1986 brought us Topgun, Maradona's hand of God and Infected by The The. What clusterfuck of a year it was. I can't think of anything good associated with it. I was in a new romantic phase, getting into Eastenders and trying to avoid getting AIDS (unsuccessfully). Bad memories.
Really good. Great mix of funk, new wave/post punk with great Thatcher era lyrics. The use of horns within this post punk format gives the music a more optimistic sounding feel as opposed to other British post punk artists despite the lyrics that reflect economic and global strife.
It's kinda not good, right? Like... almost good... but then not. The The has managed to fill up an entire album with the kind of pseudo-intellectual, half-aware, social semi-conscious lyrics that make so much of 80s music super cringey. It's not good, fellas. It's just not good.
-Way better than Public Image Ltd., The other album I've listened to that I know is post-punk -Promtped immediate re-listen -Lots of good jamming
This is pretty tedious. I imagine it must have found its way onto the list through the compiler's personal nostalgia. Someone forgot to tell this band they were just a below average 80s band. Utterly disposable.
1.9 - Ugly as an anal wart. That album cover perfectly represents the bile within. Ever wonder what it would sound like to take INXS but have it fronted by George Thorogood, and inflect it all with a heavy dose of Broadway jazz? Fuck I hated this.
Excellent. Diversity of instruments used also helps to keep tracks fresh and distinct.
fucking spooky dude. I loved this, everything I wanted, just hit all the right spots. really incredible production and powerful techno beats. pretty awesome x
This was an unexpected banger. Heard of The the, but had no idea what they sounded like. Really enjoyed it.
Never heard of the The! This guy seems to have had a really interesting life though. I did a bit of research because the lyrics really interested me and I think the messages in the songs in this album are very meaningful. I love the poetry and activism of this album. Aside from the words these tunes are lovely! This is a type of new wave and post-punk I can really get behind. The sounds are gorg and the tracks make me feel good. They're interesting, layered and inventive. I really like the fact that he just works with loads of different musicians, all the vocals are great but I just realised Neneh Cherry is on here and now I know why I love it haha. A great discovery for me!
An old favourite. Wild-eyed apocalyptic visions of an England falling to pieces and the corrupting souls that live there. Overwrought and as subtle as a brick to the back of the skull. But the rage gives the album urgency and verve. At the end, as Johnson goes full Hank Williams and challenges the devil to a knife fight, your heart is pumping as hard as his.
80s but somehow sounds modern as well. Songs and lyrics both well crafted. Great bass playing, really interesting musically.
I don’t recall ever hearing this group but I really enjoyed this! Sort of an edgier Simple Minds-ish 80s vibe going on that I really like. Homeland is a fantastic song. Others that stood out immediately were Infection, Angels of Deception, Sweet Bird of Truth, and The Mercy Beat. Great stuff!
One of my very favorite songs in college was "This is the Day" by the The (from their previous album), but I had not followed up to hear more of them, and that song went off my radar along with its mixtape. I totally would have loved this album. The more I have listened to it, the more I have liked it. Good sound, interesting lyrics. As this album came out with a video compilation for each song, I was intrigued and watched them all. Some crazy stuff! Love it.
2/23 Infectious energy. Disco Culture Club. Standout Tracks: Infected, Heartland, Angels Of Deception, Slow Train to Dawn
I like this a lot. Wish i had found it many years ago. i will investigate TheThe further.
An excellent album. Stand out tracks, homeland, sweet bird of truth and slow train to dawn. Loved it when first released and enjoyed reacquainting myself with it now
Infectious first track, into a stable album throughout. I really enjoyed it and will be listing to more of the the in future
Definitely grew on me, once I got past the vocals and clangy... everything. Heartland was a good one
Super! Genomgående stark upplevelse. Många sköna basgångar och riff, samt trummor som ofta ligger precis lagom hårt. Det här gillas! Bäst: "Infected"
Álbum solido de Art Pop con Synthpop. Este es quizás el segundo mejor álbum de la banda británica después de su debut, y aunque ninguno de los dos es totalmente de mi agrado, es innegable la personalidad que transmite ya sea desde su impecable producción como su excelente lirismo. Para mí un sólido 7/10
never heard of this, which is cool. I like this mostly quite a lot. Heartland is good.
