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Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 20 June 2010 CE
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IanB
IanB
6761 posts

Edited Jun 22, 2010, 09:23
Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 20 June 2010 CE
Jun 21, 2010, 09:39
Joy Division / Warsaw - Transmission (RCA version)
Love the bass sound on this and the general motorik dubiness. The singing is not there yet and I can see why the Dr Who sound f/x were not what the band wanted but the almost sub-bass low end is fantastic and quite ahead of its time.

Generation X - s/t (expanded) & Valley of the Dolls
Loved the debut lp and its mad production when it came out and it still has its thrilling moments and I will always have a soft spot for the snare sound on "Wild Dub". By comparison "Valley of the Dolls" sounds better than I remember. The idea of Billy Idol as the Bromley Springsteen seemed silly at the time but with the benefit of 32 years' distance his lyrics are not much sillier than those on "Born To Run". At least he was writing about London and wasn't pretending to be American. Not yet anyway. No sillier an idea than that of producer Ian Hunter as the Hereford Dylan. And the guitar playing is brilliantly OTT.

Subway Sect - 20 Odd Years
I play this once or twice a year and come away convinced of his importance (relatively Unsung) even though his voice rubs me up the wrong way. "Johnny Thunders" and "Stop That Girl" and "Exit No Return" all works of no small genius.

The Teardrop Explodes - Piano
My favourite TTE release.

Robyn - Body Talk Part 1
The first four tracks of this mini album are pop genius. The rest takes some getting into by comparison. Clearly a smart cookie it is not hard to imagine her getting along famously with a dinner party guest list of Howard Devoto, Martin Amis, Joan Jett, Larry Levan (were he still with us) and Tyra Banks. Which is more than I can say for ....

Christina Aguilera - Robotic
Love her voice so have given it a couple of weeks before writing it off. The first half of her last record was brilliant taking Gang Starr's "Jazz Thing" and using it as the sonic template for an Aretha / Etta/ Ann Peebles revival album. The other half was a bit blander but still pretty good. This new one however is quite possibly the worst record by an A List pop artist since Mariah Carey's "Glitter". There is one glorious track in the style of Teena Marie's Motown period but overall it acts as an unintentional guided tour of American celebrity vacuity that comes off like a porno version of MTV's "Cribs" and with the emotional range of a particularly moronic Rimmel ad. Some of it is so bad that the Linda Perry ballad comes as a relief. Where Robyn's artifice comes off as totally believable (like say Grace Jones) CA's overwrought emotional honesty seems completely artificial. It's not all terrible by any means but more than half of it is and with a deluxe version clocking in with 23 traks (rather than the more slimline 18 track version) that's an awful lot of cobblers to wade through. That said do check out "Sex For Breakfast" (the aforementioned Teena Marie approximation) as the vocal is great and so while I am still a believer she should get Robyn to send her an invite to that dinner party.
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Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 20 June 2010 CE (1001realapes)
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