Reviews (page 3 of 7)
🎧Gets better/more interesting in the second half.
Album #167 Heaven 17: Penthouse And Pavement I’m not too surprised by the contempt shown for this album here, since most people don’t have a lot of patience for 80s New Romantic/ New Wave as it is, and this one is, well, pretty much the stereotypical version of that sound. However, I happen to be quite partial to that scene, so I feel as though I approached this album more favourably than most. The first track is definitely a classic of the era and the best song on the album. It sets the tone that the band will look to be political and try to actually say something important, despite the seemingly commercial aesthetic. The rest of the album is pretty consistent in its anti-war themes, which are far from the issues with the album. I think what holds this album back from being a classic is that it is simply too minimal; outside the opener, there are few moments of memorable instrumentation and explosiveness. If you are going to lean into synthpop, you need to have those large moments that make the music feel important; you just come off as being pretentious. Essentially just Alphaville without the bombast; I love Alphaville and the bombast, Heaven 17, I can take or leave. Best Songs: (We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang, Penthouse And Pavement, Geisha Boys And Temple Girls Worst Song: Song With No Name Score out of 10: 6
He doesn't want a facist groove, which is fair. Cause fuck facists.
Cool at first but really dwindled by the end. I think synths provide a cool effect when it’s done in moderation
I liked the beginning but the synths get stale pretty quickly. The second half wasn’t nearly as entertaining. Just middle of the pack for me
Honestly, I was really impressed with the first half of the album (which was amazing with the songwriting and production, but the songs got progressively worse after every song and thought it had much more potential. Definitely disappointed because of how it could have turned out, but it did have some fire tracks. Overall Score: Decent 5
"we have talking heads at home" but its more explicitly political. meet the new boss, same as the old boss. 3.5/5
It was the beginning of the 80s and Heaven 17 set the template for synth pop. Or something. It’s ok I guess, but it didn’t made an impression on me when it came out and other than ‘Fascist Groove Thing’ the tracks are mostly forgettable.
An amazing moment of bass over dubbing that makes all the eighties pioneered sound so sweet
This wasn't too bad. Some of the songs are kind of hokey, but there are also a handful of legit catchy ones. The lyrics are decent.
Took a minute to get used to. Eventually came around to this leftist synth-pop gem. Thematically a bit like Gang of Four but more early eighties Cold War anxiety. A bit strange with a little Devo influence I think (Are Everything or Height of Fighting). And a lot of Human League influence obviously. Walls the fine line between annoying and fascinating. Height of drum machine mania, a post-punk classic.
This was fun! 3.65
An obscure British record from the 80s that did resonate with me. It needs more memorable songs for a four-star rating, but still an enjoyable experience.
It's a decent early 80's synth type album. It has some good hooks.
Like if Erasure had socially conscious songs about nuclear war anxiety and fascism. Solidly 80s in sound, and often a bit clunky lyrically given the messaging they're trying to land while also having a dance synth feel. Weird & a little obvious at times but not unenjoyable.
Guess they should have stayed in the Human League? Im kidding. Love them pointing out that nobody needs that fascist groove thing (because fascists have no groove) and taking Kraftwork to the next logical step.
I thought this was okay.
Unique or maybe just strange, it was interesting to listen to British electro pop with a political message. Most of it wasn’t for me, but I liked some of the instrumental tracks toward the end of the album.
It's fine. I can tell it was very early for the time, so I appreciate the innovative style, but I also think it leans too heavily on style and not enough on substance.
Very 80s. Took a while to get going but I really dig the second half of the album
*Unique sound for the time as a mix of dance and techno with new wave *Cool bass lines but gets repetitive at times
Fun, funky, and experimental, but didnt really do it for me
de primeras, el synth pop no me gusta, y el primer tema del disco me espantó un poco, de hecho no lo logre terminar, es muy malo, me suena a boiled dog shit, pero desde segundo track ya tuvo algunas cosas que me llamaron la atencion, como por ejemplo las lineas de bajo, el groove mas funky. si bien no es lo que suelo consumir, fue una experiencia no tan desagradable para ser synth pop, que es un genero que reitero, no me gusta casi en absoluto. Este disco tiene cosas rescatables. le voy a dar un 3 de 5
At least it was a little funky at times
Starts off strong with the first two tracks and was into it but kind of lost its spark for me as it went on. Like a lot of synth pop, if I'm into the main groove I enjoy it, but if I'm not i get sick of the repetition. Also fairly primitive production/mixing, had to turn it almost all the way up. Not bad, not great
A good album, I liked Penhouee and Pavement and We're Going To Live For A Very Long Time the most.
