Pure80schat Messageboard
80's Music => Pure 80s Reviews => Topic started by: rockdave73 on July 09, 2007, 09:48:16 AM
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You know when you get to that point where you own every "Best of" or "Greatest Hits" of most the bands you ever liked, and you get a bit of an itch to explore further?. In November 2003 i was scouring through those "Listamania" lists on Amazon.co.uk , a good source of inspiration, and i noticed this album.
O.M.D. were one of those bands that were always there in the background whilst i was growing up, i really liked stuff i saw on Top of the Pops or had on a Now album, ( Locomotion , Tesla Girls etc) but i never really followed them obsessively like i did say , Queen , Duran Duran or The Human League.
I noticed from the reviews that this seemed to be their most popular album, so i ordered it. I only expected to listen to it a couple of times, but no word of a lie, i must have played it at least once a week since!
It truly captures the essence of the early 80s elctronic pop era, a masterpiece to stand alongside Dare! by The Human League. Every song is strong and they all fit together, the album has a nice consistent flow to it, similar to a mid-period Pink Floyd album. Nice little instrumental breaks and oddities.
The opener " New Stone Age " is almost a weird punk/new wave song with a thrashing guitar, whilst " Shes Leaving " is probably the best song ever never to be released as a single. The track " Souvenir" is a masterstroke , with its haunting choral tones, not forgetting the brilliant hit singles "Joan of Arc" and " Maid of Orleans".
All in all, an album i bought on a whim, became one of my all time favourites.
If you don't own this, buy it, pour a glass of wine and listen to it full blast on your headphones. Class!
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I approach OMD through the other end of the telescope from you Dave.
I loved them early on but after Dazzle Ships (1983, I think) I lost interest.
I hated their later stuff with McClusky dancing like a great berk on TOTP. ;D And he is responsible for Atomic Kitten. Bastard! >:(
:2funny:
Early OMD though is indeed lovely stuff.
I really like the electronic starkness of the first album (OMD) and the whistful melancholy of the second (Organisation).
Ultimately though, should two Brits have been celebrating Joan of Arc? She's French. And a witch! Burn her!!
:D
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Organisation & Architecture & Morality are most definitely their best albums IMO O0
Not everyones cup of tea I know but it was groundbreaking stuff at the time. I still listen to them in the car from time to time. :)
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'Architecture and Morality' was their first chart album in North America. Though it only reached #144 in the USA (scoring no hit singles), it reached #18 in Canada, and the accompanying single 'Joan of Arc' reached #32
OMD never broke the US Top 40 until the 1985 'Crush' album and the single 'So in Love'