Actually

"What Have I Done to Deserve This?" is the question that i asked myself when i started listening. In the end it's not that bad. Three good songs ("What Have I Done to Deserve This?", "Rent" and "It's a Sin") and some filler.

Really fun and catchy 80s synthpop. I need to get more Pet Shop Boys on wax.

stadium pop, laced with melancholy

I remember them from the 80s when they were on the airwaves and MTV quite a bit. I didn't pay them much attention then as most synth-pop bored me, so I gave this a new listen. Still bored. I don't blame them -- I think they are good at it -- but I just don't find synth-pop overall to be very interesting.

I'm assuming the front cover is Neil Tennant listening to this album.

Surprisingly excellent. High quality throughout and some absolute tunes

Absolutely shit

Equal parts containing all the now-embarrassing elements of 1980s pop, and endearing nostalgic feelings of a simpler time. Studio mixing in a cave, heavy synthesizer effects and drum loops, the existential crisis one feels knowing that this is either highly processed or borne from a single electronically manipulated keyboard with sounds. The 80s were the pinnacle of music-making embracing the clean shortcuts of computerized compositions. This album hits all of those notes with the type of precision that electronic sound manipulation is designed to do, and to its discredit, it does it too well, for where music has evolved since the beginning, the 80s felt like more of a fad than it did an evolution. The 90s felt like a snapping out of that. It is difficult with such bias against the 80s, to take this album with any sense of meaningful seriousness. Instead, rather than being a gift, hindsight is a burden when listening to this. The music sounds easy and one-dimensional in spite of all the layers, and perhaps there is a way to narrow one's perspective to respect this for what it was in the time it was made, yet one can only be grateful that we have moved on. Three stars for historically endearing significance, for feeling irrelevant and serving as a reminder of when things were weird and embarrassing.

Classique new wave, mais pas le meilleur album du genre

Now I know who the Pet Shop Boys are.

Definitely a notch below their 80s synthpop contemporaries. 6/10

Lo mejor esta en los singles. Parece que los Pet shop boys son un grupp para escuchar en compilados o recopilaciones porque todo un disco tiene pocas sorpresas.

Pet Shop Boys is electro-synth-pop music for unhappy people right? The ones with forced smiles at their own weddings. And this is genuinely unoffensive catchy unhappy music. Where's the joy?

Enjoyable for the 80s!

Boy, that really didn't age well, did it? Gross.

El pop fet art. Un altre dels grans discos que van fer bons els vuitanta, amb una sensibilitat artística (i lletrística) que molt pocs artistes han demostrat, tota ella al servei d’unes cançons inoblidables, tan fossin grans èxits del moment (‘It’s a Sin’, ‘What Have I Done…’, ‘Rent’, ‘Heart’…) com temes més amagats però igualment portentosos (‘It Couldn’Happen Here’, ‘I Want to Wake Up’, ‘One More Chance’)

very 80s synth.

Well produced synth pop

I don’t really care for this kind of music but it had some catchy songs 5/10

7/10. Solid songs, a bit samey as an album for how long it is. Nothing revolutionary.

Really sing-songy at points and quite 80s. Lyrics are pretty good but I didn’t like much else. 5/10

"It's a sin" is a true banger :)

The majority of the album feels like 80s electronic dance club music, although the final song, King's Cross, stands apart from the rest of the album. The electronic music is tolerable, but feels a little corny to me. King's Cross is a more serious song, and stylistically much more like the "serious songs" that respected rockers like Phil Collins or Don Henley produced during that era.

no

A strange lyrical obsession about paying the bills and rent - and generally quite a non-memorable album except for a couple of classics. It’s a container for it’s a sin and heart and kings cross I guess - the rest are fillers

Inoffensive stuff from the Pet Shop Boys, but nothing really catchy.

