New Wave music reviews

Incredible album. I must have listened to it a thousand times, never get tired of it and don't think I ever will. I always find myself putting it on in the car when I get tired of my "new" music. 20 years later it still seems as fresh as the day in 1986 I first bought the vinyl LP. If it weren't for owning a CD copy, I would have worn out my LP long, long ago! "A Secret Wish" is completely mesmerizing and everlasting.

The absolute apotheosis of 80s synthesizer music. One of my favorite and most-listened-to albums by anyone, ever. Atmospheric, expansive, compelling. Redoubtable and Riveting. A work of undisputed genius.

Propaganda never again reached this peak ...But then neither did anyone else. Miss "A Secret Wish" at your peril!

A CD that sounds transcends time really, Secret Wish sounds more like it could be released today, not 20 years ago. It's hard to believe this music was done without MIDI technology.

Perhaps one of the finest synthpop releases of the 80s, dare I say ever. Smart and eclectic, with outstanding vocals. "Duel" is probably one of my all time favorite songs. "Dream within in Dream" provides an outstanding opening, "P-Machinery" is a great dance track, and who can forget the scene in "Some Kind of Wonderful" that features "Dr. Mabuse".

Expertly produced by Stephen Lipson (with Trevor Horn) who worked with Grace Jones and Frankie Goes to Hollywood soon after. Well worth adding to any collection.

1 Sgt Peppers
2 Dark side of the moon
3 Kings of the Wild Frontier
That is all have to say

This album, which held the #1 spot on the UK chart for most of 1981 (though only reaching #44 on the US chart), is simply Adam & the Ants' greatest achievement. It starts of with the fantastic, upbeat & ecstatic 'Dogeatdog', a UK #4/US #15 smash. The song takes a while to get used to, but when you finally get it, it will blow you away.
'Antmusic', a UK #2/US #14 single, was Adam & the Ants big breakthrough, & the only single that was able to reach a respectable chart position during the post-murder Lennon craze of christmas 1980. Being kept of the top spot by the songs of the tragically murdered prophet of his generation, 'Antmusic' nonetheless, broke Adam & the Ants internationally, & desrvedly so, for it is among his best & catchiest songs. New listeners, start with that song, for it will get you in the first listen.

After these two songs, the record suddenly gets very dark. Actually the album is a pretty dark affair, with 'Los Rancheros' & especially 'Feed Me To The Lions' bringing visions of a Bowiesque post-apocalyptic landscape to mind. 'Press Darlings' is another catchy classic followed by 'Ants Invasion' & 'Killer In The Home', that follow up the apocalyptic tension. 'Kings Of The Wild Frontier' itself, a UK #2 hit following the #9 placing of the non-album 'Young Parisians', is the strangest song on the strangest record. Indeed. There is nothing else to say about that song (later `Ant Rap' would follow up on this tradition of taking Adam & the Ants' weirdest songs into the UK top 3).

`The Magnificent Five', `Don't Be Square (Be There)' & `Jolly Roger' (the name signifies the direction Adam & the Ants would take on their next record) are somewhat average Adam & the Ants songs (though such a thing doesn't exist). `Jolly Roger' jumps from brooding to a parody of singalong every 15 seconds or so. They are all great songs, & carry the hilarious/apocalyptic mood up to `Physical (You're So)', a #19 hit in the US, but never released as a single in the Ant homeland of the UK. Truly one of his best songs, it is also one of his darkest, carried by a paranoid guitar feedback. It leads into `The Human Beings', another misty dark song, which scares you into laugter... or?... well, it sounded good. A strange chorus carries the tune & ends this most fascinating & brilliant album.

This album, like all the rest of his albums, ROCKS!!!! He will always be my favorite artist. If only Adam can see this, I'd wanna thank him for being one of the best entertainers of all time! Long live the kings of the wild frontier!!!

