New Wave music reviews

Back in the 1970's I played music for a living. Robert Gordon played in a club that I played at regurlarly in Milwaukee WI. A friend talked me into seeing him one night and I was floored! I would reccomend this disc to anyone and I mean anyone. It isn't the style, the band, the singer, it's all of the above. Robert Gordon has always combined the best of all to put together one of the most incredible sounds that I have ever heard. The live version of Black Slacks says it all!

This album is great. His music keeps you hopping nonstop. There isn't a bad song in the bunch. I love his sound, his voice and his style.

It's amazing to see that the UK Subs are still going after all these years, since frontman Charlie Harper was the old man of the original punk scene when the band first formed in '77, which somehow seemed suspicious in a scene that was so youth-oriented and dedicated to overthrowing the old farts. He's now pushing 60 and still touring and belting out the punk rock, which is either desperately sad and pathetic or rather inspiring as the rest of us reach middle age, depending on how you look at it.

Harper was a legend on the early punk scene and could frequently be seen propping up the bar at 100 Club punk gigs in varying states of inebriation throughout the late `70s and early `80s. Throw in the fact that virtually every offstage picture of him includes the mandatory glass or can of beer and it adds to the amazement that he's still alive, let alone that he's continued touring with the Subs all these years later!

I loved the Subs. From the first time I heard the single "Tomorrow's Girls" to the release of their first album "Another Kind of Blues" in '79, I was hooked. I still have both, and they continue to occupy pride of place in my old record collection. The Subs had catchy tunes, great trademark chugging riffs from Nicky Garrett (one of the best guitarists in punk, bar none), Charlie's pub blues with attitude vocals, and a dynamic live delivery. In my very first band when I was 16, we did covers of early Subs classics "CID," "Lady Esquire," and "Warhead."

After the release of their excellent second album "Brand New Age" and a live album "Crash Course," the Subs improved themselves by replacing bassist Paul Slack and drummer Pete Davies with the best rhythm section in the genre, bassist extraordinaire Alvin Gibbs (he of the ultra cool, impossibly low-slung bass) and drummer Steve Roberts. I saw this lineup steal the show as co-headliner with the Damned at `81's Christmas On Earth punk festival in Leeds; Garrett, Gibbs, and to a lesser extent (well, he was an old man even back then!) Harper a blur of nonstop energy up front and Roberts pummeling the hell out of his kit at the back and none of them missing a note.

After the disappointing "Diminished Responsibility" album, which suffered from a muddy production by apparently AWOL Gary Glitter producer Mike Leander which Garratt tried to rescue without much success, the Subs put out arguably their best ever album with `82's "Endangered Species," which featured a slick, clear, full production courtesy of Garrett and musically bordered on metal years before the punk-metal crossover officially took place. Indeed, the likes of the title track, "Living Dead," "Countdown," and the awesome "Lie Down and Die" could be full-on metal songs but for Harper's snotty Cockney punk vocals.

These sessions also produced "Plan of Action," which sadly didn't make it onto the album (though it is on the CD reissue) but was the B-side of the "Countdown" single and is perhaps my favorite ever Subs song, another absolutely blinding up-tempo rocker. The Subs deserve a lot of credit for effectively presaging the punk-metal crossover trend by several years with "Endangered Species."

This album also included "Down On The Farm," which would be covered years later by Guns `n' Roses on their "The Spaghetti Incident" album and happily provide a source of supplemental royalties income for songwriters Harper, Gibbs, and Garrett in perpetuity (or at least as long as people keep buying Guns `n' Roses albums). There were a few experimental post-punk numbers on "Endangered Species" as well, like "Sensitive Boys," "Ice Age," and "Flesh Wound," which don't really work but show that there was more to the Subs than just bashing out three chords.

Sadly, despite hitting their artistic peak, this was to prove the swansong for the best version of the Subs and they split the following year. With Garrett in particular replaced by a series of no-hopers, I quickly lost interest in what had been one of my favorite bands.

The recent resurgence of punk, including the Sex Pistols reunion tours, has led me to rediscover how great these early punk pioneers were. So when I saw the Subs were still going, I did some investigating and discovered not only that Charlie has been touring with constantly rotating lineups ever since I stopped following them, but that -- praise be! -- Garrett and Gibbs rejoined the fold in '96 and they released two very good 20th Anniversary albums in '97, "Quintessentials" and "Riot."

Though separate releases, these are essentially a single double album and were recorded simultaneously in Garrett's new hometown of San Francisco where he runs the New Red Archives label. They pick up where "Endangered Species" left off and feature a crisp, clean production and suitably fierce guitar sound (Garrett has lost none of his chuggability and knack for a tasty lead over the years). Drummer du jour Dave Ayer does a decent job thumping the tubs (though without the distinctive hard-hitting flair of the great Steve Roberts, Alvin nails the bass like he always does, and Charlie sounds like the same old (and I do mean old!) Cockney wise guy we know and love -- no mean feat for a man reaching pensioner age who's lived the kind of lifestyle he's lived all these years. If you love the Subs or old school punk or just straight up power rock, you should pick up "Quintessentials" and "Riot."

