Reviews (page 6 of 8)
What a strange audacious and surprising album. One in which I'm really not sure what to make of. I did enjoy this more than I expected, never quite thinking it wasn't for me. Could stand to be shorter and maybe more cohesive.
Good
nice and relaxing while elden ring hurt my feelings
This is a weird fucken album. A bit long but I did actually enjoy it a bit. Good synth-work and some hits I can't hate it. Fav songs: - Relax - War - Born to Run - The Power of Love
i liked this
Quite samey but a pleasant trip down memory lane for me.
Covers were weird but overall decent
Favorites: Relax, War I definitely enjoyed the album overall, but feel they could have tightened it up a bit by dropping Fury, The Ballad of 32 and San Jose, which though a great song, didn't add much to the album. I'm surprised they didn't get an explicit content warning just for Krisco Kisses. The Born to Run cover is great, it seems out of place on the album, but is a great cover.
It's hard to rate when the album is mostly covers.
So I knew the hit Frankie songs, but never listened to the entire album before, and I will say that it’s actually pretty interesting… Not sure what “The World Is My Oyster” song was that opened the album, but “Pleasuredome” was pretty well done – perhaps a bit bloated, but intriguing… Obviously “Relax” & “Two Tribes” are the best songs on the album, and the covers in the middle of the album were unexpected, but again – very interesting… Hadn’t heard “Ferry” in over 40 years, so that was pretty cool, and the version of “Born To Run” – while not top -shelf, was still ambitious for sure… Also enjoyed the “San Jose” cover – but really, all 3 of those tracks – along with “War” – just really seemed out of place compared to the rest of the album – but they were definitely fun… Not sure it needed to be a double album – but hey, I thought it was pretty well done all-the-way around… Would probably give this a 2.50 if I could, but I’ll bump it up to a 3, as I enjoyed it more than I thought I would…
Un himno, buenas vibras, agradable sujeto.
A bit of a groovy thing. Pretty generally enjoyable to listen to without any real kick to it. 3.5
Relax is fun, but the rest wasn’t really my thing.
Second song is a vibe. The rest is okay.
Super over the top, needed to cut like 20 minutes off this album
A classic, but not really my thing.
It’s okay, eighties synth pop.
Groovy but not a replay for me.
Yeah, not bad.
I think I only know Relax (and who doesn't know Relax?) by Frankie Goes To Hollywood. This should be interesting. And it was... There's some stuff here that is just kind of weird (the covers) but I think that was kind of the point. We're here, we're queer, and we're weird and we don't give a fuck. Highlights of course include Relax, which has been featured heavily in pop culture despite its raunchiness. Krisco Kisses also gave me a bit of a chuckle. Black Night White Light is musically maybe one of my favorites. Great synth sounds and funky 80's bass grooves. There were a couple others that grew on me but it was a bit hit or miss. Relax hit it big for them, but it's obvious why the rest don't seem to be as well revered.
Son los de Relax y The Power Of Love. Normales.
Some very good tracks but a bit iffy on the middle especially some of the covers.
Started strong but a bit hit & miss overall
Ein Klassiker der 80er. Vor allem Power of Love ist bis heute in der Weihnachtsschleife, obwohl es gar kein Weihnachtslied ist. Beeindruckt hat mich das 12 minütige "Welcome to the pleasurdome". Insgesamt hat das Album einige starke Momente, überwiegend ist es etwas eintönig. Einige Hits, passt schon.
Wasn't sure what to expect going into this album, the only song I knew from this band was "Relax". It's definitely the height of 80s new wave, but it included a cover of "War" as well as a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run". Born to run was close to the original, while they definitely put their own spin on War. Overall it wasn't a bad album
Strange album. A few fun 80s jams on here. The only song I knew was Relax, famous for being played when Derek Zoolander tried to kill the prime minister of Malaysia.
Good album with some classics on it and some cool ad libs 6/10
Þetta er fjölbreytt og sæmilega skemmtilegt, productionin er níundatugartöff en mér finnst hún samt ekki eldast sérlega vel. Verst er samt að coverlögin eru andlaus og lögin sjálf eru bara of löng, þessa plötu hefði mátt stytta um 45%. Ágætt, en ekki æði.
Interesting, energetic, just not my thing. "Relax" is an all time classic though.
Liked the start but it really dragged on near the end. Some of the covers were pretty meh. Todd in the Shadows did an interesting video about this band which helped put them into context. Still feels like you had be there to understand as nowadays it's just overly long 80s stuff.
At one point during this album I was unable to turn left. It was pretty good, style seemed to hop around a bit. I liked the more chill sounding songs
Pretty standard fare 80s brit pop.
A very enjoyable concept album with lots of familair sounds and even a fake Ronald Reagan cameo. In the end though the 80s production and repetitiveness just did me in a bit.
Much more interesting and variable than I was expecting. Probably not something I go back to, but worth listening to.
Tracks released as singles are great, & cover of Born to Run is good, rest of album is ok
This is a goofy, very 80s album. A lot of variety here, all over the place. 3* because not fave album territory. Highlights: relax (zoolander!), born to run (sounds like something out of a musical), bang
More controversy than substance. Iconic and a band of an album. Too much Horn for me.
Remove all the covers and the instrumentals and you'd have a great single album, instead of this bloated double album.
Not at all what I expected but really enjoyed it, walked a good like between experimental and earworm
So… we start with a 13-minute concept track that could’ve easily been a very good 3- to 5-minute song. Understandable if there is a stage performance to accompany it, but leave the extended version for the live show please. Next we have the banger “Relax”, then back to experimental stuff for a while, then a Bruce Springsteen cover?!? A very odd and wild collection, indeed! As an album, not great. But highlights will definitely bring me back to several tracks. Low 3
Frankie goes to Coverland!
3.4 reminds me of the wedding singer. 80’s covers.
Fun
this album sounds like the 80's in sonic fom
Relax // Born To Run // The Power Of Love //
Flashes of genius synthpop mixed with what occasionally sounds like terrible cruise muzak. I generally think that double albums should be left as they are warts and all, this one however is a perfect example on one that would have been so much better as a single album. Best Tracks: Relax; Two Tribes; Wish The Lads Were Here
I listened to this album 3 times, and I can’t figure out what to rate it, so I guess it’s getting a 3. I knew a lot of songs on this album! And I do tend to have some bias in favor of albums I’m more familiar with. But all in all, this album was too long and not cohesive. The songs didn’t sound like they all belonged on the same album.
kinda cool and weird
In my strongest Barnsley accent: “Welcome to the Metrodome” I don’t think this was great, but lucky for them it came just after watching All of Us Strangers, which ends up moving it up to a 3.
