Reviews (page 7 of 8)
Synth pop is not really my thing, except groups like Talk Talk, OMD, and a-ha. I find the album predictable, bland, and over dramatic.
It has some moments of goodness, but nothing amazing.
Where do I begin. I was so hyped by the opening track, it set a standard that absolutely did not carry throughout the rest of the album. If I could take this album and remove more-or-less all vocals it would be fantastic. ABC are great at writing music and absolutely suck at writing lyrics. Favourite tracks were Show Me (track 1) and Look of Love pt. 4 (track 10)
This kind of music is something my mother would like. The music is well done, but I am never going to listen to it again.
Two stars for Temu Duran Duran
Kinda unmemorable
Not my cup of tea
++: Poison Arrow, Many Happy Returns, Date Stamp +: Show Me, Valentine's Day, The Look of Love, The Look of Love +-: Tears Are Not Enough, 4 Ever 2 Gether -: All of My Heart 5,8/10
This was the SCHIZZ back when I lived in Ireland and everyone loved it but yeah I couldn't stand it when tho I pretended I was in board with everyone else haha
Spotify appears to be broken today, delaying an album that, from its cover, does not excite me. What do we have going on here? A swooning woman in the arms of a guy who just came second in a Rick Astley lookalike contest and is about to shoot up the place. That has to be it. His lip sync rendition of uhh one of Rick Astley’s other songs was a surefire winner in his mind. The stage was set, the suit, the hair, the woman on his arm. Shattered. The PA reverberates with the name of his crosstown rival. How did he win with “Never Gonna Give you Up”. Is he even an appreciator of Rick? With the sharp fall of his hopes, the indignant rage began to rise. S is for snubnose, and the judges of the first annual Astley Pageant will pay. Heads will Rick Roll. Show Me - We’re getting supremely funky. Hey pal, how about you stop showing me whatever this is. A mildly funky bassline as a vehicle for a particularly boring exhibition of the new wave du jour. Yawn. It’s not horrible; but I’m over this genre. Poison Arrow - The Whispers called and they said “Hey, I’m that cool band with the two twin singers and you stole our bassline from “And the Beat Goes On.” Wow. A real transcribed phone call from the Whispers? In my review? This is truly a golden age. This has gone too long. Many Happy Returns - Ehhh. It’s just not great is it? The lyrics are the most interesting part, but even those are kind of rote and predictable in places. Nothing is horrible, I’m just not that into this song either. Well. That riff and vocal breakout around the halfway point kind of dragged this one out of the doldrums for me. That was a heavyweight minute or so. Alright. Tears Are Not Enough - What will be enough? How about Fears? Valentine’s Day - If the cover isn’t bluffing and we are going to have a massacre, this would be the track to do it on. Nothing happening here. The Look of Love Pt.1 - The most popular song according to Spotify statistics. The funk does go pretty hard, but the surroundings disappoint me. I guess I’m judging the book by the cover and in turn, the look by the lover? Whatever the hell that means. I didn’t study for this test. Date Stamp - Another bass driven disco pop song. Autocorrect doesn’t correct “akso” to “also,” but it will make “Disco” “Discount” AND “Dick.” There is probably some crass joke in there somewhere. I’ll leave that to the imagination of the reader. Go ahead. Eh. That wasn’t very good. It’s ok. You’ll get em next time champ. All of My Heart - Oh here we go. The attempted hit. The least genuine moment in the album and of course the least likeable. Painful even. Besides the bizarre outro. 4 Ever 2 Gether - I love replacing parts of words and even entire words (see for/4). So that’s a hit. This was more of the same. The little break in the middle was sufficiently odd. The Look of Love Pt. 4 - We skipped parts two and three. That’s the kind of band ABC is. I’m surprised they’re not called ADE. I was asked “Is this not interesting,” and I was stopped in my tracks. So much of my criteria comes down to if something sounds interesting and genuine. I think this album has many moments that check those amorphous boxes. So what’s the issue? Why didn’t I enjoy this experience? I think I’ve figured out what it is that doesn’t click between myself and this particular lexicon; the pop sensibilities. The disco key stabs, the choruses begging for radio play, the new wave imitation. All abysmal. This is by no means the worst album I’ve ever heard. Hell, it’s not even the worst album I’ve heard in the past fortnight, but this was still all kinds of lame. This ABC was not impossible to get through, but certainly not as easy as 123. 2-2.5 HIGHLIGHTS: Learning the true meaning of Christmas. Or was it love?
Nothing beyond de eigths borings songs zzzz
Album Blows Chunks.
No thanks
Pretty bad. I would give it 1 star but that "United States of America" garbage band deserves that ranking all by itself.
This was a bizarre and laughable record that felt like an amalgamation of all the pop music that came five years before and after it. It undeniably has some pretty catchy hooks but it is also pretty schmaltzy and seemed to border on cabaret at times. Not for me.