Never listened to The The yet, as far as I know, but I love the band name. The album was really good too. Quite gripping, fairly varied instrumentation and quite a lot of depth in songwriting. My favorite tracks were Heartland and Slow Train To Dawn. Both of those were really dope.
Enjoyable. Doesn't have a song with a hook like "Uncertain Smile" off of the first album, though.
I was pleasantly surprised by this album. I had heard of The The back in the day, but never really gave them a listen. This album was slightly punky, slightly alt, and over-around good. 4 stars!
A pretty ineresting record. It's cover gives other vibe, but it's vibe is groovy and positive! 4/5
Wow I forgot about the the, very '80s but clearly very talented! an interesting listen but only "liked" one song for later listening. The man clearly had a lot of talent and energy.
Best Song: Infected. Bombastic and actually lyrically interesting. Worst Song: Heartland. Not terrible, but it really feels like the author is performing a monologue in an amateur theatre on this one. Overall: Liked it much more than I expected. Feels like what the B-52s want to be, but cooler and more true-to-self. Rare that I like 80s music like this.
Zanimljiv album, drugačiji nekako. Uspio dat malo spooky vibea, malo i romantike na neki drugi način. I na trenutke me podsjeća na Bowieja? Sve u svemu, lajkam.
Not familiar with this band or album, not sure what I was expecting but it wasn’t this and I liked it a lot more than I expected to as well. I needed to give the lyrics better attention than I did, missing a lot of the political commentary (though there is always that weird mirror-world familiar/not familiar to UK centric writing of that nature: “this is the 51st state of the U.S.A” hits differently to a Minnesota boy.
Levoton kansi, tykkään kyl! Samoin levyn sisältö oli yllättävän melodista ja aika nautittavaa. 4/5.
Good backstory around the album being made. Solid 80's synth pop. Nothing overly memorable.
Great post pink album no honest complaints I just don’t like post punk. I respect it though 🙃
5/2/2022 Today's Album: "Infected" by The The - Looking at this album from the name and cover, I really had no fucking clue what to expect, but as it opened up, it really blossomed in front of my eyes. This album is great fusion of two common genres of the 90s, being the synth-heavy new wave and the birthing post punk movement. Usually, this sort of thing really wouldn't be my thing as a lot of 80s projects like this have left a sour taste in my mouth for being generic and uninspired and post-punk has often been overdone by a lot of groups in my opinion with explicitly poor songwriting. However, this album does not take on any of those attributes as far as I can tell. The instrumental soundscapes all sound really lush and the vocalist really matches the aesthetic of the album well. There are songs where the vocalist experiments with strange and creepy vocals similar to many post-punk outfits, but it always feels really tasteful and like it's serving a story-telling purpose. Even if the vocals do end up feeling somewhat standard for a new wave outfit on a few tracks, it really doesn't matter because the ability for this band to just tear up a great tune outshines any clichés it may be exhibiting. Some of the solo's on this record are just straight up memorizing with how unique and innovative they are. A great example is the trumpet solo near the end of the opening track because of the incredibly articulated double tonguing technique the soloist uses to trill the last note. The recording of each instrument feels so clean and separated in the mix and the layered sound effects over top the band often builds up this great sound into this enamoring sonic experience. Maybe I'm just opening up to these stranger musical ideas more than I have in the past, but I really don't think that's the case. I really feel like this is some of the best execution of these kinds of sounds I've heard thus far. The new wave aspects of this album are able to spice things up and keep them interesting enough to take on the stranger post punk ideas and the post punk edge helps to stop these new wave songs from sounding too polished and clean. The flow feels great, the production feels great, and although the mix could probably use some tweaking, it's great as is. It's honestly just a great combination that I never would have thought would work but it does so so so well. Overall, this is both a great new wave album and a very listenable post-punk project and the fact that this band can pull together such solid tunes elevates these possible generic tracks to insane heights. Give this one a listen if you like 80's new-wave or some very clean post-punk and I promise you won't be disappointed either way. Highlights: Infected, Out Of The Blue, Heartland, Angels Of Deception, Slow Train To Dawn, Twilight Of A Champion, Score: 7.5/10 Inventive new-wave post-punk
A dense forty minutes of post-punk will always be welcome. This has touches of synth brightness at the moment that I felt were rather weak, but the album as a whole was certainly a grower. The nihilism of certain cuts was sadly fitting for the day: That's probably informing my opinion somewhat, but I can tell a revisit won't be unhappy.