"1984 English synth-pop band" does not create a whole lot of excitement from me. Honestly this was perfectly fine, it's not my favorite but I had low expectations and I liked it a bit more than anticipated. It's super' 80s sounding, heavy synth use throughout. The pace is pretty high though, they keep it interesting enough, and there's a couple of strong songs and decent covers to keep me invested. My biggest issue is that this is way too long (64 minutes), there's a ton of filler in here. It actually starts reasonably ok (though the second song doesn't need to be 14 minutes long). But then "Relax" is solid, and there's two anti-war songs that are both interesting enough (including a cover of "War"). The Springsteen "Born To Run" cover in the middle is nice, I liked "San Jose", and then it's mostly very uninspiring synth-pop until "The Power Of Love" near the end. It's perfectly ok with a few good moments, and that's praise enough for this genre. Favorite song: Relax Other: War, Two Tribes, Born To Run, San Jose, The Power Of Love 3/9/24
Enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Every song had something different. Standout songs: Welcom to the Pleasuredome War The Ballad of 32
Trevor Horn wrote an entertaining, fascinating, and (I suspect) rather partial memoir a little while ago. Worth having a look at what he has to say about Holly, the rest of FGTH, and *that* court case (the big one before George Michael V Epic Records) (Someone should write a book about the Law/Entertainment interface. Anyway, it's amazing what studio wizardry and commercial nous can do with a fundamentally sound starting point. Horn (and Paul Morley, and Anne Dudley, and everyone else who was hands-on at ZTT) did not create WttP; but they did fill in a lot of gaps in what, ultimately, became the album of 1984. (ps: 'Album of the Year' does not mean best album of the year. Just to be clear.)
Son los de Relax y The Power Of Love. Normales.
On appréciera l'optimisme du chanteur qui s'essaiera à une reprise de The Power of Love sans disposer d'un début de bagage technique pour réussir son entreprise. Les pieds dans le tapis.
En plus d'etre un gros crado, Bruce Springsteen était aussi un gros copieur.
Wasn't familiar with Frankie Goes to Hollywood at all but recognized 2 or 3 songs. Overall enjoyed it!
My wife enjoyed this far more than I. She gave it a second listen, which forced me to consider my options; suffer another round or clean the gutters. I chose the ladder.
Would revisit. Didn’t have a great deal of time with it.
This album is way bigger and epic than I thought it would be. I've heard parts of "Relax" hundreds of times throughout my life- in commercials, in 1980's era callback videogames (like Grand Theft Auto: Vice city), and in movies too, I think. But I had only heard parts of the song, and never really paid attention to the whole thing. It's got so much more going on and so many exciting elements that I never would have guessed were present after only knowing the super catchy chorus. Unfortunately, beyond that there's not so much I like. "Born to Run" was really a shock, and I didn't even process it as possibly being a cover after reading the title. It only took about two chords to realize what was going on, and I'm not really impressed by it. It's way too close to the original, without anything added, and notably less energy (specifically in the vocals). I just think it doesn't really fit. I like the album cover. It's like a flamboyant 1980's Guernica that's easier to read. This is also a downside though, as I can stare at Guernica for a while and try to decipher it and this is one big interesting part of the experience, and looking at this album cover is devoid of that idea of being interesting beyond a first or second glance. I don't love the record, but I don't hate it. It's like a 2.8 and I'm feeling generous so I'm rounding up.
The '80s were a strange time. Frankie was huge for about 1 year. Relax, War, and Two Tribes are great and represent the genre, mid '80s dance music, pretty well.
J'ai trouvé que l'album partait vraiment en forcee, je m'attendais à découvrir un album qui allait m'épatter outre le fameux single Relax. Malheureusement plus l'album avançait et plus je le trouvais ininspiré. Loin d'être un mauvais album, mais pas tellement consistant. 6/10
Highs and lows on this one. Overall a solid album and somewhere between a 3 and a 4.
I really dig the unique sound of this record while also sounding like classic 80s. Good covers here but I don’t really connect with the skit tracks. Surprised at how well everything flowed together though.
Should have been billed as a synth-pop opera about a sex club. Despite that oversight, it was actually pretty good overall. Well, better than expected anyway.
All right, very 80s. Surprisingly many cover songs
Creative. Wish I could like it more, but only “Relax” works for me.
irgendwann geht dem Doppelalbum die Luft aus
Very synthy. Gets better after the long second song. Don’t think I’ll play these guys again
It was weird
Some of it was great. It lacked coherence and cohesion. The cover versions were great, especially the Springsteen one, but seemed out of place Love the Trevor Horn production.
This seems vaguely familiar. I'm not sure if I've heard anything from this artist, but we'll see. Why the hell is track 2 thirteen minutes long?? I'll admit, it sounds good. But it doesn't require 13 minutes for one song. Sorry. The creepy laughing at the end is ridiculous. I've heard track 3 before. Track 4 is giving me secular Carmen vibes. 3/5 Not for me. I like the 80's pop sound, so that's the only reason this is getting 3 stars and not 2.
Well I guess it was worth listening to this once but it really is cruel to make people listen to an hour long album that starts with a 13 minute long song and includes a Bruce Springsteen cover when all anyone has ever cared about is relax. There were a couple of other interesting points but overall its just another 80s synth pop album that tries a bunch of stuff and it mostly sucks except for the one lasting hit.
I was so ready to be welcomed into this particular Pleasuredome. That opening track is so awesome. And then they talk a bit about war... OK. And then the craziest surprise... a Bruce Springsteen cover? Um... what? Nothing against the covers -- they're good -- but the opening track promised some kind of bacchanal of lusty dance songs or way out-there, outer space ambiance. Not covers of already popular songs?
Was a bit of fun.
Kind of hot and cold on this one. On the one hand, I like the sound of it a lot. On the other hand, it's almost all covers? Like all the best tracks are just covers of other bands, and if I'm being honest I don't think they do any track BETTER than the original artist. I like the variety, and it does kind of transcend the whole 80s sound of it all. I was never bored, but I can also never see myself revisiting
Heard of the artist but never really listened. Dance album from 1984. Quite enjoying this one - not too dancey but good vibes and definitely 80s. Grating after a while. 3/5.
RELAX! DRINK STELLA! YOU KNOW IT’LL MAKE YA FEEL BETTA!
Son los de Relax y The Power Of Love. Normales.
The sound marks a distinctive point in music. I remember the incomplete edges of these songs on my cassette player.
A real mixed bag. The big singles are all here and are far and away the best things on this album. The remainder are a mixture of so-so songs and fillers and a couple of poorly judged covers - Born to Run in particular is very poor.
Good songs on here but too long and too excessive
En megahit, massa bs men bra vibes
Fun album with a lot of variety! Some hits, some misses, a lot of stuff I was neutral-positive about.
relax, the power of love nice
way too long and pretentious rating: 6.7/10
Some really great tunes, some very plain. Really fun listen
Interesting
Much better than expected but something I'll never go back to.
It's very 80s. That one single was everywhere and I still hear in movies. More covers then I was expecting. Kind of mixed on this very disjointed album.
This was fine
Tolerable.