Very cool album! Fresh!

i actually thought it was fun and interesting to listen to. nothing super outgoing but i would listen to again

Well this is the *second* Pet Shop Boys album in the first 150 albums. ....? really? By the end of this exercise in about 3 years I'm going to be upset that they have (at least!?!?) 2 more albums on this list than most of my favourite bands but ok it's NOT ABOUT ME...sigh... (where was I?) Right. Pet Shop Boys. I scorned new-wavey-all-synth music in the 80s but now I quite enjoy it. To a point. Without looking back at my first review of the PSBs it probably goes something like this... it's nice. And this is nice! Nothing too memorable, though - it plays like a very pleasant sounding 80s soundtrack and is *fantastic* for background/working music. Nothing particularly negative outside of the fact that no individual songs are all that memorable. I can't remember anything in particular after finishing and looking at the song titles. Which...so why is this album on the list? Not that it's bad - it's nice! I've said that! But... It's a solid 3, would never argue against listening to this but not sure if I'd be in an overt mood: "PUT ON ACTUALLY!" In fact... the album cover is a brilliant slideshow of my reactions while first seeing this album then again sometime around song 7. In fact this would be nice to fall asleep to... [creates sleep playlist...] 5/10 3 stars.

Pop con sintetizadores de los Pet Shop Boys. Se me ha hecho bola.

What Have I Done to Deserve This? (with Dusty Springfield), Rent, It's a Sin, Heart. Se merecen un 5.

Classic 80s sound on this album, but nothing that really stood out to me that much

Unexpectedly enjoyable. Some cool synth chords and a few stand out tracks ('it couldn't happen here').

A 3-star album that gets a fourth star for the trip back to my senior year in high school. Just like the album, that year was hit or miss, but overall pretty damn good.

Electropop album. Has the classic '80s production feel. Doesn't seem very memorable.

pr good but no crazy standouts for me

Lyssnade bara halva albumet. Övergav efter det. Lite väl 80-tal för min smak

A nice album!

not my style. at all.

I got through the first song, reminded me of some elements of early NIN. Complete garbage!

Classic synth pop. Not really my bag but they are very good at it.

A couple of big tunes on here. More enjoyable than I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting much.

Did not realize It's a Sin was on there, their sound is pretty good.

Eat the rich! For all the damage that privatisation has done to the U.K. – and continues to do; how lucky am I to have been directly engaging with a deep historical legacy every time I lost three hours to getting back to Brighton from London? – the upside is that in 1986/87 there was plenty of subject matter for socially-conscious pop to contend with. “It’s a sin” is the standout track – and with thanks to the Russel T Davies drama, contains lyrical ideas that still feel as vital and pressing as they must have in the 80s – but bops like “What have I done to deserve this?” (featuring Dusty, of course) and “I want to wake up” are brilliant deeper cuts. The former of which puts me in mind of Jermaine Stewart’s “We don’t have to take our clothes off…”, a hit from the year previous – though “WHIDTDT” was maybe composed even earlier; Dusty took a while to reply apparently. (Side note: I wonder how many influential one-hit wonders are forgotten in a list like this? Feels unlikely that we’ll see Jermaine Stewart, King, etc.) So deeply of its time while so completely timeless, “Actually” is sophisticated pop made by brilliant people. Simple as that.

80'er for fuld skrue. Alle de rigtige lyde, Juno's, Gated Snare, det HELE!

fremragende album

80’er synth pop, god rytme, lidt ensformigt

As a child in the 1980's I always thought this keyboard pop kind of music was really corny, embarrassing even. I've always preferred music played on acoustic instruments. This era of synthesizers and drum machines is just so vapid. I'd been meaning to listen to this group for years. Glad to have finally heard their music, but I'll never be listening to them again.

Pretty good synth/dance/80s/pop album. Especially of note the hit with Dusty Springfield...What Have I Done to Deserve This. Not sure what more I can add. If this is your style of music you won<t go wrong. 3 stars

Great album, lots of good memories

// Favs: – Score: Strong 2 to Light 3

I tried to get it, I even gave an earlier (though not memorable) pet shop boys album 3 stars. But after hearing another of their albums, I don’t get it. It’s very simple, very generic 80s techno pop that hasn’t aged well. I don’t really understand why this band is so successful, I guess I have to hear more to get it, which I really don’t want to at this point. Virtually nothing musically interesting on this album

I loved a couple songs on the album. I Want to Wake Up was a real stand-out. Overall the synths and 80s production got in the way for me, but not as much as I was expecting.

Bit bland... Was surprised

i love this album, always have, i love Neil's voice and almost spoken word style. I love how catchy the songs are. Always a pleasure to listen to the pet shop boys

The second album from the Pet Shop Boys is another 80's pop / synth-pop album. It was good imo and described by critics at releases as a 'pop album with something to say'. This album had 4 songs become top 10 singles in the UK and they are still semi-popular today. Get lost in the 80's nostalgia!