Few well known songs and nothing else I liked.
Some good background beats and a couple of iconic songs, but I don't like the overblown vocals. I know the dramatically over-serious lyrics were popular then (see Human League, Duran Duran), but others did it better.
This sounds like a weaker version of Duran Duran. A very middle of the road ‘80’s pop record with very few memorable songs.
Eh.. mid
music: hated. (⌐■_■)
Nothing I really didn’t like about this, maybe just a bit of New Wave Fatigue. This one is probably close to the baseline, but slightly below. A rounded down 2.5.
Not a big fan. Nothing special here in my opinion.
'The Lexicon Of Love' kopieert moeiteloos het karakter van Disco naar het New Wave landschap van de UK. Ergens doet het precies wat het tracht te doen, en is het dus een geslaagd muziekstuk, maar het eindproduct ademt vooral het plastic imago - waar veel om te doen is geweest bij het Disco genre - en is niet zozeer een dansbaar spektakel. Het voelt op momenten een beetje als The The (stem lijkt nogal op die van Matt Johnson) die Boney M. nadoet, een onverwachte carriereswitch die godzijdank nooit heeft plaatsgevonden. Op andere momenten - zoals op 'The Look of Love' en 'All Of My Heart' - weten ze de pakkende Synthpop sound op de voorgrond te houden, en irriteer ik me ook al veel minder aan het concept 'New Wave Disco'. Wel denk ik dat dat concept niet veel minder irritant had kunnen uitpakken, dus daarvoor chapeau. 5,5/10 Highlights: The Look of Love All Of My Heart
Het tijdperk waarin deze plaat verschijnt is een hele dubieuze. En dat is goed terug te horen op The Lexicon of Love. Super cheesy allemaal, maar dit had ook veel erger kijken zijn. Gelukkig zijn er wat goeie elementen van bijvoorbeeld The The of Duran Duran wel terug te horen op ABC. We komen goed weg. 5/10 Highlights All of My Heart
1. zhouu - 1.5 2. poizon - 1 3. happy - 1.5 4. tearz - 1.5 5. valentinez - 1 6. love - 1.5 7. date - 1.5 8. heart - 1 9. ever - 1.5 10. look - 1 11. man trap - 1.5
A couple of stand out tracks but in the end mediocre 80s pop
Super cheesy. 4 Ever 2 Gether was the highlight. Everything else was just kind f dumb.
1.75
80s
Some of the instruments/vocal effects were interesting to make me pay attention, but I couldnt really find a song that I liked. The best was Date Stamp. Show Me was a cool intro I guess too. This is like Michael Jacksons music without the unique singing and too many odd orchestral arrangements
Felt like a knockoff Bowie doing showtunes. Not for me
This is an album that didnt stand the test of time. Its the classic background music to every teenager movies of the early 80s. All the proms, club, patries and other scenes. Super dated and although its fun and well produced its nothing special to me
Totally forgettable 80s schlock. Not sure why it's on this list or who it's for. It did kind of make me put on some Versace want to return some video tapes though.
No, same retro fucking music
I didn't dislike this as much as I thought I would, but it sure does wear you down after a few songs
Sounds just like that era. Doesn’t make it bad...just not great.
80s funky dance pop. Great bass, otherwise not something I dug. It feels indulgent, it seems like these guys think they have something important and sophisticated on their hands, but it’s just another dance pop record. The only thing redeeming it for me is the wonderful bass playing.
Not for me, but I can see how people would like this. It’s inoffensive I guess?
I'm not sure if I liked it or not...
This felt very manufactured. Not at all authentic. I didn’t hate the music or lyrics or vocals…. It just felt like the music you’d hear in a tv show where there is a fake band.
somehow this was amazing and terrible at once? could i write poetry to this? n
As much an aesthetic as a musical style, the New Romantics were perfect for the fledgling MTV network. MTV served as the pipeline for a "British Invasion", which lasted about as long as any of the prior incursions from across the pond. With few notable exceptions (Duran Duran, George Michael, etc.), the New Romantics were returned to the U.K., leaving musical and visual memories that define 80's tropes. In this way, ABC were perhaps the most New Romantic-y of the New Romantics. I imagine them captaining an arc heading back East, loaded with a cargo of Spandau Ballet, Simple Minds, Culture Club, Thomson Twins, Human League, OMD, and, of course, a Flock of Seagulls.
Generic 80’s music.
Some parts were catchy. I bet if I had heard this when I was a kid in the 80s, I would like it now. 2.5 stars.
way too groovy. strange because I usually like very dated 80s pop, but this one didn't appeal to me. This isn't bad, I just really don't like super flamboyant theatric 80s pop. This album is doing too much and it kind of annoys me.