What's more, I did a little more digging and discovered that this wasn't the first Subs reunion effort -- Harper, Garrett, and Gibbs got together back in '88 to release a one-off album, "Killing Time," which I also picked up cheap and second hand off the internet. It's very good too, alternating a more metallic, polished sound a la "Endangered Species" with some lighter, more experimental post-punk moments.

Vive les Subs!

I'd say of all the UK Subs stuff, this is the best--clearly Harper's songwriting was at its zenith with songs like "Warhead," "Barbie's Dead," and "Rat Race." Every song is a punk gem--energetic and raw when lots of other bands were going post-punk. The additional tracks make this CD all the more attractive.

I was a big fan of Carmen Sandiego. Even being a fan, I never heard any of these songs until I bought this CD. It has unique music on it. The Rockapella song "Big Wet Rag" is funny as well as "Carmen's Song" performed by Greg Lee, the host of the TV show "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" An interesting CD, but the soundtrack is better.

It has learning and rock 'n' roll all mixed together! Rating time! Half A World Away 5/5 Great rock 'n' roll song! Big Wet Rag 5/5 Really good song by Rockapella. Cherry In Your Tree 5/5 Great song! A Brief Disclaimer 4/5 This is before "Cake For Breakfast". Cake For Breakfast 4/5 Good song. My Parents' Son 5/5 The best song on the CD! Change My World 5/5 Just great! Why Does The Sun Shine? (The Sun Is A Mass Of Incandescent Gas) 3/5 Good,but needs work. Bugs 5/5 Same as number 7! Back To Chicago 4 1/2/5 Really good pop song. Carmen's Song 5/5 Perfect ending! Pick up your copy today!

You will have the lyrics to every one of these songs running through your head if you buy this fantastically fun collection.

I was a big fan of Carmen Sandiego. Even being a fan, I never heard any of these songs until I bought this CD. It has unique music on it. The Rockapella song "Big Wet Rag" is funny as well as "Carmen's Song" performed by Greg Lee, the host of the TV show "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" An interesting CD, but the soundtrack is better.

It has learning and rock 'n' roll all mixed together! Rating time! Half A World Away 5/5 Great rock 'n' roll song! Big Wet Rag 5/5 Really good song by Rockapella. Cherry In Your Tree 5/5 Great song! A Brief Disclaimer 4/5 This is before "Cake For Breakfast". Cake For Breakfast 4/5 Good song. My Parents' Son 5/5 The best song on the CD! Change My World 5/5 Just great! Why Does The Sun Shine? (The Sun Is A Mass Of Incandescent Gas) 3/5 Good,but needs work. Bugs 5/5 Same as number 7! Back To Chicago 4 1/2/5 Really good pop song. Carmen's Song 5/5 Perfect ending! Pick up your copy today!

You will have the lyrics to every one of these songs running through your head if you buy this fantastically fun collection.

This is my favourite mentals cd, every song's a classic, the lyrics range from surreal to funny and sad all at the same time. I think that was one of the mentals great talents. If you look more closely at the words to some of their happy songs(too many times, if you leave me..) there's genuine irony and a willingness to laugh at the cruelty of life. This exposes them to being seen as "zany" and not taken seriously, but the other cool thing about them is they really, genuinely dont care if they're taken seriously or not. The songwriting is some meeting point between new wave and classic 60's rock and roll riffs(imagine early Elvis Costello or early B-52's if they could write songs) What's more, the cover design looks totally cool. One of the all time great new wave records.

The Mentals were always one of the best Sydney bands around, but this CD is especially packed with memorable songs. Even without the Big Hit (If You Leave Me ...), there are Lets Cook, Beserk Warriors and Looking for Bird, still fresh and vibrant after all these years. It also boasts better and fuller production than their earlier effort, along with super lyrics.

The fidelity on this CD is of B+/A- quality, definitely don't worry about that (I am a hard grader). The collection is one of the better ones out there. Just enough lesser-known tracks to hold the interest of someone already knowledgeable about 80s music. Alternatively, a very large proportion of super-hit classics are here too, making this a great starter for someone just beginning their 80s dance collection.

I bought it for Eddie Murphy's "Party All the Time," an iconic track in the late 80s, and one of the biggest dance hits of 1985 (Rick James wrote it--No fool Eddie!). But Laura Branigan's "Gloria" is also here, big in early 80s but hard to find on compilations. Dreamin' by Will to Power, is decent groove-funk.

I am developing a lot of respect for the Chart Toppers project. Who else takes their decades/genre theme into the '20s for Pete's sake! In addition to this Dance theme 80s CD, the Modern Rock '80s is good too, with some hard to find tracks.

All of the volumes in this series contain my favorite hits of each genre. Although my favorite is R&B of the 50's.

This CD is filled with all the best dance songs of the 80s!!! Use it for you next party and it'll be a hit!

This is not a collection of Todd Rundgren solo recordings; it is an anthology of recordings by Todd Rundgren's band, Utopia. Indeed, the Amazon review is actually reviewing the companion disc, "Todd Rundgren: Go Ahead and Ignore Me".