Meh. As mid-80’s UK synth-pop goes, it’s pretty decent. That said, it doesn’t really hold up for a double album length (64 minutes +). They could’ve scrapped the uninspiring covers, and a couple of other songs and had a tight, concise album that would’ve been better. And covering an iconic song like Springsteen’s “Born to Run” is almost as bad as Madonna covering “American Pie”, which I was subjected to just 3 days ago. Still, a few good songs, and a testament to a time period. 3/5
Frankie says Relax! 3,5/5
Some fun songs here, however I wish I could unknow the meaning of the song Krisco Kisses. Ick
This album both excited and disappointed me. The production was fantastic and there were some unique and original bits in here, but then you have some pieces that don’t fit or let you down in some way. The covers, namely, are some of the most confusing choices on this project. They could have had a more focused, and therefore more concise, album had they done away with those fruitless endeavors which add nothing to the album or the original. I enjoyed some of the songs, but not enough to want to listen to this again. It was alright. 3/5
Þetta er frekar geggjað synthapopp. Ég gat vel unnið við þetta. Kannski ekki alveg það sem ég set á undir öðrum kringumstæðum, en þetta er töff tónlist, það fer ekki á milli mála. Titillagið reif mig strax með og svo var hellað climax með relax. Aftur á móti fannst mér skemmtilegasta lagið Two Tribes og svo var skemmtilegur ode til Gerry and the pacemakers í Fury og helvíti gott BOSS cover í kjölfarið.
Relax er eitt besta lag eitísins, frábært lag. Tvö önnur fín lög, fjögur cover lög, eitt reyndar langbest, og restin rusl. Ef þeir hefðu haldið sig við einfalda plötu en ekki tvöfalda hefði þetta verið fínt. En stór plús fyrir Relax.
Got a weird urge to off the prime minister of Micronesia after listening to this
Relax and give it a 2.5
So this is where Public Enemy got their album name "welcome to the terrordome" from. Bold to start the album with a 13 minute song excluding the intro. It then goes to the banger "Relax" which I've heard before. The rest isn't that impressive but still enjoyable. There's some weird covers as well.
mira, los covers no me vuelven loco, pero me sorprendió la calidad de la primera mitad del disco. Indulgencia es algo que se repite en otras reseñas y coincido.
"Relax" has aged very well. I remember what a huge hit it was when it first came out. It took me longer than it should have to realize what the song was about. I've always loved the title track along with "Two Tribes", although I don't like the remix that I heard here. And I didn't care much for the cover songs. "Ballad of 32" was good, but too porn-like towards the end. The rest just was... Still, I liked that they didn't try and make everything a catchy Relax knock-off.
Fun 80s vibes to listen again in a particular mood
"Ambitious" is the word that most comes to mind with this. I'm not sure why the band thought we needed a mostly-straight cover of "Born to Run", as well as a few others, but they really bring the record down. The originals on here are solid, maybe drenched in a little 80s excess, but once they dig really into the covers, the record never really recovers. I like the production though, it's very big and "futuristic". Favorite tracks: "Welcome To the Pleasuredome", "Relax"
Very eclectic collection of songs.
Relax still catchy. Good 80s bass on Two Tribes (and throughout). First half not doing it for me often enough but second half picks up with Black Night White Light, emphasizing the funky bassline and a couple great keyboard riffs, plus The Only Star in Heaven with good driving bass. The Power of Love is an epic closer. Could have been **** with less filler.
Relax, Two Tribes and Power of Love are pretty much the greatest first 3 singles ever The rest is a bit bloated Did enjoy the Springsteen cover though
2.5 stars. A little too overdone for me. Catchy at times but not really my thing. Still better than most pop. Very 80's and some covers that weren't my favorite. Standout was "Relax".
Frankie says Relax. You should do so because this is an album that’s going to put you through the ‘80s gauntlet. At parts frustrating to listen to and in other absolutely brilliant. There’s so much to like but also some much that comes unhinged mid song. It’s over produced and to that the producers hand was apparently VERY heavy. That obvious and it hurts.
Well, this is a funny musical lasagna. Many things happening one after the other; I think it definitely encapsulates the zeitgeist of the eighties. Might listen to it again, but I guess that only selected tracks.
Peak 80’s fun.
Good quality pop with all the obvious hits, suprised how many covers and how intresting they are.
14 year old me loved this. Forty years on and I'm not so sure, but nostalgia is a powerful thing
Frankie says funny things over music. Frankie says sex noises and David Gilmour style guitar wailing. Frankie says cover versions are a great tribute. Frankie says, "Poppers?"
Enjoyed it. The title track is excessive, but then this whole album is about excess and indulgence. Kinda like Mad Max 3, with less sand, and more lube.
Wow, I can see how controversial and groundbreaking this album would have been
Disappointed. Some of the greatest tracks from the 80's mixed with some filler and poor cover versions.
I enjoyed this but it's half brilliant and half really average filler. Welcome to the pleasure dome is excellent although too long to put on a playlist.
Should be the definition of hit and miss
Some really good tunes right in the middle there... then a cover or Springsteen's "Born to Run" and then some whale song?
An interesting experiment. Though there are a few clear standouts, the variety of other choices: covers of San Jose and Born to Run, downtempo pieces like Ballad of 32, and some fine electronic pop, offset other quirky uninteresting contributions. Overall a positive energy record that works.
A few okay songs, but mostly forgettable and generic 80s music
It’s alright,relax and the power of love is good but there’s no need for a 12 minute song.Too many songs about sex,just gets annoying I don’t need to hear a 2 minute song of people moaning.
This has some excellent singles on it, and starts off really strong with "Welcome to the Pleasuredome". Great bass and production. However, I could have done without about 30 mins of it. Why are there so many mediocre cover versions on here?
This was sitting at a 4 because I was having fun… and then they had to add sex noises. So that brought it down a bit.
опять поняла что не различаю группы 70х-80х... стыдно... Фрэнки норм
Well, at least they sound more interesting than most of their '80s synth-pop peers.
So gay
alkaa 5/5 biisillä, 13minuuttinen albumimnimikköbiisi, peukut pystyssä heh. sitten lähtee alamäki.. loiva mäki, ei merenpintaa kosketa. vielä ollaan korkealla. mutta ei koskaan tasangoitu. muutama hittibiisi, hyvä biisi, siellä seassa. helppo midari. welcome to the pleasuredome
Pretty enjoyable synth pop album. Very 80s.
See everydaytunez
Highs were high but the lows were uninteresting. Extremely well produced and the best songs had interesting playback. I get the popularity but much too long
Likely groundbreaking at the time. The album is powerful and dynamic. Great singing and a fun mix of instruments. I wish I could Relax and just give it a 4, but it’s not exactly something I have to listen to again.
This one was all over the place. Some really catchy upbeat pop stuff early on, but really fell flat towards the end. Take out the last 30 minutes and maybe shorten up the title track a bit, and this one could have been a banger.
