The Blue Nile - A Walk Across the Rooftops (1983)

The Blue Nile powstał w Glasgow i tworzyli go: Paul Buchanan, Robert Bell, Paul Joseph Moore. Muzyka prezentowana to w dużej mierze syntezatory i instrumenty elektroniczne, chociaż późniejsze nagrania zawierają również brzmienie gitary akustycznej. Pomimo stereotypowego 'chłodu' brzmienia instrumentów klawiszowych, udało się grupie zbudować głęboko emocjonalne, melancholijno-balladowe kompozycje, częściowo też za sprawą wokalisty, którego głos był porównywany do głosu Petera Gabriela.

The Scottish folk-ambient band the Blue Nile has enjoyed a mystique contrived by its inaccessibility and the infrequency of its recordings, but it has also made a series of critically acclaimed discs. The group was formed by three Glasgow natives who had graduated from university there: singer/songwriter/guitarist Paul Buchanan, bassist Robert Bell, and keyboardist Paul Joseph Moore. (Engineer Callum Malcolm and drummer Nigel Thomas have worked with the trio consistently, to the point of being considered secondary bandmembers.) (The Blue Nile is the title of Alan Moorehead's 1962 sequel to The White Nile, the two books making up a history of the Nile River.) They recorded their own single, "I Love This Life," which was distributed by Robert Stigwood's RSO Records just before the company closed its doors. They were then signed by Linn Products, which released their debut album, A Walk Across the Rooftops, in 1984. (A&M handled it in the U.S.) Since the company was small and the band did not tour, the album took some time to find its audience, though it briefly reached the U.K. charts and led to high expectations for a second album. This came in 1989 with Hats, which reached the British Top 20, throwing off three chart singles, "The Downtown Lights," "Headlights on the Parade," and "Saturday Night." The album also made the lower reaches of the American charts as the Blue Nile embarked on its first tour, a 30-date journey taking place in the British Isles and the U.S. In the ensuing years, the band members switched record labels, signing to Warner Bros., and contributed to recordings by Robbie Robertson and Julian Lennon. They finally emerged with their third album, Peace at Last, in June 1996. Another critically acclaimed release, it placed in the U.K. Top 20, but failed to chart in the U.S.



1. A Walk Across the Rooftops
2. Tinseltown in the Rain
3. From Rags to Riches
4. Stay
5. Easter Parade
6. Heatwave
7. Automobile Noise

Sad Lovers & Giants - Epic Garden Music (1982) (CD1988)

Drugi raz prezentuję ten zespół, za pierwszym razem nie było czasu na opis, więc teraz nadrabiam zaległości. Sad Lovers & Giants powstali w 1981 roku w Watford, Anglia. W ich muzyce możemy usłyszeć post-punk, folk oraz nuty psychodeli. Zespół w oryginalnym składzie nagrał dwa albumy, po czym u progu sukcesu komercyjnego, rozpadł się w roku 1984. Powrócili w zmienionym składzie w 1987 roku i nagrali trzy następne albumy, zanim wytwórnia przestała istnieć i nastapił kolejny rozpad zespołu. W 2002 Sad Lovers & Giants powstali z popiołów zapomnienia i ukazała się nowa płyta a zespół wyruszył w trasę koncertową. Przez zespół przewinęli się: Garçe (vocals), Tristan Garel-Funk (później w zespole The Snake Corps) (guitar), Tony McGuinness (członek Above & Beyond) (guitar), Cliff Silver (bass), Ian Gibson (bass), David Wood (keyboards & saxophone), Juliet Sainsbury (keyboards) i Nigel Pollard (drums & percussion).
Prezentowana płyta zawiera osiem kompozycji oryginalnie wydanych na "Epic Garden Music" 12-inch w 1982 roku, plus siedem dodatkowych utworów zebranych z trzech 7-inch singli: "Imagination", "Landslide", and "When I See You" (singiel "Clé"); "Colourless Dream" and "Things We Never Did" (singiel "Colourless Dream"); "Lost in a Moment" and "The Tightrope Touch" (singiel "Lost in a Moment").