It´s not actually that bad

Five classic pop-singles + five very strong other tracks - clearly one of the best albums of the 80s.

It's a sin indeed. 10 seconds in I already felt the urge to turn it off. Came out of it with only two half-decent songs, salvaging a second star.

British, 80s, Pop + - Male, electro = Old, boring, NFM {0/10}

the album is decent, with somewhat simple lyrics here and there

The PetShop Boys, Actually is a quintessential 80s album. With songs including "What Have I Done to Deserve This?" and "Rent" have the iconic sound of pop synths and dramatic electro-drum beats. Best: What Have I Done to Deserve This?; Shopping Worst: It Couldn't Happen Here

Loved it

What Have I Done to Deserve This Album? Love It ❤🌈

3.5

Used to listen to my dads tapes of Pet Shop Boys as a youth. This was a fun album. It’s A Sin in particular is a BOP!

Banger banger vabegr vamber vanggr banger

Catchy electronic pop that still holds up

Pretty catchy.

took me a minute but I got it

They've got a pretty unique sound which is cool to hear. Most of the songs on this album are pretty bland though. "It's A Sin" is a cool song though. "Shopping" is just stupid.

I enjoyed it initially, but to be honest, it did drag on quite a bit. The beats were very interesting and I'm sure this sounded very groundbreaking at the time, but the synth hasn't aged as well. The lyrics were interesting and clearly shaped by Thatcherism.

It was definitely an 80s album. I was not familiar with any of the songs. I am not going seek this album out again, but it is not a bad album.

Kinda shit

I bought this CD the week that Annie and I got married. I brought it with us when we stayed up north that weekend. We laughed at the song "Rent." It was at a time when I was first (re)opening my mind to this era of music. Listening back I love it more than ever. I'm impressed with the perfection of sound. And all the programming that takes. Vocals are good too.

No West End Girls? Still, pretty cool. I feel like I’m in a Delorian on my way to pick up some Ludes after a long day of day trading. Seriously though, this has a Pure 80s vibe and is solid all the way through. There are remnants of lot of what the Pet Shop Boys did here.

Some good songs, some ok songs

Pretty fun, especially the first few songs and the hit (It’s a sin). Plenty of weird stuff on here as well. Is Shopping code for something?

One of my favorite bands. Love it.

Niceee

One More Chance - lol reminds me of that Friends episode where Ross shows them his keyboard playing and he just has random sounds put together... This one is definitely "interesting..." Rent - this one was kind of weird - why is the lyrics "i love you, you pay my rent" lol The rest was okay

some bangers on here

This is very Eighties, but not in a good way for me. Shoutout to "I love you, you pay my rent" as a lyric though.

Sonido muy personal. Pop electrónico. Mucho sintetizador

First time listening to a whole PSB album. It was ok.

Definitely an album from the 80s. I wasn't liking it at first, but then the album grew on me. 4.1/5 stars

Muy buenos sintetizadores. Una banda de culto, un muy buen disco

Escutei até o hit It's a sin

So good. Owned this. So good so good so good.

As an electronic artifact of a time 60 years ago, this album retains interest as an historical document and as a bridge for the continuity of the folk tradition.

Nee. Niet voor mij.

Nothing surprising, kind of what expected

It's a sin is brill, everything else made me yawn

Really not a fan of the Pet Shop Boys. Like at all.

Nice one. Loved the sounds. Very nice easy pop. 4,5 stars

From a technical point of view, the way they were able to start a song with a theme that gave no hint of the main theme will also go down in history. (6/10) Favourite Tracks: It's a Sin, What Have I Done To Deserve This, "Always on my Mind"

I guess I am really into English synth-pop. Who knew!!

the queer struggle told through catchy saccharine bops that you'd probably hear while at an outlet store. Wonderful stuff!

Very 80s for sure, i liked it overall bc it made me feel like i was in vice city even if it wasn't necessarily my taste, production was on point, i love the sound of reverse gated-reverb drums of the 80s, slower songs Def dragged on a bit Standouts: shopping (baseline chefs kiss), king's cross

This album felt extremely 80s to me. The production was slick, big synths and punchy drums. I had a lot of lyrics jump out at me but that and the production was the only things I appreciated. I bet this album was revered back in the day but the synthy dance pop doesn't do a whole lot for me. Standout track was I Want to Wake Up. 3/10

Great 80s synth-pop, and, yeah at some points the sound is cringingly 80s synth-pop.