It is a sad day in the US music scene when a great CD like this one has been over looked and only released over seas. Culture Club had huge success in the eightes with countless top ten hits and platinum sales all over the world including America.This CD could have marked their return into the US market had it been given a chance. The CD is filled with top notch songs with very little fillers.The majority of tunes, mostly reggae inspired ,could have been pulled as singles. That is how good this CD is!So here is your chance to hear a band at the top of their craft.

I think Boy George has the ,like,best voice.I just luv to hear him sing.I could listen to him all day long.he is very handsome,too.

the year 1999 where music was sort of in an up after a long period of bands doing mediocre music and along come the boys from way back in the 80's the new romantics who had numerous hits the biggest being "do you really want to hurt me"
but culture club will always be that reggae/pop/rock band with their infectious basslines and the beauty of angel voice boy george singing such heart felt lyrics
in some places this album reminds me of led zeppelin
"cofidence trick" and their great cover of the bowie classic "starman" really makes you sit up and smile but my favorite tack is "less than perfect"
a beautiful track to end a masterpiece of a album by the boys
the boys were back with this album i can tell YA

Back in 1977, Cheap Tricks management wanted to release a cd that would hold them over until the new release was finished. Dream Police was almost ready to roll, but it just needed a little extra time to be fully completed before it was released to the world. Up until now, Cheap Trick had not had much success in North America and they were counting on the Dream Police release to put them on the map. When they recorded Live a Budokan it was to help get things rolling and to be a stop gap measure to fill the void until the new release was ready. It was also only supposed to be released in Japan. Well as it turned out, it was one hell of a stop gap. Live At Budokan became the anthem in North America and broke the band big time. It was a tremendous success that helped propel the band to new heights. Songs like I Want You To Want Me became overnight hits. They had reached massive success almost overnight or least it seemed. Cheap Trick was a hard working band and this over night success so to speak was well earned.

Well here we are some 30 years later and this time out we get the complete concert. Yup that's right, uncut from the record label big wigs this time out and in it's entirety. It's amazing that something this old can still sound so fresh and unencumbered. The darn thing still sounds good!!!

This release is a tribute to what good rock & roll is all about. It just had something about it, a live energy or passion that still holds up today.

If you only have one Cheap Trick cd, this is the one you want or need as it's the band at it's best!

Like The Who, Cheap Trick utterly dominates the stage as a live band. Unlike The Who, however, Cheap Trick has never really put out a truly extraordinary studio album (good albums yes, but not extraordinary). I think these are the reasons why Live at Budokan has always been a favorite of critics and listeners alike.

Although I personally have a distaste for CDs that add bonus tracks to classic albums, thereby ruining the atmosphere of the original work, I regard The Complete Concert as a different CD entirely. Because Cheap Trick is a first-class live act, it deserves to have the entire performance documented. The original Live at Budokan, great as it was, always seemed disjointed and incomplete, even though that never detracted from its appeal. This CD brings you the entire show, fills in gaps, answers questions, and really makes me wish I could have been there to witness thousands of lovely Japanese ladies chanting "Bun E, Bun E"!

Not all the additional songs on this CD are up to par with the original, abridged Live at Budokan. But that's not the point. The point is that this documents a classic live show in its entirety, and it IS very entertaining from start to finish. When you consider all that stringy hair, Rick Neilson's "quirkiness", and Bun E. Carlos' decidedly non-rock-and-roll-star appearance, you quickly realize how great this band really is to entertain so many people for so many years. Live at Budokan has always been an inspiration to me both as a drummer (Thanks, Bun E!) and as a live musician. The Complete Live at Budokan does nothing to change that.

I'm keeping the original Live at Budokan along with this CD, but I for one am thrilled to finally have the entire concert in my collection.