The guy's clearly got some things to say, and I support him, but he chose to express himself using 80s post-punk, so my support only goes so far
I still like Soul Mining the best, but I do like this one better than that third one or Dusk.
Not what I was expecting by the album title and band name! But this is run of the mill 80s.
Do appreciate that there is nary a mention of love, etc. Feel a kinship with the attitude but not necessarily the delivery (especially with the vocals and some of the lyrics). The sound of the production is very of it's time. My favorite part of the album was the ending.
Kind of goofy, moments of glory. I didn't love it but I sensed a depth to what felt like an art project.
It was good. I didn’t know The The apart from This is the Day. Fun, but very specific to the mid 80s.
i really like the the. soul mining is an amazing album... this one is good, but there's just not enough on it to push it into the 4 category. a very strong 3.
Found myself toe tapping to most of the beats but then the vocals ruined it. The sax in track 6 was nice
Again, not quite my thing - I want more angst on the surface, more darkness in the tone. Fave track - "Sweet Bird of Truth" Pretty bleak, lyrically, and as relevant as ever...
I liked it in the first half but then it sort of lost its identity in the second half. Not too memorable overall.
First impressions: Midnight Oil sound meets Billy Corgan vocals in some sort of win-win for the scalp wax industry. I didn’t mind it, felt like I was hitched ten feet in the air
Un tanto desconocido para mí. Sonido ochentero. Mucho sintetizador. Igual en su momento tuvo algún sentido
Highlights: Heartland, Sweet Bird Of Truth, The Mercy Beat Lowlights: Twilight Of A Champion More reserved than 1983's Soul Mining, yet with more social commentary. Heartland opens with a machine-like manner, with a few plinks of a piano as if to say "deal with it", transitioning into a stark criticism of rampant late-stage capitalism. Twilight Of A Champion contains a weird mishmash of 80's sounds, it's discordant and hard to listen to...Almost feels like 80's Skinny Puppy, but not good. The Mercy Beat is a wild ride, dark and brooding, working its way into a bright pop experience, fades out and introduces you to an unsettling segue to close out the set list. This isn't my favorite, but there are some tracks worth keeping around.
I liked this one quite a bit! Was expecting some heavy metal from the name, but it was chill and fun. Just short of 4 stars
5th July 2021 Listened on my phone while doing a busy day's work before going to the circus! Pleasantly surprised me, electro funk with a punk singer.
I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. Great music. I would give 3.5/5 if possible.
Meh. Not really for me. Didn’t hate it, just didn’t make a strong impression. Liked the use of non standard instruments (piano/orchestral)
Some occasionally cool riffs, but simultaneously too static and boring. Not a huge fan of the attitude on this album. Sounds somewhat cocky and pretendish
Yet more"post-punk" on the list. Started off sounding proto-industrial, maybe like early NIN, but pretty soon dropped into the key-tars and backup vocals that plant the sound firmly in the 80's.
Some nice tunes. I really enjoyed the bass on this one. "Heartland", "Infected" and "Out of the Blue" stood out.
Very quirky rock album. Based on the cover and title, I was bracing for some filthy punk or metal but instead it's much lighter and quite melodic. Some pretty unusual melodies too, which were unique at the very least. I enjoyed a few songs, and I especially enjoyed the tonal synth-y outro of the closer. Nothing crazy, but I liked this. Favorite tracks: Out of the Blue, Angels of Deception, Infected. Album art: Absolutely disgusting. Proper nonced image. Really cool art though, effectively infected. This prick really should've gotten the vaccine. 3.5/5
This album was as weird and whacky as the title, artist, and album cover suggest, and I mean that in a good way. Nothing memorable about it other than feeling like it was more pop rock, almost like Duran Duran meets Flock of Seagulls. Great music to listen to while working!