Second Pet Shop Boys album! I know a lot of this already, and the hits are bangers. What I've discovered from listening to two of their albums is that a collection of the best PSB songs would be an easy five. But they haven't done that with a complete album yet. Still good, just not classic level.

42. As ruas estão vazias. É uma pena. Saí mais cedo para cá estar. MotA: What Have I Done to Deserve This? "The city is quiet, too cold to walk alone / Strangers in overcoats hurry on home"

A bit dated for me

Gick in med låga förväntningar pga 80-tal och synthpop och Pet Shop Boys. Förväntningarna blev både mötta och krossade. Bra spår som One More Chance, King's Cross och till viss del What Have I Done to Deserve This? möter skräp som Shopping och Heart. Shopping är inte dålig i sig, MEN fan LÄGG AV med att bokstavera det STÖR MIG Visst, It's a Sin är ok, men överskattad. Bästa låt: One More Chance, mest för refrängen. Det bästa med det svåra 80-talet komprimerat i en kvällsvibbande dansdänga.

Sounds like boring 80s music :P

Never taken the time to listen to this album until now. glad i did

Pretty much, but male vocals are not really my thing here, at least. "The Sin" was a nice piece though

yeah its good

I can appreciate this record's energetic and playful melodies, it's subtle dance-pop vibes, synth-riffs, and overall creative choices. Highlights are the amazingly catchy "What Have I Done", the funny and sarcastic "Shopping", "I Want to Wake Up", and the extremely tight instrumentals on "Heart". However, I find myself not enjoying the more melancholic, dreamy and slow tracks. Examples being "One More Chance", "Rent" and "It Couldn't Happen Here". Due to my lukewarm feelings about the record, though some enthusiasm is deserved, a 3/5 is fair.

Everything I would imagine 80’s dance-pop to sound like. Some really groovy songs and great sounding synth. A few of the songs stuck and others didn’t, but overall an album I’d throw into some playlists. “Heart” kept reminding me of music from Mario 64.

Like wtf was that beat any kinda wack

Eeeeh

Favorites: 1) Heart 2) It's a Sin 3) One More Chance

This album was fine. Nothing exceptional to me. I do like synth pop but I don’t feel like there was a standout great song on this album… the base quality was better than average, though, so 3 stars.

A extremely synth heavy new wave pop album. It's pretty impressive what this duo can get out of building pop songs around synths and while I very much respect a lot of the craft to this album (and it is very well crafted), it's not my cup of tea at all. Impressive production, well-crafted pop songs, but again done in a style that doesn't stir much of anything in me.

New Age Neo-Gay. Toit. 4 porque no hay 3.5

Not my cup of tea, but I get why people would be stoked over this album.

Iconic

There's a lot of good vibes to this, really love their sound and especially the production. The singing is a little bit so and so, but i really enjoy it. Hit Music is infectious and funky, probably my favorite track off the whole album. 9/10 Best tracks: One More Chance, What Have I Done To Deserve This?, Rent, Hit Music, It's A Sin, Heart. Worst track: Shopping

Neat 80s synth pop album. "It's A Sin" is a bop.

Not a big fan

Not exactly my kinda thing, but well crafted and executed. Good melodies.

I didn’t hate it like I thought I would! :)

Nostalgic

— В Pet Shop Boys музыкальная сила и мудрость... — Вы любите Pet Shop Boys? — (подергивая плечами) Да-а — А какие альбомы предпочитаете? — (Протягивая руку) Да обычны... ну вот, пожалуйста, Actually. Нормальный альбом. Пацанский, хули. Слушать можно. — Похвалите ещё Pet Shop Boys. — (С заминкой) Ну как его похвалить... ну заебись альбом. Пиздатый альбом! Как его ещё похвалить бля... (небольшая усмешка, перерастающая в полноценный смешок) — А ещё пара красивых слов? — (Показывает большой палец) Не-въе-бен-ный альбом! — Спасибо. — (безразлично) Да на здоровье. (Ставит альбом на повтор) Вот оно — музыкальное золото!