Working hard to further their penchant for hashing together paisley underground psychedelia and classic post-punk, Sad Lovers and Giants followed their first two acclaimed singles with the hefty EP Epic Garden Music in fall 1982. With a delicious blend of gloomy guitar and bass infused with punch and verve that recalls early Cure, and a sophisticated wordplay that was uniquely their own, the quintet split the songs between seaside and countryside, between earth and air, and inflected a little of each into the music. Absolutely cohesive and completely on track, the songs on this set are slick and smooth. From the opening "Echoplay" and the foggy "Clocktower Lodge," which walk a quiet edge, to the pure pop of "Alice (Isn't Playing)" and the ominous closer "Far From the Sea," which sounds as if vocalist Garce Allard sang his part through a window outside the studio, each moment is a masterpiece. And, though most of the songs maintain similar a tempo and intensity, "Clint" snaps heads around, while "Lope" features a sublimely off-kilter sax solo from David Wood. It's an addition that brings the closing dregs of a traveling circus to mind -- or, perhaps in a nod to the side's vibe, a closing seaside town that has turned a woolen shoulder to November wind and rain. Sorely overlooked outside of England, Sad Lovers and Giants may have been lost in the wake of the post-punk generation's heroes, but they haven't been forgotten. They remain a small pearl -  a gem of the ocean that birthed them.
Amy Hanson, All Music Guide

 
 
1. Imagination
2. Landslide
3. When I See You
4. Colourless Dream
5. Things We Never Did
6. Lost In a Moment
7. The Tightrope Touch
8. Echoplay
9. Clocktower Lodge
10. Clint
11. Lope
12. Cloud 9
13. ART (By Me)
14. Alice (Isn't Playing)
15. Far From the Sea

Boytronic - The Continental (1985) Replace (CD2005)

Drugi album zespołu Boytronic, wciąż niedoceniony, wydany dwa lata po debiucie płytowym. 
Nagrany praktycznie według tych samych wzorców co 'The Working Model', 
zawiera kolejny hit, czyli 'Hold On', wydany także w wersji wydłużonej 12inch. 
Wydanie z roku 2005 zawiera dodatkowe utwory nie publikowane wcześniej.





1 Hold On
2 Photographs
3 Wait-Stay
4 Obsession (Of The Heart)
5 Broken Heart
6 Tonight
7 Forever
8 Man In A Uniform
9 This Cloud
10 When The Feeling's Gone
11 Stupid Guy
12 Change Of Heart
13 Wie Ein Blitz
14 Fetish

Boytronic - The Working Model (1983) Reverse (CD2003)

Boytronic to niemiecka grupa grająca elektro/synthpop założona w roku 1983 przez Holgera Wobker and Petera Sawatzki w Hamburgu, na początku nazywali się Kapitän Sehnsucht (Captain Desire). W oryginalnym składzie Boytronic wydali dwa klasyczne już dzisiaj albumy synthpop "The Working Model" (1983) oraz "The Continental" (1985). W 1986 roku wytwórnia płytowa, która rościła sobie prawo do nazwy zespołu, stworzyła zupełnie nową grupę pod starą nazwą. Na czele stanął Hayo Panarinfo (U96) i nagrywali płyty firmowane nazwą Boytronic do połowy lat 90tych. W 2002, Boytronic ponownie powrólił do życia za sprawą Wobkera z oryginalnego składu oraz Panarinfo z drugiego składu zespołu.

"The Working Model" was the first, and by many considered the best, album by Holger Wobker and his gunmen. It spawned the biggest hit of Boytronic's career with "You" (they made appearances on several "mainstream" TV shows back in the day). While I too am fond of the naïve, but effective simplicity of "You", there are other standout tracks on the album, and even more on this re-release, complete with remastered sound and several bonus tracks. My all time Boytronic fave, "Luna Square", sounds better than ever and so do many of the other bits and pieces of history on my nostalgic walk down memory lane. "Diamonds & Loving Arms", "At Last", "My Baby Lost Its Way". They are all cruel reminders of the illusiveness of time, but at the same time a vibrant wake up call to today's synthpop scene. The bonus material will please even some of the most devoted fans, as the much sought-for non-album tracks "Hurts", "Trigger Track", "Goodbye", "Bryllyant" and, especially, "Late Night Satellite" are all on here. As an added favour, Strange Ways has decided to include three previously unreleased tracks from the 1983-or-so era as well, all written by Wobker (the song writing duties at the time were usually left to Peter Sawatzki). They aren't as good as the original album material, a bit too much on the cheesy side, but overall this is a synthpop mile stone. And I hear this could be the start of further re-releases of old Boytronic works. "
NIKLAS FORSBERG