Help – one's been hit with the laser beams! Surprisingly more to this than expected (or remembered), with a title track setting an interesting and thoughtful tone (even if it’s a bit overwrought [as are “War” and several other tracks]). “Relax” still has its appeal (overcoming the pretty severe anachronism [not to mention hideous fashion flashbacks]). The covers are somewhat hard to credit (especially the Springsteen) but “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?” is good (and odd) fun. The production is fittingly over the top, but everyone sounds like they’re having a pretty good time of it (and not nearly such naughty fun as one suspected or remembered. [Those laser beams must be bad for the memory.]) Begins tending to the ponderous the longer it goes on, but one sees the ambition (which took strange forms, it must be said) to be more than one-off club stars of the Right Said Fred ilk. Ultimately, it’s hard to know how to rate them. Are they the ‘80s version of, say, Happy Mondays? Adam Ant and the Sex Pistols are also good comps, more like Zeitgeisty phenomena than actual musical acts. Fun record, both to hear and consider in the broader cultural context.
Genres: New wave, synth-pop, Hi-NRG Formed: Liverpool, England in 1980 Run time: 16 songs, 1 hour, 4 min The debut studio album by English synth-pop band. They achieved fame in the mid-eighties and Johnson went on to have a solo career in ‘87. Spotify: Least popular song: 547k Most popular song: over 108M plays. Track 2, “Welcome To The Pleasuredome” refers to the poem Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The song is also an epic, at over 13 minutes long. In the 80’s each track that was released as a single was banned by the BBC and was driven up the charts as a consequence. Their material was overt and shocking and certainly caused a stir at the time. Track 4, “War” is a cover of the counterculture era soul song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for the Motown label in 1969. The song was an anti–Vietnam War statement. It became a number 1 hit for Edwin Starr in 1970. The FGTH version contains spoken words by the then President of the US, Ronald Regan. It was a very pertinent and clever cover/adaptation. It serves as a prequel to the next song on the album “Two Tribes", which is a dig at the Cold War between the U.S. and USSR. Track 6, “Tag” is 30 seconds of weird! Track 7, "Ferry (Go)" is an extract of the Gerry Marsden (Gerry and the Pacemakers) song “Ferry Cross the Mersey. It isn’t trying to be the original and is a fitting tribute by one Liverpudlian band to another. Track 8, “Born To Run” is a cover of the Springstein song. I alway feel that a cover should be better or significantly different to the original. It’s not a bad cover, but it is a straight cover, and very few artists could outperform Springstein. Track 9, “San Jose” is another cover, this time of a Burt Bacharach song originally performed by Dionne Warwick. Again, it’s not bad but it’s not different or better than the Warwick version. In the 80’s HIV/Aids was in the news alot and caused a lot of hate and fear of homosexuality. At the time many gay male artists didn’t push or hid their sexuality (e.g., George Michael). Due to lack of knowledge many contracted HIV and would die of AIDs in the 90’s (e.g., Freddy Mercury). FGTH didn’t seem to worry about it, and openly did their best to promote gay artists. Holy Johnson did catch HIV, but improved knowledge and medicine means he didn’t go on to contract AIDS. This album resulted in some epic singles. Listen Again?: No My Rating: ***
Feels like a 1980s movie soundtrack.
Hard to appreciate since they screwed over Mugato so hard causing him to try and take over the world by mind controlling the Prime Minister of Malaysia
Lots of talent but why the random covers? Sounded like so many different bands and lots of classical influence. I liked most of it. Vocals and instrumental blends are excellent. Cheesy bits of dialog thrown in didn't help.
Ok
interesting that there are covers on it
Really liked the first bits of the album. Not so sure about the spate of covers in the middle and then it peetered out a little bit.... solid 3 for the first 5-6 songs though
ah, some UK 80s pop for a change. This is one of the more well known one hit wonders out there, at least outside the UK. I only knew Relax. The album is more of the same, to varying degrees of quality. Very sophisticated and ambitious, but for all the production and kazillion instrument tracks it never really took off. Everything left me wanting, nothing ever really pulled through. The whole album felt like one giant lead up to something that never came. An hour long tease- ironic given the title. Martini Ranch did this whole vibe better, plus that had Bill Paxton in it. 3/5.
It was a fun listen. I don’t think i’d go back though.
Peak 80’s with some massive hits on this album, including a few decent covers. Deserves its place on the list, doesn’t quiet make my regular rotation though.
I don’t know if I’ll ever listen to this again but this was a lot of fun. Good stuff and some cool covers.
Pink Floyd meets Steve Miller band, meets queen meets disco. Every song completely different and creative, some are really good
Mine is the last voice you will ever hear. Yes, FTFH were huge when I was in college. The singles were ubiquitous. Yet somehow the debut album was a real letdown, very much less than the sum of its parts. The cover choices defied understanding, and the material stretched too long. Would’ve made a fine single album.
Well, I enjoyed this much more than I expected. It definitely could have done with being half the length, though. The glut of, pretty rubbish, covers really killed the mood. I'd have been tempted to score it higher if it had ended before that.
The cover versions are unnecessary fillers. This is the only song titled The Power Of Love that matters
I enjoyed hearing "Relax" in its album context. Beyond that, the music mostly just made me feel anxious.
Mixed bag
Call me a prude, but this album is kind of gross. I feel like, while embracing this sort of stuff is important, and acting as though human-beings don't have urges is gross, but it being this on the nose with not a lick of nuance in sight makes me just roll my eyes when I hear some sort of allusion to sex for the billionth time an album, and don't even get me started on what the back of the album and the inner sleeve look like. If not all of that, then covers a plenty. Overall, the album is okay, but most of it is forgettable or dated. I imagine when people say they dislike new wave, this is what they're imagining. Very light three.
More interesting than I thought it would be but overall an average album
Frankie says Relax!
This aged much better than other albums of its time! Enjoyed the covers too, wtg Frankie
Relax is obviously a classic but quite played out for me after seen Zoolander 1 trillion times. I definitely was not expecting the Bruce Springsteen cover part of the way through. That was a nice treat. And it is ultimately what saved it from a two star review.
One of the things I had heard about this album was that Steve Howe was in it, so I was excited to hear his guitar work. Did not realize it was on a song that was over TEN MINUTES long. Let's talk about how hopelessly DATED this album is. Sampling RONALD REAGAN. Covering "War," "Born to Run" and "Do You Know The Way To San Jose?" and they still sound less fresh than the original songs sound. Also THREE covers? That's a bit much, don't you think? Really everyone's here for the one song we all know. But one song doesn't an album make. "Welcome to The Pleasuredome" was good, too. But there's quite a LOT of filler here. And again, putting all those covers in that "modern sound" just sound like it's still 1985 (I mean I guess that's better than 1955, but...) So this could have been EASILY trimmed down from an hour to maybe 40 minutes. Just saying.
Well, I learned something. Frankie Goes to Hollywood is not a one-hit wonder. Two Tribes isn't bad, and it's certainly deeper than Relax, but it's not nearly as good. I didn't really get their third big single The Power of Love at first. But maybe I was just tuned into the upbeat tempo of the rest of the album. In retrospect, it's quite a beautiful song. I did like a few of the uptempo tracks - Wish the Lads Were Here, Black Night White Light. The title track is unnecessarily long but has some okay parts to it. Most of their remakes weren't great (War, Ferry) though I didn't mind Born to Run. It didn't sound like the rest of the album though - less synth/electronica and more new wave 80's rock. Not quite sure what makes this album so unique - maybe it was their messaging at the time. All in all, I didn't mind it. Almost 3.5 but not quite.