Oh good, another sophistipop album. 2.5/5
Not sure if a genre of music is so timestamped to the 80s than New Romantics pop. Tricky to review fairly as I have slight PTSD of hearing this A LOT growing up as like many parents who grew up on 70s rock, they had no trouble transitioning into New Romantic pop in the 80s. It brings up memories of my mum and dad going out to nightclubs in their Sunday best. Perms, tashes, shoulder pads and shirt & tie. Local hard men dancing without fear of reprisal to The Look of Love. Mad times. Really not a fan of this but there are songs here that can be considered good I guess. Highlights: Poison Arrow The Look of Love Part 1 Lowlights: Nothing offensive stands out but to me it lacks songs on a par with the absolute bangers of the time. Your Duran Durans, Your Spandau Ballets, Your Dead or Alives. This just really isn't my jam.
Very 80s
It was okay, very 80s
Eh.
I'm glad I never had to deal much with 80s music. This is lame.
Very 80s but OK.
I knew Poison Arrow from GTA Vice City. I was never a fan of it, it’s far too cheesy 80’s for my liking, as was the remainder of Love’s apparent Lexicon.
Gear: Abyss DIANA MR (vegan) Artwork: 🔫🕵🏻♀️💃🏻 Produktion: 😲🙂👌 Musik: 🪩🍸🫧 Wertung: 🅰️🅱️/5
Liked some of the music, especially the bass playing. However, the songs left a lot to be desired. 2.5/5 Probably won’t listen again
Ew another generic '80s British pop
Als je deze hoes ziet verwacht je iets verschrikkelijks en dan zit je een heel eind in de goede richting. Wat een gedrocht van een jaren '80 Britse popplaat is dit. Huismerk Duran Duran met een laagje huismerk Prince erover. Alle 80's geluidseffecten: check. Theatrale zangert met enorm overgeacteerde emoties (en waarschijnlijk een gezonde dosis eyeliner): check. Mijn allergie: check. Een normaal altijd zeer gewaardeerde muziekgoeroe uit het midden des lands gaf dit 4 sterren "om alvast te compenseren voor de rest", waarmee hij mij eigenlijk forceert om m'n 2 sterren rating aan te scherpen naar een 1. Ik gun hem die macht niet, maar wat zit ik er dichtbij.
omg so tedious
meeehhhh
SO 80s!
Valentines day? Was nice As 80s as 80s gets As cheesy as cheesy gets
A great sampling of one of the most unheralded staples of 80s pop - the frenetic bass line. Other than that; meh. The Look of Love is a solid addition to any 80s playlist. But the vocal affectations and synth sounds haven't aged particularly well.
Wow. That was forgettable.
Pop shit. Not offensively bad pop shit, but just pop shit
Too 80s for me.
1 nummertje goed
Never gets above mediocre
No
Not worth it
i was excited cus its new wave but it was just mid. 2.5/5
The first songs were groovy as hell. Got boring quick tho.
it was groovy woovey but then middy widdy
1.6/5 catchup on 6/14/24
wow
One half decent song but largely I couldn't wait for it to end.
Why is there so much 80s British pop in this list? This was another band I wasn't familiar with until today. And another 80s British pop album that underwhelmed, though not to the extent of some of the others. The positives I found here are that this album is extremely well played & produced. There's some solid depth to what's actually going on in the music with multiple layers of sounds on several songs - much more so than a lot of the other albums from this genre that I've listened to. That at least kept me from counting down the tracks until the album was over, and I didn't really hate it as much as I expected to. But, it's not something I'll ever come back to.
Musically I would say I generally enjoyed this album. I thought the baselines were funky and where the album was at its best. I'm not a huge fan of Fry's voice, it's trying to be seductive but sounds more whiney. I would listen to more Mark White compositions but I dont see myself coming back to this group. If I could give half stars this would be a 2.5
Fun, upbeat, not really my vibe tho.
Not my genre, too pop for me. It’s not bad, but it doesn’t excite me.
Another weird choice for this list. Countless UK 80s pop albums on here. This one reminded me a bit of Talking Heads but bad. Soulless lyrics and vocals. The instrumentals had their moments. Some funky bass playing.
Meh
Not a fan of sophisti-pop. The look of love and poison arrow are fine cheesy 80’s singles. The rest didn’t leave an impact.
This may be the most 80s thing I’ve ever heard.
The era of diminished returns.
Still very listenable today. It is a good album, not a great one.
Peak 80s Not enough soul for me
It is becoming clear to me that I don’t really like the 80’s and I wasn’t generous enough with Tears For Fears. The Look of Love - Pt. 1 had some cool horns, but that wasn’t enough to save this.