01 Recycled
02 Luna Square
03 Diamonds And Loving Arms
04 Red Chips
05 You
06 I Want To Live In Harmony
07 My Baby Lost It's Way
08 You're The One Who Stays
09 At Last
+ Reverse CD 2003
10 Trigger Track
11 Late Night Satellite
12 Bryllyant
13 Hurts
14 Out Of The Darkness
15 Nothing Touches Me
16 Once There Was A Sailor
17 Goodbye

The Sound - From The Lion's Mouth (1981)(CD 2001)

Druga płyta zespołu The Sound wyprodukowana pod okiem Hugh Jonesa (pracował również z the Teardrops oraz the Bunnymen). Tutaj już zespół świadomie pokazał na co ich stać - wykorzystali w pełni zdolność do tworzenia atmosferycznych, bogato zaaranżowanych kompozycji, wciąż bazując na solidnych post punkowych korzeniach. Świetny zaangażowany wokal, głębokie i wciągające teksty, wyróżniające się brzmienie - czego wiecej potrzeba aby odnieść sukces? Bardzo dobre recenzje w prasie niestety nie przekładały się na większe zainteresowanie ze strony publiczności i wytwórnia zaczęła naciskać na zmianę repertuaru grupy.

An assured, relatively loose follow-up to the fraught and frayed Jeopardy, From the Lion's Mouth entrenched the Sound's stature as no mere flash in the pan. It should have shot them directly between spots occupied by the likeminded Joy Division and Echo & the Bunnymen as post-punk legends, but the Fates had something else in mind, and so the quartet took its place right next to touring mates the Comsat Angels in the section marked "Deserved Better." With some semblance of a recording budget, the Sound went into the studio with talented producer Hugh Jones on board to accentuate the band's winning atmospherics. As a result, the sound is fuller, less pungent. And speaking of winning, the snake-charming opener "Winning" is like a dash of cold water in the faces of all the bands that were wallowing and withering away at the weeping well: "I was going to drown/Then I started swimming/I was going down/Then I started winning." This, in a sense, exemplifies the point that the Sound were not mopes. They had their problems with life, but rather than just vent or escape from them, they confront them and ask questions and attempt to sort it all out. Most of the record has an effortless thrust to it, and only occasionally -- for maximum effect -- does the Sound whip out the heavy artillery. If "The Fire" sounds too bombastic and pummeling, listen closer. The bass is the lead instrument, the keyboards are just as prominent as the guitars, and it only sounds like chest-beating compared to the rest of the songs. From the Lion's Mouth shifts, glides, winds, accelerates, and decelerates with all the grace and precision of an Olympic downhill skier. And what a great record it is. [The Renascent label's 2002 reissue offers spectacular sound and slyly hides the fair 1982 single "Hothouse" within the last track. Prior to his death, Adrian Borland voiced his wish to have the reissue stick to the original running order with no bonus tracks for purity's sake, so the label's (appreciated) move appears to be a sneaky way of going around it.]
Andy Kellman, All Music Guide



1. Winning
2. Sense of Purpose
3. Contact the Fact
4. Skeletons
5. Judgment
6. Fatal Flaw
7. Possession
8. Fire
9. Silent Air
10. New Dark Age / Hothouse

The Sound - All Fall Down (1982)(CD 2002)

Oto trzecia płyta w dorobku The Sound, która w zamierzeniu miała być przebojowa i zapewnić kilka hitów na liście przebojów, czego domagała się wytwórnia. Zespół nic sobie nie robił z tych wytycznych i płycie daleko do miana przebojowej. Otrzymaliśmy album surowy w brzmieniu,
nieharmonijny i pełen muzycznych dysonansów, co dla niektórych fanów było nie do wytrzymania. Nie jest to zbiór pojedynczych piosenek, lecz raczej należy słuchać tego albumu w całości, gdyż tylko tak docenimy jego złożoną wartość.