Cheap Trick is essentially a minor guilty pleasure and a little cheesy, but if you can get past that then you will find that they are an AMAZING band! Their strengths lay in their live performances, and this album especially proves this point (they were more of a "show" than an artistic, political or poetic group, and they knew this). What's so fascinating about "Cheap Trick At Budokan: The Complete Concert" is that it's so well-produced for a live show - you can hear everything clearly! The drums are especially easy and fun to listen to. The songs are all essentially cheesy-but-fun power pop songs with a hard rock twist, and even if they aren't the deepest songs in the world lyrically, you will still probably love them. Not all of the songs here are great, unfortunately (the original album only had 10 songs, but this has about 25 - that could explain it), but the album's length and the amount of good ones it DOES have more than make up for it. "Hello Kiddies", "Big Eyes" and "Surrender", for example, are all classic power pop songs from the early seventies. Singer Robin Zander does an excellent job with the vocals as fits perfectly as a power pop/hard rock vocalist - I'm pretty sure that most people will love him. The lyrics aren't all that interesting by themselves, but Robin definitely adds much needed energy to the mix. Like I said, the only downfall to this particular verson of the album is that some of the extra songs aren't that good (the original album wasn't the whole concert, but this is). Basically, if you're into power pop, the history of rock or if you're looking for an amazing live album, then "Cheap Trick At Budokan: The Complete Concert" is one of the best you buy! Absolutely recommended!

Highlights include:
"Hello Kiddies"
"Come On Come On"
"Big Eyes"
"Downed"
"Surrender"
the rest are good or decent

First, I have to take offense at the remarks made in the Amazon "product Description" by Chris Nickson... I quote; "Even the musical wasteland that was the '80s did offer up a few beacons of hope". Chris Nickson is obviously a moron who knows nothing about "80's" music. The 80's were a powerhouse decade for music in many ways. What other decade was there in which you had hits by artists from the previous 3 decades right along side those by the "new" artists? Roy Orbison, Kinks, Moody Blues, Rolling Stones, George Harrison, etc. All had huge hits on the same charts as U2, Duran Duran, Go-Go's, Devo, Stray Cats, Romantics, R.E.M etc.

The wave of absolute crap unleashed in the 90's (a real musical wasteland) helped to kill the music industry and pushed the mainstream into a gutter it hasn't risen from since!

At any rate, Mr. Nickson is correct about this CD, it is a beacon of hope for power-pop in the 80's. It isn't as good as earlier plimsouls releases or even as good as the stuff peter released with "the nerves" but it's a very good album worth owning.

-JM

Had this on vinyl for forever- it's awesome to find it on CD for so cheap!

I found out about the Plimsouls by watching Valley Girl. I really liked "A Million Miles Away" and the other songs featured in the movie, so I decided to buy the soundtrack. I just happened to come across this CD for $5.99 on Amazon and couldn't pass it up, even though I was planning to buy it anyway. I like all of the songs on this CD. I definitely recommend this CD whether you already like the Plimsouls or are just discovering them.

This, the first album Costello recorded with his long running backup band - the Attractions - is a strong contender for the best recording in a long and varied career. Not as tight or melodic as the classic follow-up Armed Forces, this 1978 album is certainly the dirtiest, punkiest album Costello had ever pulled, and the Attractions are given more space here to roam than in any of the latter, more tightly arranged albums; drummer Pete Thomas is especially wonderful here, adding a savage beat to wonderful, infectious songs like This Year's Girl and Pump It Up.

Elvis's excellent debut, My Aim Is True, signaled the arrival of one of the freshest artists of his time; but This Year's Model makes My Aim Is True sound more like practice for the real thing. This Year's Model indeed shows him to be one of the freshest recording artists of the 70's, and though it's generally labeled as punk rock - and punk's influence is certainly there - it remains fresh today like few punk albums have. Like the Beatles in the psychedelic era, Costello was not an integral part of the punk movement but instead used it to create music that's new and fresh; and This Year's Model is true timeless music, more than a bit thanks to Costello's intelligent, sarcastic lyrics. Songs like This Year's Model and the single Radio, Radio are statements that are powerful today as they were back then.