Curate's egg. But production's good.
Mixed bag of kinds of songs. Good listen though. Once again, surprised by how many of their songs I already knew whether thru covers etc.
Peak guilty pleasure music. Where do we even begin with this one? At times it sounds like what would be played during the initiation rites of a fraternity, and other times it's the soundtrack to an '80s coming of age film. It's incredibly cheesy, but sometimes it has its moments. Particularly those songs with longer instrumentals, which make you think that they should not be as good as they are. But then they start talking about orgasms, which completely takes you out of the moment. Once the album is done, you begrudgingly admit to yourself that okay, that was actually enjoyable to listen to at times - before quickly switching to another record so your friends don't see that you've been listening to something called Welcome to the Pleasuredome. Standout tracks were War, The Ballad of 32, and Black Night White Light.
Quite the average album. Has a couple of good songs in it, but overall not my taste
I actually have this album :) The album starts great, i still like it. It´s a bit like a concept album where all songs fit together. After two tribes it goes downhill and then goes out with a nice big bang. Overall it was nice to hear the album again.
A difficult to rate album. In some sense it is great. A perfect sound. A perfect production. A perfect album title. Four 5* singles. But certainly half the album consists of boring covers and pretty weak songs. Hence, I usually go for some of their 12"s and hardly ever listen to one of their two albums (their Liverpool album has its moments too but is quite a bit weaker even). It has the looks of a classic, and it could have been a classic if they had cut it down to 35-40 minutes.
Good! The title track or San Jose would be my favourite.
How does someone name an album after the worst song
pretty alright
Enjoyable enough
I was looking forward to this as the only songs I really knew from it were "Relax" and "Two Tribes" which are both pretty great. Unfortunately, most of the rest of the album is just bland new wave and uninspired covers. Nothing terrible but nothing really great either. The title song had some cool moments but was probably just a little too long. 3.5 stars
Particular, but it makes you feel all its hour long
Mid level album, interesting for a single listen, a few well done covers and a few interesting originals that are 80's staples. Favourite tracks WELCOME TO THE PLEASUREDOME, Relax, Two Tribes.
3.5 - This album along with "Songs from the Big Chair" by Tears For Fears, released within 4 months of each other, both typify a certain peak-80's aesthetic for me - massive synth-driven soundscapes, somewhat Carribean-inflected rhythms and brass fills, pretentious ambient interludes. Besides "Relax", which remains a "best-of" mainstay for the era, the rest of this record shows a comically cocaine-driven hubris. Why put out a 66-minute record with THREE covers? Admittedly, the vocals on "Born to Run" provide a more refined counterpoint to Springsteen's guttural bellows. But the other covers - "War" and "San Jose" - are quite inconsequential. And why SO MUCH filler - from samples of political speeches, to extended instrumentals that trail off into nowhere? Worth the single confused listen but never again!
Relax and war are classics. 3/5
It was alright. I hated how long the 13 MINUTE TRACK at the beginning of the album dragged on. I have heard the track War before, but I couldn't tell you where. It was a nice sound it jam out to while I was in he car. Not really that much that stood out overall. Favorite tracks were Track 3: Relax, Track 4: War, and Track 9: San Jose.
This shit is a straight up fever dream. The backing tracks are sick and great to listen to, but the admittedly obvious underlying tone is sex. Pretty much every song is about sex and will make you feel uncomfortable if you don't want to listen to sex. Also, the lyrics are just way too out there, and listening to them will make you feel like you're on some kinda drug. These factors combined make you feel like you're at a rave sweating your ass off on ecstasy. After about 20 minutes, though, it turns into a samba album, which is such a whiplash because it turns back into a 80s rave album after a few songs. Overall, it's a good album if you listen specifically for what you want and ignore the other weird ass parts. Favorite: Relax
Op het moment dat je een album als dit voorgeschoteld krijgt, ga je pas de wikipedia pagina's induiken. Blijkt dus dat ze eigenlijk alleen dit album hebben gemaakt. Een uurtje muziek. Waarvan ook nog een gedeelte uit covers en een ellenlange intro/outro bestaat. En toch herinneren we ons allemaal de sound, die voor een groot deel de 80s samenvat. Bombastische bassen, synths, vol galm, tikje aangezet allemaal, powerballads. Soms iets teveel van het goede (en passant verkrachten ze Bruce nog even), maar soms ook briljant (Two Tribes en toch ook the Power of Love). Gemiddeld genomen 3 vd 5 sterren.
This was a fun listen, full of grandiose excess and catchy rhythms. Some parts got a bit redundant, but overall I enjoyed it. 3 Hollywood stars out of 5 ⭐⭐⭐
I put this album on and when I came to, I was slap fighting with the Prime Minister of Malaysia. This album was way too long. Best track: Relax
Geen uitschieter in het genre. Gewoon album met 2 leuke covers op
Interesting album, even though it’s something I won’t be coming back to. This goes in so many different directions. The Only Star in Heaven is an example. It starts like an early chili peppers song but morphs into Bowie on the chorus. Points for uniqueness of sound (even though many of the songs themselves are covers.)
Wasn't sure what I was getting into with this one only knowing of this group as peak 80s synth pop. Was pleasantly surprised to find a long weird album that wasn't just drenched in shitty synths and reverb although plenty of that.
relax is the famous song from them the same vibe as non-stop erotic cabaret but more vocal focused 3.5
Still listening, a little backed up on music. But good so far!
this is fucking nuts i am having an emotional journey while doing list work
A couple of highlights, but the rest didn't particularly stand out to me.
If you've heard 80s synth pop group you heard them all
Went in prepared to hate it as a symbol of the excessive indulgences of the 80s, but I actually got into it. Drums thankfully have a real weight to them which is often a problem with synthy music. Way too long with a lot of fluff in the back half. The Springsteen cover was basically pointless except to remind me that I probably prefer that kind of music to this. The big bombastic style is brought down by weird deviations in sound (San Jose) and the skits. I can understand why someone would love this, but for me, its just pretty decent.
I tecalkef this being an ace 80s album, but beside the platinum 4 gigantic singles there are 4 fairly straight forward covers and some other low level 80s mild funky pop. Even Krisco Kisses for lots weaker than I remember. A little disappointing, but certainly made up for by the colossal hit singles, Born To Run, which is always welcome and a good stab at War, Jose and Ferry across the Mersey. A high three then.
I have to admit, this wasn't as bad as I was expecting. The hit song from this album, Relax appears everywhere and even to this day it's one of those annoying ear-worms still ringing in my head. It ruined the film, Body Double, which wasn't a great movie to begin with, but why did it take so much screen time? That being said, I didn't hate this album, but it reminds me too much (yet again) why synth-pop is near the bottom of my list for music genres in the 80's!