Off the bat It's not as bad as I thought it would be because I thought it would somewhat resemble what I heard in my previous album; Wild Gift by X. But the first track would come to kill my expectations, as it was quite an enjoyable track; A catchy 80s hit, which is just my style. The middle got kind of stiff at some point, and couldn't really hold my attention for very long. A 4 for the title track, but the rest of the album didn't slap too hard. 3/5 Though I did discover the the's newest album "dusk" and that. Is. Amazing.
This album tackles a broad spectrum of subjects and does it in really unique textures. For example, criticism of the US military in "Sweet Bird of Truth" is given a funky backbeat with sharp spoken-word tones. Self-reflection on what it means to be successful, infidelity and insecurity in a relationship, and the political power of Britain amongst the rest of Europe are just a few of the other topics covered in this album. While the lyrics and themes can be heavy, the music is fun and well made. Favorite Song: Heartland Least Favorite: Angel of Deception
Low hopes for a pop-punk album called "Infected" but was surprisingly okay with it. Not sure if that was just me setting the bar too low
I was somewhat familiar with The The, but didn't know this album. It sounds okay, but as with the other albums I am struggling to really enjoy it.
An interesting album. Pretty unique new wave feel. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it either. Shame I can't rate half stars or it would probably get a 3.5.
Kolejny The Thechowy albumik na liscie, wiec znowu prawie solowy material pana Johnsona, bo ta nazwa bandy ma chyba tylko stanowic afisz dla jego tworczosci, nie moglem sie doszukac ludzi bioracych udzial w nagraniu na wiki czy discogu, wiec rotacyjni muzycy sesyjni i jakies zorganizowane grupy smyczkowe, ktorych troche slychac na nagraniu musialy byc zaprzegniete do pracy, wiec jak w soul miningu, zmiana jest natomiast pojawienie sie zenskich wokalow na kilku trakach, jakos specjalnie nie grzeja czy chlodza, zreszta jak cala plyta w porownaniu do poprzedniego krazka brzmi podobnie, ale brak jej jakiegos unikalnego charakteru, moze przez to ze lirycznie skupia sie bardziej na tematach mocno brytyjskich, czy hamerykanskich, w kontekscie plyty sa to pojecia czesto wymienne, nie zabraknie takze odniesien do biedy na swiecie, bo Johnson jako prawdziwy wyspiarz nie moze zniesc tego w jak tragicznym stanie znajduje sie jego ojczyzna w latach 80, bo plyta z 86, ojczyzna obejmuje takze kraje trzeciego swiata, ale jak to w lirykach tego specyficznego pana nie zabraknie takze szukania samego siebie czy wielkich i pieknych uczuc, ciekawy jest fakt, ze kazdy kawalek z tego krazka ma swoj teledysk, nie wiem czy to mial byc jakis koncept na wypromowanie do mainstreamu i za wielka wode, ale wideoski sa, wiec tego pana ktory nawet koncertow nie grywal po wypuszczeniu soul miningu do czasu infected mozna ogladac przez 40 minut trwania albumu, jesli liryki subtelnie nawiazuja do krajow trzeciego swiata, to mniej subtelne nawiazania sa zawarte w teledyskach, bo wydaje mi sie, ze polowa byla nagrywana w ameryce poludniowej, a nawet w dolinie amazonki, plyta ma swoje momenty, ale nie porywa juz w takim stopniu jak soul mining, jednym z tych momentow bedzie openingowy trak tytulowy i funkowe drumowe intro, jest to kawalek najbardziej przypominajacy brzmienie soul mingowe, bo jest wrecz synthowo dencingowy, a jednak z lirykami w ktorych mozna znalezc cos dla siebie, kolejnym hajlajtem bedzie heartland, kawalek calkiem inny, tematycznie wyspiarski, ale jednak ciekawie wykorzystuje sporo instrumentow, ktorych nie mozna uslyszec juz na innych trakach, bo recyklingu jak u blura raczej nie da sie tu doswiadczyc, wiec epickie polaczenie orkiestry smyczkowej z harmonijka i pianinem brzmi rewelacyjnie, na plejke leca dwa wspomniane kawalki, a The The leci do odchaczenia z listy do przesluchania, chociaz nie zdziwilbym sie gdyby jeszcze jakis albumik Johnsona sie pojawil na liscie, o ile kolejne albumy nie zmierzaja jeszcze bardziej w brzmienie alternatywy, bo to przejscie z synthu tanecznego do bardziej rokowych kompozycji jest odczuwalny