Not a fan of synth pop
Not very interesting I'm afraid, a forgettable new-wave pop act that I'm not even sure meets the "one hit wonder" threshold. The Wikipedia page is fighting me though, apparently this did really well in the UK and is generally well-regarded critically. But I ain't critics, and I've heard plenty of more interesting '80s new wave pop. The one song I really dug on here, "The Look of Love," is actually their highest charting UK single (reached number 4), and I have to look farther down the line to see their highest-charting US hit, "When Smokey Sings." That song I do know, but it's not here, and it's not too much of a hit if I'm being honest. Look, nothing against these guys, the music isn't bad, but if we're looking to represent an era of sophistipop and new wave, we can do a lot better (and this list has done better, with Duran Duran, a-Ha, Prefab Sprout, Tears for Fears to name a few). Won't be returning to this one. Favorite tracks: The Look of Love, parts 1 and 4 (?). Album art: Very fitting '80s pop cover, guy with gun holding fainting woman, but the framing, the text and font, it all screams new wave to me. Not a bad cover overall, but there's quite a bit going on here. 2.5/5
2/5 nope
Mediocre, inoffensive 80s schlock.
Some of the worst of 80s music.
Mid 80s music
zu poppig... radiomusik
At best, in the right hands this has some meme potential a la Rick Astley, at worst it's cheezy and completely forgettable 80's synth pop from... you've guessed it... UK! 2 tacky tacks out of 5 📌📌
Modestly interesting style and sound, clear influence from Bowie
I think I had previously heard "the look of love", if I hadn't, then it sounds very similar to a different popular song. Overall this is a pretty standard new wave album. I didn't think it was really anything special
If they let this record breathe a bit I think I could love it. It desperately needs space in the arrangement. Or maybe if they did less cocaine. Maybe thats it. All jokes aside, insufferably 80s. Awesome bass and drums that suffer from overdone vocals, synths, and other bad 80s production/arrangement. Nothing stood out.
2/5. Definitely a throwback to the 80s with that patented feel of that decade. While I didn’t mind this album at all, there was nothing special that set it apart.
This is not something I would listen to again, but I appreciate it probably inspired later 80s pop music. The slap bass and some drum patterns were decent on some spots.
Not my favorite. I kept waiting for it to be something i recognized but halfway through i realized i was just waiting for it to be the Pet Shop Boys instead. Very boring and I didn't like the lead vocalist's voice. Might go listen to the Pet Shop Boys now.
Yep. That's a new wave album.
Dull, run of the mill new-wave, yawn.
I'm 90% sure this was a Culture Club cover band that somehow got a hold of a bunch of actual Culture Club b sides and recorded them. This is that band without the great hooks.
Pffft, wat een over-the-top album. Niet echt goed, maar goed genoeg voor een extra ster.
nah im good
nah 2*
All style no substance. It doesn't really go anywhere.
It is precisely, unapologetically, and quintessentially synth-pop. I don't care for it myself, but it can't be under-appreciated for the influence it had on an entire decade's worth of music. The rating reflects my own personal tastes, but I completely get why this album is on this list.
Not the best and very dated
The Lexicon of Love is the debut album by the English pop band ABC. This synth-pop, new wave album is sort of a concept album of love songs and heartache. It debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and has been certified platinum in the UK and gold in the US. It's a great British pop album from the 80's with danceable songs about love. The productions is well done and the pop music stands the test of time by being just as good today as when it released. If you like pop music, then this is an album for you.
Show Me 5.7 Poison Arrow 5.9 Many Happy Returns 5.2 Tears Are Not Enough 5 Valentine's Day 4.9 The Look of Love (part one) 5.1 Date Stamp 4.7 All of My Heart 5.4 4 Ever 2 Gether 4.8 The Look of Love (part four) 5.5 Too many annoying synth sounds and the melodramatic vocals are often cringe. 2.5 stars,
Very poppy and 80's sounding. Some enjoyable tracks, but just kind of bored me.
This reminds me of all the music I didn't like in the 80's. Highly produced, cheesy Brit synth-pop of forgettable, syrupy generic sounding drivel. Okay, it wasn't that bad, it was listenable and it did take me back to the early 80's, at a time I was rejecting this type of pop music. Now it just sounds dated and maybe a slight guilty pleasure, just a tiny bit.
Ihan ok!
Didn't really do much for me, not a huge new wave fan.
It's really okay to leave a crappy album off the list even if it hit #1 in the UK. Best track: The Look of Love - Pt. 4
Not my style
Omalla tavallaan ansiokasta mutta niiiiiiin kasaria ja notkeudeltaan liian tarkan töksähtelevää. Poison Arrow ja The Look of Love eivät myöskään ole riittävän vaikuttavia kantaakseen keskinkertaisempia biisejä. 2,5.
Dudes voice got real annoying
Meh - pretty typical new wave pop stuff.
A band I never thought I had heard before, just assuming they were Duran Duran. Around about in line with some of LeBon and groups average stuff.