Всегда путал этих бойзов, Бисти, Пэт Шоп, ещё там Бич какой-нить будет. Ну, без "The" в начале, и на том спасибо, собсна. И вообще из всех бойзов мой фаворит "Бойчик" в исполнении Френдзоны. Так, чё там по альбому. Крякалка во вступительном треке маленько отвратила от него вовсе. Но всё же на репите гонял и таки разглядел в нём годноту. В Rent, Hit Music, It's A Sin, Heart и разглядывать не надо, хорошо на ухо ложатся, можно напевать. Да и в целом более ничего одиозного не встречается. Да, инструментал порой слишком минималистичный. Но доминантой служат вокальные партии, которые вполне годные. В общем, по итогу пропёрся, мб даже возвращусь когда.

Few tracks pretty good, but the remaining tracks are weak.

It's okay. Kind of forgettable.

Favourite Song: Rent

Very 80s synth similar to New Order of the same era. Great pop. Always liked Kings Cross, shopping and the singles.

What Have I Done to Deserve This?

The first half sets out its postmodern aspirations particularly in shopping, rent and hit music, where the joke is on the listener. The second half moves into more sincere territory with the powerful 'it's a sin', the atmospheric 'it couldn't happen here' (Co written by ennio morricone), and perhaps my favourite track on first listen: 'I want to take up'. 'Kings cross' is a noice evocative finishing track. Brilliant album and one I will revisit.

Really enjoyed this. Only heard 'It's a sin' before which is bonafide hit record. The opening 2 tracks are great and set the tone for the rest of the album. Unfortunately, the quality could not be maintained and there are some simple lyrics. Lots of references to money which I didn't understand.

Ennio Morricone has a writing credit on this album... Mind. Blown. Best track: It's A Sin

the other pet shop boys album has the better, well known songs!

Some great tunes. "It's a Sin" and "What have done to deserve this" which I had already heard were particularly good surprise track "I want to wake up" my fave.

what a weird album to listen to 35 years after its release. it has most of PSBs biggest hits and they all stand up pretty well despite being done in the cheesiest era for pop music. Thats probably because you've heard them a million times and the stabby synths aren't as jarring. the rest of the album is terrible dated stuff from that era. I can't imagine the synth crazy sounds of the late 80s/early 90s ever come back round.

cazz è sta roba? non mi pento di non averli mai approfonditi prima. Se cantassero in giapponese grandi sigle anime anni '80.

urgh, i despise this. the sound, the style, the sentiment

Actually really good

80's throwback album.

Stone cold electo pop classic👌🙌

Pet Shop Boys - an easy four for me - smart pop - great lyrics, Chris Lowe is a legend and it contains four genuine classic tracks - Rent, Heart , It’s A Sin and What have I done to deserve this . Real snapshot of 80s Britain ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I feel like in 2010 + we have so many bands like that ! Obviously there is a huge gap in terms of production technology but some songs for me sounds so much like so many bands that got huge "recently". I do feel like they are an influence for the VST bands. Sounds upbeat but not just "happy", I like the sound choices and production a lot. I like the vibe and will give 4 stars !

meh, ok pop

A hilarious start to the album with the bongo sounds to kick it off. What Have I Done To Deserve This is a fantastic pop tune, I liked hearing Dusty pop in with backing vocals and her own sections are great too. It's A Sin is my favourite off of the album and the driving backbeat is infectious. I'd like to comment more but I'm a bit behind. Enjoyed this generally, especially the singles. Solid 3/5.

One excellent song (Rent) surrounded by a couple of good songs and much fluff. PSB's compilation album is the better choice.

Oh the memories! Love it

I had the album before this one, and loved it. By the time this one came around I was a little bit over the band. There are a couple of excellent tracks here, namely It's A Sin and Heart, but also a lot of filler. No matter the quality though, it's a surefire nostalgia machine transporting me straight back to 87.

owned it back in the day

I ‘actually’ enjoyed this, the lyrics are a bit odd at times but I like their sound.

Major game piece! Catchiness and fun, lyrical power and greay overall! Still getting covered by newer artists today

Solid!

Sucks

Pet Shop Men.

Catchy! I do not know much Pet Shop Boys but I can get down with most of what they're doing here. Fun synth lines, dance beats, and lyrics make for a fun album, and I can't hate that. Unfortunately, some of the sampling here sucks and takes away from the overall product. Otherwise solid stuff.