Iznenađujuče puno instrumenata šta je jedino šta me zaintrigiralo. Inače pisme reflektiraju naslovnicu albuma haha. Iako ne bi nastavila nakon prve pisme da se nisan uključila u ovaj challenge :), svejedno mi je drago da san do kraja. Dobro zvuče na slušalicama em šta su dosta glasni em šta su dobro iskombinirali s koje strane dolaze koji zvukovi. Ovo mi se pari malo kompleksnija muzika od ostale koje slušan iz tog razdoblja. Malčice mračno po mom ukusu pa ocjena niže i zbog toga, al valjda je tako s punkom
ne znan zasto san ocekivala da mi se nece svidit, al zapravo uopce nije lose. Neke pisme su mi malo depresivnije nego sta inace slusan pa evo 3/5
Toimii. Mukavan persoonallista, vaikka soundi on vähän kliseistä kasaria. Tasaisen varmaa alusta loppuun ja siitä propsit. Ei kuitenkaan mitään eeppisiä kohtia, että ansaitsis enempää kuin 3/5.
Infected oli kyllä kunnon bängeri. Muuten ihan jepa kasari-art-rock meininkejä, mutta ei ehkä ihan yllä neloseen. Vahva 3/5.
Ei paha! Kasarilt kyl löytyy näitä joka genree yhdistelevii hullutuksii, mut tää pysyy ihan kivasti post-punkissa, kuitenkaan olematta tylsä. Toimii. 3/5
I had heard a few of The The's songs during my college years in the late 80s, including a few tracks off this album, and I remember liking them. I hadn't really heard their music since then, and listening to this album all the way through, I can say I still enjoy the music. The production feels a little too stuck in time in some ways -- very mid-to-late 80s styling going on here -- but that's quite typical of most albums; it's truly rare to find one that doesn't seem particularly bound to a time. The songs are really well put together. They run super-tight, and in this context that's a compliment. I like Matt Johnson's voice, and he's a strong lyricist. It doesn't always work for every songwriter because it can quickly become a bit heavy-handed, but in this instance I like the way he includes his political and societal commentary in his writing. Real nice sense of melody - definitely catches my ear and draws me in. By the end, Matt Johnson's voice and the overall sound of the album had started grow a little tiresome to my ears, but it's a good album.
I much preferred this to 'Soul Mining'. It has a lot more 'oomph' and is a lot more varied in style. The political and angry lyrics are interesting and engaging. Good album. 3.5/5.
When I was entering my teenage years, the cool older kids were all wearing The The T-shirts. It's a band that had peaked by the time I was wearing Band T-shirts myself and everyone's focus (myself included) had moved on. Listening now, I enjoyed the album- it was a totally different sound to what I was expecting. Fuller and richer. Not sure it's enough for me to dig out other albums, but I enjoyed my time with Infected
have to say I found this a bit weird. What expecting to like it but it didn't really resonate with me. Very weird lyrics about women in there... I did enjoy the over the top synths and laying that is so classically 80s. I have enjoyed other The The song in the past, but not sure there were any hard hitters in here
Might have been way into this in the 80s. Sounds like a precursor to Spiritualized... white boy soul with rockist tendencies.
Not really my jam. I appreciate the complexity and originality of the writing and lyrics. But the sound doesn't really turn my crank.
franchement je sais pas si c’est le printemps la meilleure saison de l’année qui me fait ca mais j’ai presque envie de mettre 4
I've heard of The The but never listened. They're more interesting lyrically than musically. I think I would've liked them a lot in college but today I am underwhelmed.
I recall hearing the band name The The, but I really didn’t know what to expect. As the first track started, I thought that it sounded like some solid 80s rock and that it would be a fun album. But then, I lost my enthusiasm and it started to all sound just kind of “meh” to me.
Vähän meni ohi tämäkin, kun ei oikeen kiinnostanu toi kasarisoundi just sillä hetkellä. Tuskinpa kuitenkaan useemmallakaan kuuntelukerralla tulis mun teekupillinen
It's been 3 days and I already forgot what this album was all about. Nothing special, but not horribly bad either.