When people talk about over polished too clean sounding 80s pop I bet this is what they mean. I thought The Look of Love still sounds good but any cool instrument parts were kind of swallowed up by the overall sound. Really underwhelmed
2.75
Meh. More like the Lexicon of tired 80s gimmick pop.
2.5
Could not be more 80's, not something I normally listen to
Não curti muito não
Don't know how else to describe other than quintessentially 80's.
80s pop blah blah
It was better than I might have expected, but it's still not something I'm interested in listening to again.
Hmh aika kaksijakoinen. Pari oikein hyvää bangeriä, mutta myös hieman rasauttavampaa kasaria. Äh kyl tää kahteen jää.
Jeesus Kristus mikä nimi biisille tää 4 Ever 2 Gether. Look of Love on jollain kummalla tavalla toimiva renkutus, mutta muuten levyllä on kyllä aika dänkkiä tavaraa. 2/5
Generic 80s Movie music. Does not stand out against their contemporaries like Duran Duran or others. Not memorable.
5/10.
Not what I would have chosen to listen to on my birthday, but actually a fair amount better than I expected. Some very satisfying melodies and decent lyrical flow. ⭐⭐⭐
Vastly underwhelming album. Felt like I was in a dated play performed by the boomer club of Britain. This list has enough modern albums that it could be updated enough to have this one removed. It’s not necessarily bad as some one star albums that I just don’t like. This is more just not important enough as other albums. 4.2/10
“I know what’s good, and I know what trash is” Hey me too! 2/5
I think we all know how I feel about 80s, 😂 This definitely reminded me of songs that would be on 80s movies. Not that that helps my rating... Just making a statement, lol. 3/10
I was not a fan of this one. This is pretty much the complete other side of the 80s spectrum as far as what I like. The sound wasn't too bad, but I really didn't enjoy the singer. my favorite song was the short instrumental, really wish they had included more of that. 2.5/10
Not too bad…but bad enough.
Flashback. A few of these were pretty big in the day, but they can stay there for the most part.
Meh
This is not very good
Some classic 80s stuff. Not really for me. The album doesn't hold together especially well and relies on it's two famous tracks to get by. It gets dull fast. Glad they exist I suppose but not for my own sake.
Sounds like a disco / new wave Bowie.
Svært at holde fokus. Sikkert meget banebrydende for sin tid, men idag meget kedeligt.
Wow I feel like they had one song and with that concept managed to drag out an entire album... Which was fun for a while but by the end wore a little thin. Feel like it was all trying to be a bit serious about a song called The Look of Love
80s nonsense.
Bland. At it's best, it reminds me of better bands.
An 80s album that should've stayed there. No reason to listen to this, everything on here has been done better by other bands.
Was looking forward to this one since I love the 80’s, but ended up just being kind of bored with it. It’s an ok album, nothing incredible about it really pops out to me. It feels like Tears For Fears’ Songs From the Big Couch took some of the decent instrumentation from this album and vastly improved on it. No intentions to go back to this one.
So absurd it's borderline distracting. Avoids a 1 star rating due to its melodies and the context it provides for Martin Sheffield-Lickley's parodies.
Couple of fun ones!
pop/disco dos anos 80, mas sem o toque especial
Eh...80's pop. Kind of sterile. Nothing I would ever chose to listen to. 1.5/5
100% Europop. Not really my bag. Singer was kind of annoying.
Pure 80's pop. Really dig the bass lines, but otherwise unremarkable.
not v good
I did NOT enjoy this. 1.5/5
Wow NOT what I was expecting. First, ABC? Never heard of 'em. Then the album cover... okay is this some sort of mid-century classics? Then the opening funk bass! What! Whew, there are some not great tracks, but there are some endearing English vibes. Are they English? I haven't looked them up, but this is just such classic English synth/funk/dance/pop. The vocalist--he's every 80s/90s English vocalist! 2.5 stars! Rounding down because no I will not listen to this album as a whole again.
I knew ABC from “Poison Arrow” being on some 1980’s dance compilation CD I had growing up. …and it will continue to be the only song I know from ABC.
some great tracks, opening track being my fav, some nice bass but so soo many 80s tropes that i am not a fan of, but not bad by any stretch, just not for me
corny. 2 stars
Meh
I don't recognize this band or album cover, the songs "Poison Arrow" and "The Look of Love" ring a bell though. Should be interesting. This is musically fairly decent throughout, but it's not doing much for me. It's quite repetitive and the lyrics aren't great. "All of My Love" was my least favourite. Overall its a very dated album, but I can see why it would have been popular at the time amongst the likes of Spandau Ballet and late stage Roxy Music fans. Favorite tracks: Poison Arrow, Look of Love, 4 ever 2 gether
The songs are well done at their core, but the glossy production really detracts from their structure. It’s like Duran Duran meets the worst of Roxy Music.