Each and every song on This Year's Model is a classic, successful singles and undiscovered gems alike; Costello drew immense amounts of depth from songs that are akin to punk in their compactness, tightness and simplicity. In less than three minutes of songs he says more than many other artists can in a forty minute album - and the songs on This Year's Model are as infectious and straightforward as they are deep, intricate and intelligent. From the incredibly short, fast and furious No Action, through dark non-conformist anthems like Lipstick Vogue, Night Rally and Lip Service, to the unbelievably catchy classic Pump It Up with its infectious groove and Dylan-ish lyrics, it's an album that flows by quickly and strongly, not leaving any listener indifferent and making them want a whole lot more.

You get some more with the bonus tracks, which are good, though not entirely essential, and the album actually works better as a whole without them. Other than the essential classic Radio, Radio - which was not part of the original album but is there on all CD versions and makes a perfect ending for the album - there's also Big Tears (the Clash's Mick Jones playing guitar), Running Out of Angels and Crawling to the USA - all good songs, though not quite as good as the original album tracks; also included are acoustic demos of two excellent songs from the Armed Forces LP - Big Boys and Green Shirt. All of the bonus tracks are worth having, but on repeated listening I usually tune out after Radio, Radio.

Music critic Gene Santoro says that this is his favorite Costello album because Costello lets the Attractions improvise (whereas later masterpieces such as Imperial Bedroom are tightly arranged). For me, this album's finest songs are "The Beat" and "Lipstick Vogue," both lyrical masterpieces.

("I keep thinking about your mother/ No, I don't want to lick them/ Don't want to be your lover/ Just want to be your victim/ I don't go out much at night/ I don't go out much at all/ Did you think you were the only one/ Who was waiting for a call?")

There's no one better than Elvis, ever.

I happened upon a leftover copy of the Rykodisc re-issue of This Year's Model after it had gone out-of-print one day at Borders. Happy I had found this hard-to-find gem (this was a while before the new 2-CD re-issues), I purchased the album and popped it in my car stereo.
Costello opens the disc proclaiming "I don't wanna kiss you, I don't wanna touch" before the Attractions explode into a fit of pop-punk rage. I was blown away. The production was crisp, rich, and full of unbridled chaotic energy. Even when Costello slows it down on this album ("Little Triggers"), the result is no less energetic or passionate. Other such classics include "Pump It Up," "I Don't Wanna Go To Chelsea," and "This Year's Girl. The Attractions are a much stronger band than Clover, who accompained Costello on My Aim Is True, thus making This Year's Model the stronger album (although My Aim Is True is still classic). The bonus tracks are also nice including the indispensible "Radio, Radio," a biting, vicious attack on radio.
This is essential listening. Please purchase.

I cannot improve on the other opinion's except to say - "Change." Twenty years later and I find out that it was "Tears for Fears" all along. Folks, I had forgotten about this song until I played it at my desk today. The major reason I even bought this CD was due to "your" high praise!! Excellent music! Thank you all! Five stars!!

This is creatively and musically the best album by TFF and may very well be one of the best ever albums. It also is one of the best remastered cds that I've ever heard as the sound quality is simply brilliant! Every track seems to have attained a new lease of life and sounds just as fresh as they did decades ago. "The Hurting" ranks among my top 5 ever albums and trust me, I have heard many, many albums.

I was very lucky to have spent my early teens growing up in the early to mid-80's when New Wave was in its pomp and when it seemed that virtually everything coming out of the UK from the Pop Music scene was original and different. TFF competed for the airwaves and for my Walkman against U2, Adam and the Ants, the Human League, Soft Cell, the Eurythmics, Ultravox, Howard Jones, Nik Kershaw, Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, the Thompson Twins etc and they all had their own unique sound but it was this album by TFF that really hit home for me.

Having had a troubled childhood and upbringing, I felt that finally, someone understood the trauma and turmoil that I went through when I heard the lyrics to the tracks here. Roland's singing was so heartfelt and seemed to be expressing the pain and hurt that I felt in my soul that I couldn't express. Somehow, he was speaking to my soul, telling me it's okay, others have gone through your anguish. I can tell you that singing along with the tracks on this album is a great stress reliever too.