Pretty decent album. I didn't love every track, but I was already familiar with "Relax" and "The Only Star In Heaven" was a fun listen.
Better than I expected it to be. Maybe a little too experimental at times, but nothing ever really turned me off
Hits and misses
Pop con sintetizadores. Unas cuantas versiones. Un megahit. Ni fu ni fa.
Some pretty good stuff and some pretty crappy stuff. I was gonna go 7/10 and then I listened to the 2nd half of the album. 6/10
Surprisingly enjoyable
very recognizable 80s synth album, has a few hits and the rest is alright
Spacey 80s pop Miami vice type vibe. Not as gay as I thought it would be lots of anti war stuff and singer could be a backup viagra boy
first listen interesting, weird, sexual, and a bit too long
Best Song: Relax. It feels like the distillation of all the best parts of the rest of the album in a single, normal-length track. Silly, almost like video game music. And something about the way he cries out "hit me with those laser beams" just gets to me. Worst Song: San Jose. Silly little smooth jazz number that feels at odds with the rest of the album. Overall: Such a weird album. The tone is all over the place, and there are random, just alright covers interspersed throughout? Some individual songs are okay, but the whiplash from all the tonal changes means you can't really just throw the album on in the background and enjoy. Also, as in the song "The Ballad of 32", I think I'm done with artists putting moaning and other sexual vocalizations into a song as if that instantly makes the song edgy and sexy. It doesn't. It makes it awkward.
Really good Brit pop sounds
Krisco Kisses? Nasty. Music's not that bad, though.
Had it's time and place but it has passed for me.
There were a few songs on this album that were a little catchy, but most of them were just so-so.
The hype to quality ratio is still too high but there’s much more to this than one remembered. The record is pretty fun and listenable, with some thoughtful songs that cool things out. Still, this is much a better record than one would have suspected. The covers are mostly dumb but the record isn’t nearly as naughty or silly as one might have suspected. The hype was of unsuitable “The-Beatles-Are-Coming!” pitch and the one mega hit plus one big one (“Two Tribes”) seeming like maybe it could last, which of course it didn’t any more than a minute.
Plenty of fun 80s synthy tracks, but it goes on a bit too long with a good chunk of filler. Favourites: "Welcome To The Pleasuredome", "Relax", "The Power Of Love"
Better than expected. Thought it would be political from a gay rights point of view but it had more expansive political themes. Might have been better off if a few tracks were culled. Overall, we liked it more than we expected to. Hilarious name also. Shannah - 2.5 Conor - 3 Bill - 3.5 (3/5)
This is a pretty remarkable debut album, not because I necessarily think it's so great, but because the structure of the thing is so nutso. Here we have a debut album, a double album mind you, the first side of which contains a short intro and a 13+ minute rambling odyssey of a title song. It turns out "Pleasuredome" really is one of the best songs on the album, so I get it. The album as a whole though is kind of all over the place. I have to wonder what the thinking was behind all of it. It's like they knew they wanted to do the whole "Pleasuredome" thing and they had just a handful of singles and other ideas they wanted to use, which necessitated a whole 2nd disk that was mostly made of filler. It's very odd and I find the gleeful lack of flow or coherent musical point of view more than a little annoying. I’m annoyed because this has all the pieces of a great album, and they don’t quite get there. This is such a weird mix of the clubby, the political, the mildly obscene and the musically grandiose, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. Chris Barrie's little monologues pinpoint a moment in time, but ultimately are just weird. The covers are pretty random and generally not great. That said, the beats and the bass lines are solid fun. When this album hits the right notes, it's terrific. I will add that I give Frankie credit for being incredibly brave in 1984. I still can't believe they made an album like this and it wasn't just a niche recording. It was a massive hit record. Fave Songs: The Power of Love, Relax, Welcome to the Pleasuredome, The Only Star in Heaven, Bang, Black Night White Light
Always knew they were controversial from Relax; coulnt remember why so Im glad to listen to the whole album now. Great sound with the bass and synths. Reminds me of U2 a little bit. Enjoyed some of the tracks but a lot of them sound quite similar and I was glad to finish the album.
Relax, don’t do it! Whoever has made this list is really into this British synth pop stuff from the early 80s. I got to say not my favorite genre
Not bad just not for me.
A new disco classic
5 for the album name, 2 for the music, so... 3 overall.
Swiat dlugi i szeroki, tyle muzyki, a lista potrafi zarzucic kolejnym wyspiarskim krazkiem, zeby bylo smieszniej z podobnego okresu, bo wydanym w 84, dopelniajac kwintesencji zartu znowu nowo falowe synthowe granie, ale tym razem jeszcze bardziej eksperymentalnie, co swietnie widac gdy wejdzie sie na ilosc odtworzen poszczegolnych kawalkow na spotifaju, wuec Welcome To The Pleasuredome jest epicka przygoda w brzmienie swiata synthu, debiutancki material grupy Frankie Goes to Hollywood pochodzacej z liverpoolu, z tego co widze sporo tam szuflowania bylo pomimo tego ze zespol gral ledwie 7 lat nie liczac kombeka w latach 2k, ale ten album nagrywany byl piecioosobowym skladem z czego dwoch panow wspieralo jedynie wokalnie zespol, co ciekawsze nie ma wsrod glownego skladu zadnego klawiszowca, a przeciez synthy maja byc grane, no i sa ale w dosc nietypowy sposob, bo sporo brzmienia pochodzi od muzykow sesyjnych w sklad ktorych wchodzi nawet producent plyty pan Trevor Horn, ktory moze byc jedna z wazniejszych postaci tego krazka, bo moze sie komus nie podobac elektronika, liryka, czy wokale, ale calosc brzmi po prostu dobrze i to nie w ten sposob dobrze, ze latwy odsluch i ciach come come chameleonie, ale na 64 minutach i czterech stronach zespol pokazuje cztery rozne sposoby jak mozna grac nowa fale, przez openingowa strone ktorej wieksza czesc zajmuje epicka ballada tytulowa, przez bardziej popowe i energetyczne brzmienie z realx, ktory jest wlasnie tym utworem ktory gdzies mogl mi sie obic o uszy w radio wczesniej, czy two tribes, nastepnie strona coverow, ktora przechodzi w zamykajaca strone z wolniejsza elektronika czesto podana prawie calokowicie instrumentalnie lub z giberyszowmi wokalami, faktycznie jak teraz bardziej sie rozczytalem na temat tej plyty, to doszlo tutaj mozna powiedziec do wrogiego przejecia, gdzie pan Horn objal dowodzenie nad kierunkiem muzycznym w jakim podazyl album, co zaowocowalo tak szerokim wykorzystaniem sesyjnych muzykow, wiec frankie idzie do holiwudow, ale to pan horn ja prowadzi, tak czy inaczej sluchalo sie tego ciekawie, bo odsluch to prawdziwy rolercoster brzmieniowy, a nowym gatunkiem ktory dzisiaj wchodzi w sklad najprzedziwniejszych okreslen muzycznych bedzie oipisujacy te plyte Hi-NRG, jak sama nazwa wskazuje chodzi tutaj o druga strone przepakowana zwawszymi kawalkami, na plejke dodam wspomniany 13 minutowy tytulowy epik i kasowy przeboj grupy, czyli relax, nietypowa plyta sama ciekawie sie slucha, ale jej czlonkowie sie w niej chowaja, a moze raczej sa ukrywami przez poteznego pana Horna
Surprisingly nett. Ólíkt að hún fari í mjög reglulega spilun, en ég mun hlusta aftur.
