The Mission - The First Chapter

Mission fans should be thankful. Most bands that come up to the majors the hard way (i.e., on an indie label, releasing singles only) usually ignore their previous output once the big corporate label is buying the drinks. For the Mission, whose reputation was built on those early singles, it was a necessity to make them easy for fans to get their hands on. Polygram was more than willing to saturate the U.K. market with Mission releases, and what better way than to repackage old singles from a minor label and release the collection right after a successful debut? So, on the one hand it feels a bit like cashing in, but on the other The First Chapter is a pretty good collection, more consistent than God's Own Medicine, and containing some of the Mission's better moments. Some may nit-pick that the compilation is not set up in a chronological order, but the decision to set up the album in an almost rocker/moody track/rocker pattern keeps the overall project from getting into ruts. The first two singles, "Serpents Kiss" and "Garden of Delight" are the standouts, obviously, but their covers of "Like a Hurricane" (Neil Young), "Wishing Well" (Free), and "Dancing Barefoot" (Patti Smith) are surprisingly solid, proving that the band was interested in taking the rather limited scope of Goth rock to more interesting places than just drum machines and moody crooning. The slower, moodier tracks ("Wake [RSV]," "Naked and Savage") feel more like interludes that run a bit long and the Mission's take on the Beatles' "Tomorrow Never Knows" could have been left behind. An arguably better introduction to the Mission than God's Own Medicine (and not just because this is their initial output), The First Chapter is a sure fan favourite, as well as an interesting piece of history of an oft-forgotten era of English rock.

The Mission - Gods Own Medicine

Even though the Cult had already mastered the art of mashing goth with more traditional elements of classic rock, the Mission's debut, God's Own Medicine, was the marker for goth rock's invasion of the U.K. charts for a good chunk of the late '80s. Having already made a serious dent on the top reaches of the indie charts with the singles "Serpent's Kiss" and "Garden of Delight," the Mission were on the precipice of becoming big-name players in mainstream circles. Wayne Hussey and Craig Adams had plenty of Goth cred, having played with and acrimoniously left The Sisters Of Mercy in 1985, and Hussey's ability to bring in elements of classic rock and English fantasy meant that he had a fan base in place and the added touches to reach the larger listening public. In that light, God's Own Medicine was a hit, broadening the Mission's appeal and establishing them as the flagship for the movement as it was unfolding. Musically speaking, the album isn't really their best, as it suffers from some inconsistencies, a muddled track order, and a mistakenly pap version of the indie single "Garden of Delight." And if one can get past Hussey's rather silly spoken intro "I still believe in God, but God no longer believes in me," then one will find moments worth hearing. "Wasteland," "Severina," and "Stay with Me," all strong tracks and singles lifted off the LP, are key Mission tracks, while "Blood Brother" (an homage to The Cult leader Ian Astbury) and "And the Dance Goes On" deserve attention. A bit laborious and over the top in their subjects, the slower tracks are stacked toward the end of the record and make the album end on sort of a "blah" note (Hussey's attempts at songs about sex and romance can either wind up sounding corny or smarmy), but the Mission would eventually get the slower stuff right, so it's interesting to hear these selections as embryonic efforts charting a direction to future successes. True, much of what happened on the charts as far as this sound was concerned was quickly forgotten in the wake of Madchester and such, but God's Own Medicine stands as a good signpost for a misunderstood time.

The Mission – Children

Most bands usually wait two or three albums before the "big statement," but this is the Mission. Sure, their debut was well received (at least by fans and record buyers) and was full of big, dramatic moments and over the top production, but nothing would equal the band's reach on its follow-up, Children. Kicking off with one of the longest fade-ins in rock history, Children is a sprawling (hell, to not call any album that starts out with a seven-plus-minute "intro" song sprawling is just wrong), larger-than-the-sum-of-its-parts affair, with multi-layered arrangements, numerous strings, vocals, guitars, and other instruments on every track, and an indescribable feel that just makes the album seem much longer than it really is. The rough edges are smoothed out, and Wayne Hussey's 12-string sounds cleaner and more shimmery than before. As for the songs themselves, the singles "Tower of Strength" and "Kingdom Come" obviously stand out, but "Fabienne," "Heat," "Child's Play," and "Wing and a Prayer" still rock (albeit in a rather buried-in-production kind of way) and "Black Mountain Mist" has an unmistakable Led Zeppelin feel. Speaking of Led Zeppelin, it's really no wonder that this time the Mission let their once subdued love of the rock legends runneth over -- John Paul Jones was brought in to produce. The man who gave shape to Jimmy Page's more sprawling (there's that word again) epics as bassist and main arranger for Led Zep, Jones not only gives the Mission credibility in the act of bald-faced homage, but gives them a more mature, polished sound, ironing out their changes and shifts, resulting in a sound that is considerably more advanced than that of their previous work. The album is not without flaws, however. "Breathe," an interlude, feels a bit tacked on, and the cover of Aerosmith's "Dream On" is a questionable choice, to say the least. Some versions of the LP didn't have this track, and it's arguable that this one should have been left on the B-side pile. But the biggest flaw of the record is not in the substance as much as in the interpretation of the music itself. On Children, the Mission are big, dramatic, and grandiose: the very things that critics made their names giving the band a hard time for. But, so what? The Mission were a big, dramatic, grandiose band whose members weren't afraid to wear their hearts on their sleeves. Children is the proof of that, for sure.

The Mission and Killing Joke

Two heavyweight contenders for the “Still Slogging It Out, Goth Legends” award, The Mish and KJ. Once rumoured to be playing a three band set of gigs with the Cult, KJ threw in the towel early and left T’Mish and T’Cult to co-headline an outstanding short UK tour. But enough of that, we’re here for T’Mish. Starting life as The Sisterhood, Wayne, Adam and the other two kicked of their new direction, after saying ByeBye to Messer Eldritch and T’Sisters, with a string of low key dates in Europe culminating in a London return as special guests to T’Cult. This stimulated the Eldritch fella to bang out some tunes, with the help of James Ray, calling this incarnation The Sisterhood just to piss Wayne and the boys off. Not to be downtrodden or deterred, The Mission were duly christened and a spankingly brilliant 12” single was released to celebrate.

Despite the primitive synths, the germination of the classic Killing Joke sound is here. The four tracks (three originals and one dub variation of the title track) all have that martial industrial beat and underlying aggression that the band is known for. What isn't fully formed yet is the abrasive, metallic guitars and Jaz Coleman's patented rage that would eventually define them. There are flashes, like the gritty "Almost Red" and "Are You Receiving", but tracks like "Nervous System" and the dub take on the title track "Turn To Red" groove more than they assault. It would take another year of marinating to completely bring that side of the band out with their brilliant debut.

Into The Blue (Re-Upped)

Released as the third single from the album Carved In Sand, as a limited edition 12” Into The Blue (First Avenue Mix) was released to supplement the original single and 12” mix. Kicking off with the theme to The Dambusters the First Avenue Mix takes the listener on a sample heavy tours de-force around the Missions greatest hits. Weaving Into The Blue’s chorus into the samples just to remind everyone of what it was they originally bought.