Couldn't care less. Where's his big hat at? A pair of crunchy truncheons.

There was some recent Spackers discussion as to whether any 1980s electro bands were more than singles bands. The answer is emphatically yes. The answer is Pet Shop Boys.

Nice

Decent 80's Synth Pop

6.25

Very 80s sounding. 0RS

They don’t make pop music like this anymore. Top stuff. One More Chance is a great opener

I listened to the whole thing in one go wanting to see the light and be converted to the church of the Pet Shop Boys. It was ok. Nothing grabbed me at all. Just felt really 80s synth pop. The song about going shopping. What’s that about? It’s a Sin is a banger though.

Ennakkoasenne oli, että tämä olisi nyhjöttävää homorummutusta, mutta olikin paljon menevämpää ja mukaansa tempaavampaa, ainakin levyn eka puolisko. Ekat viisi biisiä sai jalan hytkymään rytmissä, mutta sitten tuli vähän sellainen suvantovaihe, loppua kohden vähän tasaantui. Alun perusteella mietin jo että pitääkö antaa vitonen, mutta loppuarvosanaksi ansaittu nelkkukelkku.

I liked the 80s vibes. "It's A Sin" is a real standout track but I liked a few of the other tracks too. 7/10

Never liked Pet Shop Boys, and nothing about this album has changed my mind.

Been a Pet Shop Boys greatest hits guy for years, first time I can remember listening to an album in full. Great stuff which got us dancing post dinner, and It’s a Sin is a full on classique

You cannot convince me this isnt a parody album of Britpop. Heavy Synth sounds and decent music, but the vocals are almost nonsensical. Particularly the Shopping-Rent-Hit Music run in the middle. The fact that Shopping is often used on British Shopping Channels makes it seem like the song was produced for that purpose rather than the song coming first.

During the first track I was thinking “better than expected”, but shortly after that I sort of forgot it was even on - garden-party background music when you want to be at the bar. These guys were popular with some good friends of mine in college - Artsy girls with angular haircuts - so that gives this album a nice nostalgic vibe. Then The Boys slip into their orchestral effort “It Couldn’t happen Here”. It did. I wish it wouldn’t have. 2.5 stars. Rounding down.

With their second album, Actually, the Pet Shop Boys perfected their melodic, detached dance-pop. Where most of Please was dominated by the beats, the rhythms on Actually are part of a series of intricate arrangements that create a glamorous but disposable backdrop for Neil Tennant's tales of isolation, boredom, money, and loneliness. Not only are the arrangements more accomplished, but the songs themselves are more striking, incorporating a strong sense of melody, as evidenced by "What Have I Done to Deserve This?," a duet with Dusty Springfield. Tennant's lyrics are clever and direct, chronicling the lives and times of urban, lonely, and bored yuppies of the late '80s. And the fact that dance-pop is considered a disposable medium by most mainstream critics and listeners only increases the reserved emotional undercurrent of Actually, as well as its irony.

Great - very of its time, and evocative. Will listen again!

Better than expected, but not as good as Please

I guess a couple of the tracks are fairly iconic, but flimsy synth pop is not for me

Awful

It's a Sin is the obvious standout - some other decent ones but a bit thin for me.

All I really want is a montage of me trying on different outfits with all my best friends shaking their heads while "Shopping" blares in the background! I have been diving into New Order ever since we listened to that Joy Division album, and I must say that brand of 80s new wave type stuff is much more interesting, but Pet Shop Boys is way more fun! I really enjoyed the catchiness of these tracks and the fact that they had something to say as well. I don't mind pop if there's substance. It did get way overly 80s for me though with some of those big bright synths and splashy drums, so I for sure tuned out at some of those 80s cheese moments. Not enough bangers on here to cut through the filler.

1, couldn't listen to it.

Actually good songs and production 👌🏽

one of my fav albums now. amazing

Nice

fun album. Some of the songs are pretty cheesy. I imagine that is partly due to the synth-heavy production. Some aged really well, some not so much. "it couldn't happen here" does not hold up at all.

Never really considered myself to be a huge fan of The Pet Shop Boys, but really enjoyed listening to this album.

Classic 80s music. Not bad. 6/10.