Pop con sintetizadores. Unas cuantas versiones. Un megahit. Ni fu ni fa.
Son los de Relax y The Power Of Love. Normales.
One mega hit, three average covers and some so-so filler. I liked the bass intro to “War”.
good new wave album, Relax is an incredible track. Album was kinda too long so it gets 3 stars instead of 3,5
fine
Liked this more than I expected to. I was ready to turn it off after the title track, but it grew on me after that. 2.5/5
Nice to hear a whole album
Singles and title track are excellent but the rest of the album brings this down to a 3.
Britisk poprock, teatralsk, stort lydunivers, dyster lyrik, svingende
I was a little disappointed with how much this sags in the middle, the covers don’t work for me
65 Welcome to the Pleasuredome - Frankie Goes to Holywood 16 tracks. You just think this will be their 2 big hits and then you remember the 3rd one and then the 4th and actually it's decent. It is however really dated & hasn't stood the test of time. 3/5
3rd November 2021 Actually listened on the 4th, I was in the office yesterday with loads to do and then we went to watch Neil's environment play. Podcasts etc catching up! I really liked half of this (including a lovely, punky version of born to run!) but felt a bit long. Good though.
Ik hoorde simple minds en allerlei covers. Best goed.
Юмор. странно
Well this is a weird album. Dance music...politically themed...bizarre covers of Springsteen and Dionne Warwick classics. One big time hit. Too long and indulgent to rate more than 3 🌟
i can see how this might've been good in 1984 but i found it pretty corny and just not that interesting. 5/10
Hmm. Started really strong and then really dropped off. 6
5/10. Not bad, but not good. Welcome to the Pleasuredome itself was fun, a lot of stuff was okay, the Born to Run cover just felt like a worse version of the original, and I really don't understand why The Ballad of 32 needed to have sex noises in the background, like do some people enjoy that in their music? Because I just don't get it. Enjoyed San Jose and The Power of Love. Also rather long.
It’s so damn 80s. 5/10
I was not expecting this one. When I read the "synth-pop" style on the Wikipedia page I imagined something so different than what I got. It's not anything genial or like but it's like some good parts of that "New Order"'s style that are enough good for an album and a good discover.
Tecno pop
Estamos ante una banda de singles. No está mal, pero el cover ese a Bruce Springsteen qué pedo, jajaja.
Pretty good 80s synth pop with a few exploratory tracks, also a few well kno-I MUST KILL THE PRIME MINISTER OF MALAYSIAAAAAAAA
This album is has a cool sound, and the openness through which it deals with gay male sexuality in the brutality of the 1980s is interesting from a historical standpoint. However, there is no reason for this album to be a double album and contain this many covers. They did some fun things with the covers, but it feels like a waste to make this album so long and include so little original material (especially since Relax was already a huge single prior to the release of this album) 3/5
Jee jee, pimpeli pom, geneeristä kasaria, haistakaa vittu 2/5 aa täs on relax, se on iha 4/5, mut muuten 3/5
Meh
I knew "Relax" was the second real track. What I didn't know was that the title track was over 13 minutes. They kept teasing me. Everytime I thought "Relax" was going to pop up, the title track wasn't done it, and it kept sounding like they were going to transition at any second. The main highlight is "Relax", but there are some decent covers here. Some tracks like "San Jose" or the guitar solo in "The Ballad of 32" stand up as an entirely different genre to keep the experience fresh. There's humor thrown in between the tracks. That being said, the main appeal to a lot of tracks is the production synth which gives it a distinct 80s identity, but I felt a bit underwhelmed. I honestly can't see how "The Power of Love" topped the UK charts. But then again, so did The Lady in Red around the same year so maybe people were losing good taste... Anyway I wish the album ended with something more hi-nrg.
From when albums were stories front to back still. 80s groovy trippy cinema? Was running when Born to Run cover came on so that was cool. Probably won’t listen again. The 13 minute song was a bit much.
3/5
2nd track is a long journey. seems they are copying some of their songs from other people? 3/5 album. 40% of the album was good.
Interesting album. High production value with some good covers.
I really liked some songs, but overall the album seemed a needlessly too long.
In conclusione: Sono partito un po' prevenuto perché comunque mi aspettavo una cosa molto kitsch. Da una parte lo è ma l'evidente autoironia mi ha fatto stare simpatici la maggior parte dei pezzi. Diciamo che il rapporto quantità di riferimenti al sesso omoerotico/canzone è chiaramente molto alto ma l'ho trovato molto meno irritante di notorious big perché appunto fatto con uno spirito giocoso e anche un po' sixties make love not war. L'album è lunghetto ma non mi è pesato troppo perché devo dire che i pezzi sono molto vari e li ho trovati molto ben arrangiati, a tratti certi pezzi avevano un po' dei vibe Toto. Anche la produzione nonostante l'influenza ottantina che comunque è forte l'ho trovata non troppo fastidiosa. Non è un album che risentirei probabilmente e non credo di essere il target, però secondo me è un album migliore di come si presenta.
Musicalmente ci sono delle parti interessanti e alcuni brani sono divertenti ma altri sono veramente brutti, anche a causa del sound. Per me sarebbe un 2,5 ma do un 3 per la simpatia.
Definitive 80's glam - huge production, great bass lines and tone, FM synth goodness everywhere. First half of the album is absolutely incredible, but the back half of the album loses steam. Favorite Song: Relax
Funky as hell!
I was a teen in the 80s and this album, especially the song 'Relax,' are about as much an integral part of the 80s soundtrack as I can remember. At the time, I was mostly a hard-rock devotee but I do remember enjoying this music, synth-heavy as it can be. It's catchy, fun, and even interesting at times. I had forgotten it was also political at points, which adds something to it, as did some of the controversy they stirred up; e.g., unabashedly gay, which was still somewhat rare in the 80s, and doing covers of songs that ticked off some people, which I think is healthy in many ways. Good stuff.
Nice 80s vibes idk
eh, it's okay I guess. All the sex sounds are pretty cringe
Actually pretty fun, some good tracks: relax is a classic. Some of the lyrics are a bit much, but I suppose the album title warns of that
all right; kind of medium New Wave sound. probably a 3. Pretty decent! Quite a few covers, but I like their versions!