While I understand the importance of the album and it should be considered a pop classic, this is not my preferred style of music so I cannot recommend it.
Прослушано! Как то совсем заурядно. Обычная попса.
Weirdly the more I listened to this the more I thought the singer sounded like the singer from echo and the bunny men. Overall though if I closed my eyes I thought I was in an 80s shopping mall.
Rather generic and empty-sounding 80's nonsense
So not my thing.
Muutama väläytys, mutta mielenkiinto hyytyi jo tokan biisin aikana.
42 minuuttii pitkä lällyttelybiisi
80s drums with nice bass lines, but still 80s pop that did not age well... not something im going back to
This album manages to capture the essence of popular music in the 80s. It is not my cup of tea but if you find yourself nostalgic for synth-pop electro music without much originality, then this is for you.
Peak 80s, and not in a good way
it sure was released in 1982
Ok, but nothing special...Uneven..
It's saturday, I don't even remember having listening to this.
Super generic super forgettable
Maybe I just don’t like most British male-fronted bands? I’ve already forgotten this whole album
2.44 rounded down :\
Eh
Interesting exemple of Brit synth-pop, but nothing outstanding, in my mind.
Good bass, but generally just over dramatic nonsense.
Wham's camp daddy. Not an every day driver for me
Look, I didn't NOT enjoy the listen.. very easy public transport music. But it's an album. The songs on their own? Nahhh. I got budget Bowie vibes, synth ++, yeah.
not a fan
No es mi estilo pero es mejor que cualquier disco de Duran Duran. Lo lamentable es la tapa, con las hermosas tapas que hubo en el postmodernismo gráfico de los 80, acá pareciera que no les importó mucho esa tarea.
Pretty generic 80s pop. Not my thing.
No thanks
Can't say I was a big fan of the album, but enjoyed Poison Arrow and Look of Love. Nothing was too bad, but nothing really stood out either. Probably wouldn't give it a 2nd listen, but if I heard Poison Arrow on radio, I wouldn't turn off. 1.5 - 2 for me
2 I've never heard of the artist ABC (though I dabble with the alphabet) or this album, but after listening, I found it to be a pretty run-of-the-mill new wave album... which kind of bummed me out cause I dig a lot of 80s British new wave. I feel like I heard elements of Talking Heads and David Bowie in there, but the songs just didn't have quite the same hook those artists have. While I enjoyed parts of the album, others just seemed more obnoxious than catchy, and overall it didn't come across as particularly lyrically or thematically profound either. Probably wouldn't go out of my way to listen to again. Favorite songs: Tears Are Not Enough, 4 Ever 2 Gether
I can hear that these people are talented and willing to make the production interesting, but these songs just sound really tacky that I couldn't enjoy much.
Until halfway through the album I wasn't sure if I loved this or hated it. It's so incredibly, unashamedly '80s that I'm kind of in awe. But the lyrics are irredeemably cheesy and made me feel like I'm hallucinating. So no. Pass.
1982, британский поп. Дебютный альбом, гламурный поп, самый коммерчески успешный релиз группы.
Bleibt außer dem Bekannten Look of Love nichts von hängen. Aber auch kein Totalausfall. Gute 2 Sterne.
This album is so 80’s recognise a few songs from it. Enjoyable but won’t be getting played again anytime soon.
Catching up so I might be biased but didn’t catch me. Bass was nice.
Really? I MUST listen to this?
Not great, but at least it was interesting.
Very 80s dated synth pop. Funky bass though
A polished slice of 80s blue eyed soul. To me this is everything that's wrong with 80s popular music; lots of glitz and glamor with little substance. On the plus side there's some great bass playing. 2 🌟
Some of it was really catchy - The Look of Love is a banger, it's instrumental reprise at the end sounded great, and 2 Geva 4 Eva was quite fun and theatrical - but my goddddd the production was dreadful for the most part The vocals in All of my Heart sounded so bad, and there was a transition between two songs on side one that was really really bad, and the bass tones throughout were just a mess
So much cheese
looks melodramatic. I have no memory of it.
What if Duran Duran had a killer hornline? Well... they'd still be Duran Duran... so...
I can't well give this a one as there's a certain point where it becomes such a parody of itself it crosses into 'so bad it's good' territory. Highlights and personal favs include - 1) The opening track maintaining a sense of seriousness for all of 30 seconds before laying on the 80s synths as thickly as possible. 2) The mildly porno slap basslines on a few songs where regular bass would've been just fine 3) How every song's chorus includes an awful two-word or so vocal tag (sHoW mE, shOw ME) 4) The point where the band's songwriting gives out and devolves into, I shit you not, "Hip hip hooray...Yippee ai yippee aiay!!" 5) A song that tries to make everyone's most-hated retail job into a convoluted metaphor about being horny 6) A reference to the 12 disciples on a track called "4 ever 2 Gether [sic]" And many more. So yes, this is a musical dumpster fire, but it's at least an entertaining one
im not a big fan of synth pop- and this album offers nothing besides that
Seems like this probably influenced Bowie and Let's Dance, but just isn't as powerful and catchy.
well constructed, but not really my thing
not for me
Wow… I do not give a fuck. Bass is cool sometimes though!!