The feeling of this album battle a school yuppy. A bit weird and pretentious, but I will give an extra star for being much better than the last Pet Shop Boys album

Is this a song about shopping? Ok then. How 80s. Let's go to the mall! Oh now a song about a sugar daddy. Live your best life Pet Shop Boys. Overall, eh? It feels pretty repetitive. Probably not adding it to my rotation.

Interesting listen

Psb es electro pop y talento, pero esa presentación no es la buena

Love a good Pet Shop Boys single. This album is very enjoyable, although the tracks really run together. PSB are better 1 or 2 songs at a time, and not all in a row like this.

There are definitely songs I can vibe with on this album, but overall it’s very ok. Also, for being the Pet Shop Boy, there were more female vocal parts than I expected. Favorite Track(s): “One More Chance” and “It’s A Sin”

Unique sound... reminds me a little of Cake on some songs

I’m hovering between a three and a four here, but I remember really liking this new wave sounds, especially songs like shopping

Pop. Aburrido. Sintético.

Didn’t expect to, but really got a kick out of this album! The beats were great, I found myself moving along to it in the kitchen - and the jabs at the privatization of the UK and Thatcherism were like a little cherry on top. Enjoyed meaning behind a genre often focused on partying - at least from what I know as a mostly outsider to electronic and dance.

Bra album med riktiga klassiker :)

A eso suenan los 80s. No cabe duda que están junto con Madonna, New Order o Soft Cell como sonido característico de lo que era dance pop y synth pop. A lo fresco y alegre de la música agregan también un cantar monótono, sin inflexiones, casi vacío que suena... plástico; perfecto para la representación de un disco que habla de yuppies desengañados que viven sin importarles nada y buscando solo su beneficio. Pop que refleja los 80s pero que tiene letras con algo que decir. En realidad no le doy más calificación por dos cosas; una es que el disco musicalmente aunque bueno tuvo varias canciones que sentí demasiado similares (mismas cuerdas en el fondo, mismos efectos, mismos ritmos) y dos, que de manera personal no es el tipo de música que me llama a escuchar una y otra vez. Buen disco.

Favorite song: Rent

Pop clásico fácil de consumir muy bien producido. Canciones cuidadas y muy bien manejadas. La sorpresa viene con las letras. Algunas son simples y sin mucha profundidad, otras son más reveladoras y cínicas, o de crítica como Shopping. Gran descubrimiento, lo disfruté montones. Songs: It's a sin, Rent, Heart

Fun 80's album, easy listen with a chill vibe

I enjoyed this. Very 80s but in a good way.

I was raised on Pet Shop Boys, so this album is nothing new to me. I used to hate being woken up with this blasting at 9am on a Sunday, but listening this willingly is much more enjoyable.

Great 80s Electronica

A time capsule of 80s synth sounds

I don't have anything additional to add about the Pet Shop Boys.

Klassiskt 80-tal, ikoniskt. Men nej, jag fastnar inte. Lyssningsbart, men blir tråkigt fort. Kunde inte göra om Rateing för Tortoise, så här kommer review: SÖG! Bara massa oljud?

Este disco me pareció interesante porque yo hubiera pensado más en Depeche Mode como representante para este estilo de música (rock-pop electrónico ochentero), pero creo entender por qué propusieron este disco: por las letras. Es interesante cómo van de temas tan "vanales" como en Hit Music hasta temas tan filosóficos como "It's a Sin".

Conocía un par de rolas de éste disco y es bastante ameno, no cabe duda de que son unos pioneros y genios del electro-pop y me gusta que sean un grupo que siempre va a la vanguardia. Echenle un ojo a lo que hacen como productores y se van a llevar varias sorpresas

¿Eres tú, Ross Geller? Defintivamente la musiquita de sintetizadores y la voz que usan de plano no son lo mío. Entiendo que en su momento fueron innovadores con algo de lo que trajeron, pero ni siquiera fueron los primeros. Me siento como el de la portada.

Kind of fun, but mostly like the Talking Heads without the soul.

An album I wish I would have listened to more in the 80s.

I like this album a lot more than i expected to. A lot of fun. Would reccomend especially to anyone enjoying the 80s vibes of 2020 pop

Decent old pop. I don’t love the sound, but it’s well done.