The lyrics to every track are so meaningful and the accompanying music is the perfect complement that helps the album achieve its goal of expressing the most tragic of suffering: the emotional and psychological suffering of children that is so often submerged and repressed by the sufferers who are not mature enough to understand or express them. This is so eloquently expressed in "Suffer the Children" and in my favourite "Start of the Breakdown". "Pale Shelter" is another great track describing how a child who needs love is given the equivalent of 'pale shelter' instead.

The bonus tracks are also a plus as they include the hard to find "The Way You Are" single as well as extended versions of "Pale Shelter", "Mad World" and "Change". Although not the most commercially successful of TFF's works, this is overall in terms of the songwriting as well as the cohesiveness and strength of the material is their best work by far.

Very, very highly recommended.

This is one of my all time favorite albums. This was one of the albums from your youth that you could have sworn was written by your own soul. The only thing I feel that is missing from the [UK Bonus Tracks] is the extended single of "Suffer The Children". I have it on LP, but since I do not have a turn-table anymore I am forced to sit and stare at the sleeve and only wish that I could put it onto my I-Pod. If anyone knows if it is available on disc feel free to let me know.

This live album which was recorded in 1979 sounds just as fresh as any live recording today. All of the songs sound more amplified and metallic than the studio albums. That is saying a lot because "Sad Wings..." and "Hell Bent..." are classics in their own right. But to hear "Victim of Changes" live blows the studio recording out of the water!! I love the studio version of "Victim..."., but the live version is more intense. Most of the songs are played at a faster tempo, but the playing is not sloppy and Rob's vocals are fantastic!! Any metal fan should own this!!

UNLEASHED IN THE EAST is true JUDAS PRIEST. I first saw JUDAS PRIEST live when they played their first show ever in the U.S. opening for LED ZEPPELIN and RICK DERRINGER at a day on the green in Oakland, Ca. in 1976. I had never heard of them before, but I was blown away by them. I have seen them five times since then, and every show is very memorable. UNLEASHED IN THE EAST is a perfect example of what JUDAS PRIEST is like live. They are true metal gods. UNLEASHED IN THE EAST captures the best of ROB HALFORD, K.K. DOWNING , AND GLEN TIPTON. ROB HALFORDS vocals are in legendary form on this album. This is a must have for any fan of heavy metal, and heavy it is. There are other great live albums in other genres of music, but for heavy metal, this is in my opinion the best. A must have for every metal fan.

Judas Priest rocks, OK? Rob Halford is a rock God, he has one of the most powerful voices in heavy metal. Glenn Tipton & K.K. Downing are amazing guitar players who can trade leads extremely fast and extremely well. Ian Hill is a great bass player. And Les Binks isn't their best drummer, but he's good.
This is the first Priest "Live" album and it's an early one. So, therefore, most of the songs are from "Hellbent for Leather" or "Stained Class" or anything before that. But, despite it being early stuff; This is one of the best live albums I've ever heard. Yeah, it's overdubbed and overproduced, but it is still technically a live album and they're killer! The only thing you can wish for is a better Set-List, but here are the tracks:

1. Exciter
2. Running Wild
3. Sinner
4. The Ripper
5. The Green Manalishi (With the Two-Pronged Crown)
6. Diamonds and Rust
7. Victim of Changes
8. Genocide
9. Tyrant

BONUS TRACKS:
10. Rock Forever
11. Delivering the Goods
12. Hell Bent for Leather
13. Starbreaker