Similar a Rick Astkey. Música muy ochentera no muy de mi gusto.
I'm getting a bit more into new wave but this is a bit too poppy.
Meh
Not my thing but I can see some people loving this one. I liked '4 Ever 2 Gether'.
If my kids ever want to embarrass me they’d just need to pull this album out and point to the silly hair, costumes and corny songs. Hard to believe I used to listen to this (incessantly) when I was younger. In the 80’s if you didn’t listen to Punk, this was your scene. There are a few songs with good hooks and the production by legendary producer Trevor Horn is pretty slick. But I gave Duran Duran’s Rio two stars so to be fair this get a deuce also.
It started off tolerable. By the middle I was quite ready for it to be over. There's better albums in this genre by a mile. Some songs wouldn't be bad if I heard them on the radio or a playlist with other artists of the era or something but their style becomes tiresome quickly
Make it stop
5/10
Sounds like every other early 80's pop album - pretentious, and hollow. Nice horn section though.
Very 80s
That bass tone tho
Dated sound.
No, it’s just too plastic. I mean, I recognise it’s technically well made but it’s not for me.
Boring 80s pop
Pop ochentero a más no poder. No muy malas melodías, aunque no destaca especialmente
I am familiar with the tracks "The Look of Love" and "Poison Arrow". The rest of the album is similar. ABC has a very early 80s sound, but I don't think it's for me - too melodramatic. I've heard enough of ABC.
Queste produzioni anni '80 ormai mi disturbano. Sebbene non siano tra le peggiori band che abbiamo ascoltato finora e per quanto a tratti mi abbiano ricordato quell'indie molto pop dei tempi nostri (con le linee di basso a palla e super ritmiche)- che comunque fa cagare - nel complesso non mi hanno convinto.
Qua gli anni '80 si fanno sentire prepotentemente. Musicalmente sicuramente c'ha un suo stile come album e c'ha anche dei pezzi che ho apprezzato come "4 Ever 2 Gether" o l'ultima traccia, però è davvero troppo '80 glitterato. Ho fatto anche un ascolto e mezzo ma ogni pezzo m'è entrato da un orecchio e uscito dall'altro praticamente. Direi un 2 perché non l'ho odiato.
This was kind of like below average 80s music. It's not horrible, but just blah - there's nothing special about it. 5/10.
I didn't like ABC in 1982, but quite enjoyed this album when I finally heard all of it in the early 1990s. I've not listened to it for well over 20 years and I don't need to hear it for another 20 . It's okay, but nothing I'm going to choose to listen to over something else.
наполовину музыка вайс сити наполовину говно
Alkuun kuulosti hyvältä kasari-diskojytältä, mutta alkoi puuduttamaan hyvin nopeasti. Laulajan sydän rikottiin moneen kertaan jne. Toinen kierros levyä läpi oli aikamoista tervanjuontia.
Decent, a little too pop orientated for me.
Pretty funky 80's synth. Only knew one or two songs, but pretty enjoyable. Wouldnt go out of my way to listen again.
Generic, 80's
Ako ovo ne vrišti 80te, onda eto jebiga ne znam. Veoma je plesan ovaj album sa catchy refrenima, instrumentalom, ritmikom. Nije odlično, ali nije ni loše.
I remember these songs. To me, they were kind of cheesy pop and I didn't pay much mind to them. Some of these songs still feel genuinely pop-cheesy to me and annoy me (I can take only so much synth dominating a song, and the vocalist can kind of "over-sing" to my ear), but a couple of them are kind of fun and catchy. As an amateur noob of a musician, I know that writing and performing songs people like and remember is a rare skill, and a few of these songs on this album achieve that. And this came out in '82, a bit ahead of the massive amount of synth-pop that permeated the 80s airwaves. Not one I'll come back to, but one or two of the tracks were a fun memory trip.
Meh - didn't interest me
Pop in Reinkultur
Suuuuuper funky beats but really dated singing. No bueno.
Liked the horns in Show Me. Felt like the filler or transitions were better than the actual songs
80s movie soundtrack
Sure.
Very 80s, very synth. Just OK overall.
I couldn't get through it. There's one or two pop songs worth putting in a party playlist but its exhausting and sounds the same. Not even fun bass can make me enjoy it.
Idk... finding this mildly amusing but I don't think I like it.