Label: "The five-star reviews were nice and all, so how about some actual hits this time -- eh, fellas?" Band: "Right." The fellas responded with no hits, which had a lot more to do with defiance than closed-minded radio programming -- there was no attempt at making a hit. There's nothing like Jeopardy's blasting "Heartland" and there certainly isn't anything as instantly pleasurable as From the Lion's Mouth's "Sense of Purpose." In fact, the Sound responded to label demands and simmering internal pressures with a record that challenged devout fans as well. All Fall Down is one of those maligned records where some fans bailed but a select few would be inclined to attempt -- through demonstrative hand gestures and long-winded, shouty, pouty explanations of the circumstances surrounding it -- to explain why it's the band's greatest achievement. All this despite the fact that the majority of the other people who have heard it will tell you it should be avoided at all costs. "It's hopelessly 'down,' it's got no 'tunes,' it doesn't go anywhere," etc. Truthfully, it falls somewhere between those two views. This is one of those records where patience pays off, because it will gradually become more apparent that the songs all fit together and pretzel themselves in a sense that each one's effect is optimized within the context of those surrounding it. It's not a sprawl of songs but an album. Nothing comes by and smacks you in the face; its progression unfolds slowly. They play around with song structures, avoid choruses, drop down unexpected portals, use rhythmic drives for extended stretches, and employ chanted refrains, tape effects, and mechanized handclaps. Some songs build and build and build on a slight gradient and fade out or disappear with no resolution, no catharsis. None of these developments emaciate the band's power. However difficult the record is to crawl into, it shows a band that had reached another level of mastery. [Renascent reissued All Fall Down in 2002 with superb sound and added three previously unreleased songs. The vocal tracks seem to be slowed down significantly, making Adrian Borland sound very intimidating.]
Andy Kellman, All Music Guide


1 All Fall Down
2 Party Of The Mind
3 Monument
4 In Suspense
5 Where The Love Is
6 Song And Dance
7 Calling The New Tune
8 Red Paint
9 Glass And Smok
10 We Could Go Far
11 The One And A Half Minute Song
12 Sorry
13 As Feeling Dies

VA - La Cage Sessions vol.11

To już ostatni odcinek z serii La Cage Sessions, który posiadam i dzielę się z wszystkimi chętnymi. Mamy tu około 70min muzyki New Wave nonstop bez zbędnych przerw. Wspaniale się tego słucha.

Polecam dzisiaj taki zestaw:

INVINCIBLE SPIRIT - PUSH!
MOVEMENT - NEW HARBOUR´S
AND ONE - METAL HAMMER
NEW ORDER - SUB-CULTURE
GARY NUMAN - ALL ACROSS THE NATION
DEPECHE MODE - MASTER AND SERVANT
ANNE CLARK - OUR DARKNESS
P.I.L. - THIS IS NOT A LOVE SONG
NEW ORDER - BLUE MONDAY
NITZER EBB - LET YOUR BODY LEARN
INVINCIBLE SPIRIT - SHOWDOWN
UMO DETIC - FAHRENHEIT
ALASKA Y DINARAMA - COMO PUDISTE HACERME ESTO A MI
THE CURE - LOVESONG
THE CURE - IN BETWEEN DAYS
SISTERS OF MERCY - ALICE
AIMLESS DEVICE - NO FRIEND OF MINE
PINK TURNS BLUE - YOUR MASTER IS CALLING
MIDNIGHT OIL- FORGOTTEN YEARS
CLOSE LOBSTERS - HEY, HEY, MY MY
McCARTHY - THE FALL
CROPDUSTERS - JAMMIT O´REILLLY