The live version of "Exciter" is ten times better than the studio version. I've never heard the studio version of "Running Wild" but it's great. "Sinner" is obviously overdubbed, but it's one of my favorite Priest songs. "The Ripper" is very simalar to "Sinner" but still cool. "Green Manalishi" is better in the studio, but this one is cool. "Diamonds and Rust" is an old Joan Baez song that I've never heard. Priest does it great though. "Victim of Changes" has some great guitar playing and it's one of my favorite Priest songs although I've never heard the studio version. "Genocide" has a great solo and Les Binks does some of the best drumming he did in Priest. "Tyrant" is the weakest song. The four bonus tracks are some of the best on the Remaster series. "Rock Forever" is ten times better than the studio version, Halford's voice is so great on this track. "Delivering the Goods" is pretty much the same way. "Hell Bent for Leather" is much better in the studio and "Starbreaker" is awesome. This is truly a masterpiece as far as live albums and go and I'm sick of reading reviews by people who diss Rob Halford's voice. Halford can do so many things with his voice and is such a talented vocalist. They're are people better than Halford, but still...Give the man some credit.

GRADE: A+

ok the track to live and die in l.a by wang chung is the only piece worth listening but the movie itself wow!!! if a dvd is available i would recommend it as a masterpiece movie! would you believe that this was CSI mainstay william petersen starring role?

good ol' tunes from Wang Chung,
good as the flick and well sung;
Wm. P. was good in the show,
partner was/is always so-so;
tks Amazon, "feat gea kung."

Music is top of the line in feeling and depth. Edgy lyrics support rolling melodies, and I would recommend this CD for anyone who enjoys 80's music.

Back in the day, a friend of mine played for me 'Golden Age Of Wireless'. And since then, I have been a BIG fan of that album. So the fact that I might like other albums by this artist seemed to be a no-brainer. WRONG! Gone was the fun, intelligent, energetic new wave of 'Golden Age Of Wireless', only to be replaced by music that sounds like something my Grandmother might have listened to. Seriously, listening to 'Flat Earth' started to put me to sleep. And even as I got older, I just could not find it within myself to find something I really like about this album. It's just is not for me. Let's just say that I felt a little left out in the cold by this one.

Now I can't help but notice that alot of people here seem to like this album. So maybe alot of people who read this review might as well. But let this review be a warning: DON'T BUY THIS ALBUM JUST BECAUSE YOU LIKE 'GOLDEN AGE OF WIRELESS'. Because it is COMPLETELY different music. And you could be GRAVELY disappointed if you do. Listen before you buy. Maybe you will like it and want to buy the CD. But maybe not.

As blown away as I have always been by this album (purchased shortly after it was released), I'm also blown away at the reviews for it - I never dreamed that this many people felt as passionately about The Flat Earth as I do, and these are some amazing reviews! Very few are negative about the album as a whole (only one or two song titles that keep cropping up again and again).

I have to say that I agree with many other reviewers - Hyperactive! just doesn't fit on this album, and White City seems a bit out of place, though its intro and outro do much toward helping it fit in. I like both songs okay, but they seem out of place here, and just aren't on par with the rest of this incredible album.

The musical style of the remaining 5 songs is quite unique to Dolby, and can almost induce a pleasant hypnotic trance - relaxing music to fall asleep by, which I have done many times. The songs have a gentle, pulsing rhythm, with a lush, layered arrangement. A similar style is carried on with tracks 5-7 on Dolby's Aliens Ate My Buick (My Brain is Like a Sieve, The Ability to Swing, and Budapest by Blimp), though most of that album is nowhere near as appealing. Sometime I'll burn myself a CD-R with these 8 songs and a few others by Dolby to fall asleep by, as it's pretty disturbing to hit Hyperactive! (final song on The Flat Earth) just as you're almost out!

Thomas Dolby's follow up to "the golden age of wireless" take a turn to the jazzier side of the musician leaving his pure pop roots behind. Dolby only graces us with only 7 cuts here but their all top-notch songs. Walking a wire between slow piano-bar crooners and lite jazz all the songs are complete and satisfying with Dolby playing it low key on most of the cuts. The most memorable track here is a re-working of Dan Hick's classic "I scare myself" delivered here with a more smoothed-out soulful sound than Hick's edgy opus. An album than came out of left field when it was released in the mid-eighties it earned a place in my permanent rotation and has stayed there ever since. A top ten album of the 80's in my book of lists.