Punk/disco fiske? Njae en stark synthpop debut dock
Beetje slap zoetsappig eighties album, big boomer vibe
2.5
More synth pop
Again not an 80s fan
2.5
So 80s I spontaneously grew blue eyeshadow and thick black eyeliner as I listened. I was never keen on ABC even in the 80s, I always considered them a poor man's Spandau Ballet. Listening to this album now, decades later, does nothing to change my mind. It's 80s, it's fun to sit and think wow this is so 80s, but that's about it.
80s disco vibes. Decent enough
oof... I feel like I wanna touch the tip of a penis with my tongue now. I guess it'll pass.
Another album tough to get through
80’er synth pop, fængende, kærlighed, opmuntrende
Pretty generic stuff, I don’t recall one song after having listened to the whole thing
the 80's-ness of this album oozes out like a pustular wound. Has been relegated deep in the library for good reason.
I don't like pop music. ABBA and Michael Jackson are artists I could live quite happily never having to hear another note of their music. And now this...the look of love? I'm vomiting in my hands. 1 "please make it stop" star.
They did not learn their ABCs well.
Meh
Synth pop album #300 so far (I've only had 460 generated so far, and the other 160 albums are Bowie or Bowie-related). Some tracks are tolerable, others overblown love tracks. 1/5 mostly because why must I be subjected to this.
Hated every second
🎧Is this Martin Sheffield Lickly of Comedy Bang Bang?
Already done by better bands.
Absolutely insufferable. How the hell is this on this list?!
Give me a slinky wrap dress with shoulder pads sharp enough to cut glass, the floofiest updo Aquanetted to perfection, a Fuzzy Navel that’s 80% peach schnapps, and cue the wind machine - because we’re about to make a theatrical entrance! “Show Me! Show Me!” an album bursting with everything I despise about 80s music wrapped up into one glossy, cheesy package. And since “Tears Are Not Enough”, neither is this. Let’s just leave it in 1982.
Eki
Wack. There's literally nothing to love about this...
uhh
LAME. DERIVATIVE.
If you made a bell curve of the albums on this list, it would skew so heavily to 70s/80s it's not even funny. We need to inject some millenial/genZ influence on this boomer list. This is dated, VERY 80s, and not a standout at all. 1* out of spite for having to listen to so much filler garbage.
mcdonalds-lobbby-ass album
Guh, not for me. The production drove me crazy, the style wasn't for me. Just a big pass for me.
Mmmhhhh
Pretty much the perfect embodiment of everything I hate and despise about 80s music. I'll admit the band is competent - it's probably better than most of the drivel produced in the same time period. But it just reminds me too much of everything I disliked while growing up in the 80s - drum machines, clap sounds and bubblegum lyrics about heartbreaks just make me want to puke. The only way this kind of synthy nonsense can work for me is when there is a dark side to it, like with Duran Duran or Depeche Mode. But ABC is so annoyingly tacky that they sound like a mindless caricature. It's music for psychopathic Wall Street yuppies and coked-up MTV barbie girls, and I find it exhausting. Favorite lyric : "Zoobidoo bidoo doo doo, love has no guarantee !". Enough said. 2/10
0% influence on me 100% boredom But what on earth is this album doing in this selection?? Maybe the band's name, ABC, is meant to make them easy to remember... apparently it failed.
A huge moment of emptiness. Synthpop always feels like having basic emotions thrown in my face, with zero nuance. I close my eyes and reopen them to a vision of a doll with a sketchy perm, sucking on a cherry. There are still a few groovy moments here, slightly more mature than what their peers were doing at the time. That’s about it.
1.5 Like wet bread. Can’t think of any justifiable reason for this to be on the list. I guess it’s music? But it’s unexciting, not important or influential, barely remembered, bland. What a waste of an entry!
I cannot support the musical vision of this band
Wannabe funky white guys. Unlistenable. Made me actively annoyed! No Stars! Oh, we have to give at least 1? 1 Star.
It's like an alphabet for romance movies that are really tacky.
Too 80s for me in a bad way. Found the arrangement too loud and grating.
At 42 minutes, this album is 39 minutes too long. “The look of love pt 1” is ok. Apple music description a lie. ONE!
First album during this journey that I’ve hated… it was so boring like what I would put together to make fun of 80s music
Dime a dozen 80s album.
Um…nope. Never heard a song by these guys before this. I love 80’s synth pop but this is not good. Singer is too theatrical.
Tough listen
I don’t even know how to rate/review/interpret music like this. I generally dislike 80s production. This sucks in my opinion.
Nope
This is just not my thing. Early 80s disco influenced pop is a genre I could skip altogether.
So middle of the road it’s embarrassing that it’s even on the list. Anyone influenced by this derivative album is obviously desperate.
They lied - this is NOT an album I must hear.
1.6
Poison Arrow is good. There... I said something good about a cheesy 80's album.