Except for the title track, which does have replay value/potential, there's nothing much left here to truly grab my attention.
Matt Johnson's take on social issues is commendable... and I really like The The. But unfortunately, I probably won't listen to this more than once a year.
This hit me like a blunderbuss to the face. I was expecting something entirely different. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Large parts of it were like the Monster Mash.
Production: 7/20 Songwriting: 9/20 Innovation: 11/20 Bangers: 5/20 Emotional response: 5/20 =37 Bloody racket
It's a pretty average 80's album with nothing particularly good. I think the famous 'infected' track it's actually the worst one.
Meiner Meinung nach gehört es vielleicht zu den 10 000 Alben die man gehört haben muss
I'll probably never listen to this album again because it's not really my genre, but it wasn't terrible.
This album wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. I can't see myself revisiting any of these songs. 2/5 stars.
There are some inspired bits of song-writing here, but the production is so 80s it hurts. The only way it could be more 1986 is if it wore a fluorescent headband.
I know some people will love this album for this, but is just way too unnecessarily dramatic. And what is with the seductive vampire sound to this guy’s voice. Almost unlistenable. It’s a shame too because I really wanted to like this one for the album artwork alone.
Heard this album a couple times. Not really famiiar with it at all though. I love MIND BOMB and I wanted more like it, but this was different. For me, I like it. Love the singers voice. Can't wait to hear more of it. 2/5
You know, I owned this album when it came out. I actually owned three of their albums, but I never really connected with The The except for couple of songs. I thought maybe 35 odd years later, I might feel it a little more, but nope. Infected is still a noisy hodgepodge of an album. It’s still brassy and weird (which I usually would like), but also kind of bleak and soulless, like it was built in an 80s music lab without adding any of the fun stuff. Musically and lyrically it’s tense, like it stresses me out to listen to it. Credit to Matt Johnson for beating his own drum, I mean that sincerely. It’s just not a drum I care to listen to. I guess I’ll check back in 2056 and see how I feel about it then. Fave Songs: Infected, Heartland, Slow Train to Dawn
When I popped this open I judged this book by it's cover, I looked at the album art, the name of the band, and the album title, and I thought to myself ok we have a Punk Album this will be fun. Well, now that the album is playing this is terrible. New Wave, singing about desire, the male vocalist even though I can't see him I can picture the eye shadow. The tone is all over the place, you have some Industrial metallic drums, sometimes there's darkness in the lyrics and then you get a nice little piano trill to follow. There's hints of something good in here but I was really put off by how poorly the entire brand of this album and band did not represent what was inside.
Okejiš nisam se nešto uživila, možda je i do načina na koji sam ih slušala a to je dok sam vježbala
First listen: started well but dropped off a bit. Started at 3/5, finished at 2/5, may give it another listen or two to see how it changes over time. Like: general vibe, being anti-Tory Dislike: a bit samey towards the end
I like the band name more than I do this album. I'm kind of on the fence with this one. Feeling too lazy to go into detail...
I wasn't a fan of the The when they started, I'm still not. I do get the reason they're on the list though.
80s experimental synth-political-pop . Title track rocks ; Heartlands and Angels of Deception are solid efforts . A little impenetrable so may need a number of listens to grow on you .
80's sneering. The cover is more interesting than the music. Best Tracks: Infected; Out of the Blue (Into the Fire); Heartland;
Contains some sparks of the well-thought-out songwriting on S/T, but lacks in the memorability department. This LP kind of washed over me - I didn't mind most of it (though some parts leaned heavily on standard 80s indulgences, mostly synths), but found nothing to latch on to here.
I didn’t like this much. Reminded me of quirky old Halloween jams, but not as nostalgic.
not what i expected. with an ablum cover looking like scott letching on when he's had a line or two i was expecting some crazy ass shit, some mad music depicting a man with no soul on his gradual decline to the gutter. instead its some of that shit that gives the 80s a bad name. utter shite. i bet this is on when michael gove hosts his swinger parties. scott would go to one of those. maybe the album cover is appropriate then.