Levy jota vaivaa Pet Shop Boys -syndrooma. Hittibiisit ovat täyttä timanttia, kun taas täytebiisejä ei jaksa ollenkaan. En ole ikinä oikein jaksanut kuunnella bändin levyjä omina kokonaisuuksinaan, vaan yleensä soittimeen päätyy jonkinlainen kokoelmalevy. Kyllä tätä silti oikein mielellään kuuntelee.

i listen to half of this, I enjoyed it but it lost my attention mid way through, i dont think that was the albums fault though

Echt jetzt? Oje… Viele der Songs habe ich noch von damals™️ im Ohr, stelle aber fest, dass sie gealtert sind wie Milch. Ich habe oft vorgespult, ohne zu befürchten, was zu verpassen. Womit alles gesagt wäre. 2 Sterne, aber nur vong Nostalgie her.

"Shopping" was pretty great, as was "Rent" and a few other notable tracks, but was just a little too tame and samey to venture into 4th star territory for me. Enjoyable, but I don't know if I'll listen again.

James Murphy got it honest.

Always on my mind is good but the rest I’m not a fan of. 2.3

The eighties were a mistake

Yes, actually a 5.

Great hooks!

It was okay!

Interesting theme to the album. Does this really need to be on this list?

80’s human music. Pretty okay

Not for me

Pop with lightly rebellious experimental sounds and lyrics. I'm sure it was a bop back then.

Rent was stuck in my head for hours after listening to this album. I enjoyed the commentary + dance music combo in some songs, but I found myself drifting out of the album a lot. Maybe its because I don’t know much about music but some of it sounded sort of generic? Not sure. I think some of the songs could’ve been shorter.

Boring 80s electric pop

I only liked the track with dusty Springfield

njae, gillar inte den här 80-90-tals synthen alltså

I found the meaning of the songs like shopping to be quite good but overall i found the album boring and their musical inability shone through for me. These guys are an example of people who sound ok on tape but shit live.

Sounds like the 80s, not my favorite.

Svängigt och chill på samma gång

Fattigt album där allt utom en låt flyter ihop till en dålig brittisk popsmörja som inte gör ens humör några tjänster. "S H O P P I N G shopping" är inte heller textrader som berör eller underhåller. Hade det inte varit för "Its a sin" som jag gärna hyllar som en bra låt hade repet varit nära.

I like the 80s synth poppy feel of it, sometimes weird percussion breaks and vocal interludes take up too much time, the synth is almost overwhelming sometimes too. But I liked it alright! not earth-shattering

Some bangers, like It's a sin and the one with Dusty Springfield (<3). That aside, it's not their best work.

Nice, dancey. Very on-par with Depeche Mode without being as dark. Love the Dusty Springfield duet. Favorite tracks: "I Want to Wake Up", "What Have I Done to Deserve This?", "It's a Sin"

Classic synth-pop album, full of hits. It couldn't happen here and the last two are great, plus the Dusty track, and It's A Sin one of the best synth tracks of the 80's.

5/5 Synthpop and politics are two things I've never thought of before this album, and to be honest I'm blown away! I had thought of synth pop mainly in the vein of one-off, mildly offensive songs like Mr. Roboto, or classic, yet still one-off, songs like Take Me On. There's a certain level of melancholy in Actually that pairs very well in opposition to the upbeat tone and... poppiness of synth pop as a genre. I found Rent to be particularly effective at this, with its short, cutting lyrics about unequal power dynamics paired with synth beats. The unmistakable critiques of British politics (ye olde Margaret Thatcher) and capitalism of the 1980s are also really interesting. It Couldn't Happen Here could easily be viewed as an analogy to the Sinclair Lewis book It Can't Happen Here, except with Thatcher in the driver's seat. Shopping also criticizes industrial privatization. Then there's also the gay subtext in songs like Its a Sin. The production of this album is very clean and in my opinion, its held up quite well. The lyrics are interesting, the instrumentals are varied (love the trombone/trumpet use) so the album doesn't feel too same-y, and a lot of the songs are quite catchy. This album is both highly accessible for members of the public, but also interesting from an analytical standpoint, and I find that that is a really rare and beautiful thing.

8/10 FT: Rent

Actually waited until Wednesday to listen to this. Was only familiar with Pet Shop Boys through West Side Girls and Always on My Mind. This is a really good 80's pop record. Favorites include What Have I Done to Deserve This?, Shopping, It's a Sin, Heart and King's Cross.

Fun album reminiscent of New Order that gets kind of borring and repetitive later on.

PERFECTION