pull together a cohesive group of songs that I can like.  I guess I'm too picky.

Anyway, I thought the font and cover graphic was fitting for this collection.  I hadn't made the cover for myself before, but once I got these two, I printed them off.  Looks good on my CD wall.

Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark - The Extended Versions - 1979-88 - Disc One

Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark - The Extended Versions - 1979-88 - Disc Two 

New Order - Movement - 1981

I didn't purchase this album until my senior year in High School.  Reason being, for the most part, at that time in my musical tastes, I had problems with a lot of bands "first albums"  I don't care for the first albums of Depeche Mode, Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, Skinny Puppy, Smiths, Beatles, Rolling Stones, U2, Sugarcubes, Peter Gabriel, Cocteau Twins, Shamen and INXS.  This list goes on eternally.  So, getting me to purchase a debut album of any group is sometimes a challenge.

But, I got this album and had a good listen.  It seems to be a cross between Joy Division and New Order, rather than NO proper.  Every track is dark, and the vocals are deep and low.  It took a while, but their songwriting skills really took hold and I knew they had a winner with this one.

They also released a herd of singles and EPs around that time, which I have included in this set.  In some places the tracks work.  In other places they don't.  For the most part, I think this is probably as complete a set as you can get for the time period.  I also popped Turn the Heater On into the set, which I feel is something of a rarity.

The original US release to this album was white and burgundy, so I opted to try that one out instead of the traditional blue standard.  I think I like it better this way.  I've also seen a navy blue version, with white letters and yellow lines and dots that looks good too.  I also found this version below on deviant Art that I really liked, too.  But, I think it might be too much of a departure, so I will probably use it for one of the bootlegs later on.

New Order - Movement - 1981 

Duran Duran - Debut album + Remix Disc - 1981

I've said before that I didn't get into D2 until New Moon came out.  And then, I was only able to recognize enough to focus on Reflex.  So by the time I was really hard core into following them, Wild Boys was just being released.

This leaves a full two albums of materiel plus that much more mixed to be heard.  At the time, and to a degree now, it is difficult to go backwards when listening to a band.  Whatever I am currently listening to, I always want to hear what's next.  Same with D2.  It took a summer afternoon on the beach of Lake Michigan in Chicago, with a group of young girls and their boombox listening to Girls on Film and Planet Earth to help me go back and listen to the first album.  ( I think it was the beauty of the nubile young women that encouraged me to go back and listen, but who knows - yeah, right.)

Forever, I thought that Is There Something I Should Know was actually supposed to be on the first album.  It always seemed out of place.  Years later, I find out it replaced To the Shore.  Then I find the singles with Late Bar, Khanada, Faster Than Light and Fame.  What the hell.  That's five songs.  That's an EP.  And there were only nine songs on the album to begin with!  SO, there I am with my duel deck cassette player, and my turntable and my blank tapes, trying to make a mix of the album with the b-sides and the two mixes that I knew of.  And no cover (no computer) to wrap it in.  Just my Bic and my colored markers to make the spine look pretty.

I always like the cover to the Planet Earth single, the 7-inch release more than the 12-inch.  It was orange, my favorite color, and I liked the contrasting city and desert.  Also, the Nite Romantics sleeve is one that I still have hanging on my wall in a frame.  Absolutely classic.  Except, my Obi strip is ripped and taped.  Other than that, I love having it.  I think I still have enough mixes that I might make one more mix disc using the blue and red japanese sleeve for Planet Earth, because that's my next favorite, despite the fact it breaks from the Assorted Images motif they had on the rest of the releases from the album.

On the "Master Disc" I kept the album generally in the order it was released, but I mixed the b-sides in throughout, rather than just dumping them all in the middle. I also added the original Tel Aviv in the middle to balance the album closing.  I think I did a pretty good job of arranging, let me know if you like it.

The Extended Disc is the Catbirdman mixes that rock, of course.  You'll love every mix, he did a stellar job.

More mixes on the way....

Duran Duran - Master Disc - 1981

Duran Duran - Extended Disc - 1981

Madness - Seven - 1981

First time I heard these guys, it was Our House, the only song of theirs that I remember hearing on the radio.  Loved it.  Next, I saw them on the Young Ones...  Eh?  What the hell was that?  House of Fun?  Sounded like crap at the time.  It was then that I decided that I hated Ska and Dub.  What a stupid stupid fool I was.

I didn't start listening to Madness until f--king 2003.  WTF.  And, it wasn't just Madness, I started listening to English Beat, Selector, the Specials, and almost anything 2-Tone.  Good for me.  It was about time.  I fell in love with the sound, fell in love with the singles, found the joy of holding a 45rpm with only two songs.  Fun stuff.

Obviously, one of their best albums, but not my favorite.  You have a lot of good songs on here.  I got the album, the singles, the b-sides, the non-album tracks.  All a pile of mish mash.  It was the arrangement that I liked best.  Hope it works for you.

As for the cover, I have always absolutely loved this cover.  As a comic book fan, the artwork is fascinating, along with the poor layout and design.  When I was making this cover, I wanted to make sure that I left the Made In the UK sticker on there, along with as many creases, ridges, wrinkles and reflections as I could, as it totally adds to the character of the album.

Lots of fun, this one.  Listen to it daily.

Madness - Seven - 1981

Police - Ghost In the Machine - 1981

An album I wouldn't normally have considered for a while, here, Ghost In the Machine was requested and I am happy to oblige.

I have no interesting back story to Ghost In the Machine, as it was one of those albums I purchased later in life to finish filling my Police back catalog.

As for the music -

They only released 3 b-sides that were not on the album, surprisingly enough.  They had no official remixes, and I have yet to find a fan remix that is worth a shit.

The interesting thing about Ghost, though, is the demos.  Ghost actually has a full album plus extra of demo material.  Rumor has it, Sting had recorded the entire album, plus five or six extra songs, as a demo.  He played all the instruments and sang all the vocals and taped it.  He then handed the tape to the other two guys and said "Here's our album, do you think you guys can play this?"  The result was the Ghost album, and 5or 6 of the demos never saw the light of day.

Now, I have the demos.  The extra songs aren't bad, but the recording quality is worthlessly bad.  You might listen to them to simply have heard them, studying them as an anomaly.  Maybe, as a collector, you are into that piss-poor muffled crap demo recording quality.  Not me.  Sorry.

When it comes to demo material, in situations like this, and in all future instances, I will only include demos in my album track listing if the production quality is equal to the commercially released album tracks, or if it's not noticeable.

As for the album cover, I've never liked the original, as it was boring, and I always loved the "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" picture sleeve.  That picture sleeve is in my top 100 picture sleeves of all time.  So, I mix it up a bit, and maybe it works, maybe it doesn't, but it's a cool cover and unique on my CD shelf...

Police - Ghost In the Machine - 1981