Apologies for the hiatus. I'm back in business! This was a strange one for me to review. I remember having Frank Goes to Hollywood on vinyl but the cover of this one wasn't at all familiar and I can't imagine buying any records after this one. It turns out I had an EP (is that an anachronism or did EPs tag along with the vinyl resurgence?) The EP had four tracks and all four were cover versions. Just kidding - only cover was WAR. On the vinyl EP, the artwork that surrounds the spindle hole had a head shot of Ronald Regan and the spindle hole went right through his forehead. Execution style! The EP was the right amount of Franky. I really don't get why they felt it necessary to make a double album. The title track is over 13 minutes and is nothing other than a far too long introduction to the next song, Relax. It's like having half a dozen burgers as an appetizer before a dover sole main course. I also think there are a few too many cover versions on this bad boy. This led me to think about when cover versions are OK and not OK. Allow me to get distracted; think of it as giving my ADHD some love. Johnny's musings on cover versions: 1. In the 60s multiple cover versions were done frequently so covers were OK then. No limits. 2. Cover versions are also OK when it's jazz because, well, they don't call them covers - they're standards. (I never bought into to that "rose is a rose . . ." nonsense.) 3. A cover is good when it uses a completely different genre than the original. I'm thinking of Syd Vicious' version of My Way. Ditto for Paul Anka's cover of Smells Like Teen Spirit. It does exist! If you haven't you should give it a listen. It's particularly funny given what Syd did to Paul's song. Perhaps Paul groups grunge and punk in the same tent so was satisfied with this touché. 4. You can cover a song that isn't a hit or top of mind. I'm thinking Nina Simone's and later Bowie's covers of WIld is the Wind and Jason & the Scorchers cover of Absolutely Sweet Marie although Jason also meets Rule 3. 5. One cover version per album is also allowed cause wtf let's not be too rule orientated - he says on Rule #5 of 9 lol 6. No limit on covers on live albums. It might be the only chance to hear them. 7. I would give a 5 star rating to John Lennon's Rock and Roll album from the mid seventies which was entirely covers. But this album is exempt since its cover versions were the music that influenced the most influential musician in our lifetime. (Wow that's a fucking statement and a half! But I still don't like Fame.) 8. Other than that, fuck off with the cover versions! 9. I reserve the right to exempt other cover versions I like. I'll say the cover of War is OK. The song itself isn't played particularly well but the Reagan voices make it OK. (Rule 9) But why would they cover Springsteen? Born to Run was a smash hit less than a decade earlier. What exactly did they do with the song that made them think: "Yeah Baby, let's slap that brother on our first album"? Ditto for Fury, San Jose and Ferry. I was going to say ditto Power of Love but this a an original! I was sure it was a cover. Now I need to find whose version of the song I like. I really liked the hits (Relax, Two Tribes) when the dance floors found them back in the day so I can't rate this too low but there are some seriously low points.
Weird, mad, powerful, bombastic and epic. Some very interesting covers too.
Pionero. Pop-dance sin estridencias
Gotta admit that Relax is a pretty iconic 80s dance tune that I played about a kazillion times back in the day. Also Despite the goofy narration over War, the bass line has chops and there are some good covers of Born to run and San Jose. But overall this is like watching the original Lethal Weapon or Diehard movies, it’s pretty dated and doesn’t hold up well today
The was the last ‘double’ album on vinyl that I bought. Like most double albums it would have been terrific if they combined the 10 best tracks onto one album. The remaining 10 tracks were a bit self indulgent. 😄 Love the Born to Run cover, completely random.
Classic 80's type music. "relax" by far the most popular song on the album and didn't know it was by them - thought it was Duran Duran. Lots of electronica and a few covers. 6/10.
Nicely structured album with interesting songs, but I can't get over the strongly 80s sound. 5/10, cool that they had an impostor band for 2 years
Eh, it's alright. Too slow of rock for my liking, but it wasn't bad.
Bien aime, j’ai reconnu plusieurs tounes classique. Ca m’a surprit. 3.75 tres eclate
Relax is pretty much the only reason this is on here I thought
There were a couple standout tracks, however it was very average overall.
I thought the album was interesting, but "Relax" was the only song that I could see myself wanting to listen to again.
some surprising covers, not terrible
Enjoyed more than I expected. Surprised by the cover of Born to Run. Strangely hearing shades of Pink Floyd in the ballad of 32.
Weird covers. Lots of fun.
Really a very weird album from a pretty weird band. The wild misinterpretation of the breakout hit is funnier in the context of the whole thing.
I had high exceptions. But, outside of a couple of memorable hits, was not thrilled, especially the lame covers.
Pretty fun and interesting. Big, epic sounds.
Did not listen all the way but still a classic typical album
Bit self indulgent at 1 hour long. Seemed to run out of ideas and resort to odd cover versions in the second half
Started off funky then once we got to the Bruce cover downhill from there
Sometimes enjoyable, sometimes tedious.
Spotify. Ok listen. Fave song “Relax” is a classic but also enjoyed the “Born to Run” cover
That 80’s ass bass, fun, and the Pleasuredome track was my favorite. Also never knew the band behind Relax
Synthy
I am not the greatest fan of this but Relax is an all time great
A lot of this album is just fine covers. I didn't enjoy the originals much either.
ziemlich „synthi“. 80er pur. zuviele schlechte cover füllen das album.
What is it good for? Absolutely nothing! Skämt åsido, gravt ointressant förutom två låtar.
Var så himla taggad ca 20 minuter in, men sen blev det magplask.
It was really nothing. A fine cover of an already iffy song. I don't want anymore of this type of music.
This was not an album. Like Jacob said, list slop. Getting such fatigue for things in my life and this album just adds tremendously to the mound of nothingness. No more synthy British pop rock. I can’t even give this a one because I didn’t listen to it in full
Listslop not worth revisiting
Not a fan. Not for me and it felt like it aged poorly. Most of the album sounded the same to me
What a strange album. I was expecting lots of sordid songs about kinky sex. There's a bit of that, but lots of slightly average covers.
meh, dacht een paar leuke nummers te krijgen met kende er maar 1. en die was medium
Only one song worthwhile
2.5
Meh. This is just an album of cheesy 80s synthpop. "Relax" and "Two Tribes" are okay, but the rest is pretty forgettable, save an unexpected cover of "Born to Run". 2.5 stars.
1.6/5 Some ok songs but the ones I liked the most were covers so I'm taking points off for that.
Man, this was way, way worse than I thought it would be. Relax and Two Tribes are the only remotely tolerable songs - the rest is icky '80's gush. Seemed like something was off with the production too - alternatively too loud and too quiet (though that may be an Apple Music thing, to be fair). And I'm not sure whose idea it was to put the 13 minute death march as the first real song of the album. Two stars for Relax and Two Tribes, but barely.
Oula les 30 premières secondes sont intenses et ne font pas de sens quand on vient de se réveiller à 6:30. J’ai l’impression que ce sont des reprises avec des sonorités country . Après l’album à la même vibe que la pochette de l’album : coloré , fouillis , pas trop chercher de sens, juste c est une vibe. Je mettrai ça comme musique de fond dans un restaurant fusion un peu expérimental
A little lengthy! I need to read why this makes it.