Although Todd, as band leader of Utopia, would invariably throw in a few chestnuts from his solo career into the Utopia live set lists, Utopia, *the band*, had its own distinct repertoire and reason for being. Indeed, much of this Utopia repertoire was written by the other brilliant band members (as well, they often shared production credits). Ironically, Todd has had to appropriate some of his Utopia songs into his solo performances and anthologies due to their hit status ("Love is the Answer", for example).

With this said, this is a fine, cream-of-the-crop, selection of *Utopia* (the band) songs and a fitting tribute to an appropriately idealistic group of musicians led by one of the great geniuses of the last century.

This is an excellent double CD for old Utopia fans to add to theit collection, (like me), or a great CD for those not well aquainted with Todd to get a good feel for who he really is. This CD contains a few of the sweet love songs that Todd is so well known for as well as his synthesised masterpieces such as the Utopia Theme. No one has ever recorded a piece like this with such genius. The CD also contains his Beatle-like tunes that really round out this recording. If it's Todd and Utopia you want it's what you will get wih this CD.

After reading the reviews here, I bought this album. After discovering that the disc itself is unplayable on an Apple computer (some sort of rubbish copy protection in the disc) I managed to hear it on a car stereo. Apart from 2 really good songs, this album is dated and awful. Instead of sticking to the Heaven 17 sound, they have tried to emulate every crappy house/dance style of that 1996/1997 era. It sounds like a cheap rubbish Corona album or something of that ilk. Oh dear, I'm VERY disappointed. The thing about these 80's bands who were pioneers once, is that they no longer are the trend setters or the ground breakers. They are mearly emulating old garbage.

Lead singer Glenn Gregory helped Martin Fry relaunch ABC's first album in about 6 years back in 1997 with very mixed results. Maybe he saved all the good stuff for this record.
Gone is the crappy, fake soul of their last release "Teddy Bear, Duke and Psycho." Back is their smart, socially danceable commentaries sounding much like their best work on their first two albums. This time they've taken aim at the good old USA. Songs like "Bigger Than America," and "The Big Dipper" very coyly stab at America's genitalia with lyrics such as:
"The King of Hollywood is dead / I don't care what the President said / I don't believe in anything I've read / the Big Dipper's coming down / New York's a shanty town / The distant sound is L.A. burning down."

Other highlights include the Fascist Groove Thing-like rhythm of "Designing Heaven," the atmospheric opening track "Dive," the disco pomp of "We Blame Love" and the industrial tinged "Freak."

Heaven 17 have managed to transcend the new wave slump that have claimed the life of many a new wave comeback albums (See Modern English's last abomination, parts of A Flock of Seagulls and the Human League's as well) by incorporating smart lyrics, beats, and lots of analog synth sounds. Eight years is a long time between records. Are they still relevant? Do you even care? About the only thing that's changed about the band are their hair and waist lines. (Glenn Gregory now looks almost exactly like the Peter Barrett of Midnight Oil). If you say that good new wave synthpop is gone, pick it up and be pleasantly surprised.

After two ground breaking platinum albums in the early 80's, Heaven 17 lost it only to be over taken by former bandmates The Human League. So it's a wonderful surprise to find that Ware, Marsh and Craig have come up with a modern classic. This is the album that should have followed on from The Luxury Gap. Bigger Than America cannot be described as a simple retro step back to the electro early eighties. It's a skilful mix of modern electronica with those warm analogue synth sounds which they helped pioneer. Some of the sounds on this album could have come from their time with the Human League. But what really sets this album apart from the others is the strong collection of songs, which all have that Heaven 17 trademark of melodic perfection. Martyn Ware does a good job on the production of this album with the inclusion of modern dance beats and crystal clear vocals from the superb Glenn Gregory. Highlights include the album opener Dive and the haunting Do I Believe and there are no filler tracks on Bigger Than America. Strongly recommended if you loved their debut album Penthouse & Pavement.

I AM A SPECIALS FAN,AND HAVE SEEN/HEARD THEM LIVE IN BOTH ORIGINAL AND REFORMED LINEUPS.IT IS AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIANCE.THIS RECORDING OF THEM LIVE IS OF POOR QUALITY AND MUDDIED/MUFFLED SOUND.I KNOW THIS AS I OWN IT.

This album is great, especially if you want to hear the Specials before they were the Specials (i.e., when they were the Coventry Automatics and The Special A.K.A.). Also, since "The Coventry Automatics AKA the Specials: Dawning of a New Era" CD is no longer available on Amazon, you can still hear rare songs like "Rock and Roll Nightmare" (which has the same beat and some of the same lyrics as "Pearl's Cafe" which is on their last album), "Look But Don't Touch" and "Jay Walker". Even if you're not sure if you should really get this CD, its only $5.99 so get it! You'll be happy you did.

This is an awesome CD. A must for Specials fans, not to mention some rare tracks like "Look But Don't Touch", and "Jay Walker". There's also a great version of "Stupid Marriage".