Rating: 6/10 It's interesting, sort of a unique kind of spin on the New Wave sound, and kinda incredibly based with cool political concepts and album cover, but still a bit of a mixed bag for me in terms of sound and execution. We Don't Need This Fascist Groove thing starts pretty cool and was apparently banned by BBC Radio (? very lame) and the title track and Let's All Make A Bomb were both good too. Otherwise, I'm not sure how much I like the weird disco infused mechanical synthpoppy tunes, but then again the three tracks alone I listed take half the album's runtime so it gets just over a middling score
Completely unfamiliar with Heaven 17. Quite enjoyed it.
well, if there's no intelligent life up there on the moon and my broken relationship can't be mended, Heaven 17 coming back doesn't seem like the worst consolation prize! this has a pretty great head to hips ratio in terms of the part of you it's trying to move - the first two tracks in particular are funky enough to make the agitprop go down very smooth. it's not all quite so memorable, but the hooks and choruses stay strong and the production wonderfully off-kilter
It’s disco, new wave, but why does every song need to be five minutes long?!
80's vibe - it was alright
The vibe was so Austin Powers to me. I'm not going to listen to it ever again, but kinda fun & funky.
I recently slated Non Stop Erotic Cabaret, giving it a 2/5 and feeling that other synth pop bands since were doing it far better. This is doing it far better, two whole months before Soft Cell’s effort. I still don’t think it’s the most compelling listen ever but I had a lot more fun with it than NSEC. It’s a high 3.
ohh well well.. i am not really a techno person.. i do enjoy house party music that said... i like the poppy grooves of them though.. especially the second song in the album is kinda good...
Not the synth pop I was looking for. Too happy?
(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang 2.8 Penthouse and Pavement 3.3 Play to Win 3.2 Soul Warfare 3 Geisha Boys and Temple Girls 2.7 Let's All Make a Bomb 3.1 The Height of the Fighting 3.3 Song with No Name 3.2 We're Going to Live for a Very Long Time 2.7 Score: 3.033333333
What stood out to me most was the bass, some good grooves there. The first two songs are really good, and there’s some other good stuff, but I’m just not sure it’s a great album.
This is some weirdo stuff Gotta love when the coolest part of the album was the bassist and it turns out he wasn’t even part of the group he was just some random studio musician. Seriously though there were some awesome bass work going on. Singlehandly carried the album for me. I’m just not a huge fan of the remaining content, I don’t think anything was too terribly awful but it just kinda had me on edge, like there’d be a note that’d be ever so slightly sharp and grating. They could very easily make this unlistenable garbage with a couple of small changes. Lyrics and content are also just so hilariously on the nose at times that it’s kinda weird I can’t bring myself to loathe this, but I also don’t think it’s fair to give this anything higher than a 3 despite there being some fine sounding stuff in there. I really don’t think this is very good music at all (which seems to be a pretty popular opinion)
The first song was kind of boring to me, but then the second song played and I thought it was a really cool and funky song, but then the rest of the album just dragged on. I was pretty happy to find out the last few songs on the version I was listening to were different versions of songs already in the album. Overall, I like the sound of it, it gets funky and I vibe with it, but the last few songs were just so boring and were not interesting in the slightest.
If I heard “(We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang” come on the radio today, I would have assumed it was Hot Chip’s newest song. Not just the vocals, but the whole vibe and makeup of the song is so like Hot Chip. It’s uncanny. Of course, I wouldn’t hear it on the radio, because I listen to BBC Radio 6 Music, and this song was banned by the BBC. If it wasn’t, maybe I would have heard of Heaven 17 before today. “Fascist Groove” is an absolute tune. It’s utterly insane (like most of this album), fevered in tempo, and with so much going on in each of the electronic layers, it’s hard to keep up. I absolutely love it. This was released in 1981, and falls into the category of music production that sounds very much like it was released in 1981. Usually not the type of stuff that I enjoy. It’s a mixed bag sure, but there’s something about this album that I really liked. It’s camp, weird and dated, but in the middle of all of that, it’s serious fun, and there are actually some really great songs in there. 3.5 stars.
Si curieux surtout après Kendrick le saut est géant. Les morceaux instrumentaux sont ceux qui me plaisent le plus comme ceux qui empruntent le plus au funk. Fascist Groove Thang, song with no name.
I fucked with this one
For a person who loves the 80's thing and is all about early techno, electronica, I should be all about Heaven 17. But... Heaven 17, while having groove in their early, maybe even pioneering electronica, having decent lyrics and delivery, having range... it is so so stuck in the 80's... Maybe one or two songs at a time would be more than fine, fun even, but an album listened full through... Wow... it was not bad for what it is but what it is is very very stuck in its specific era. It might be fun as part of an 80's playlist as it does range differently than most pop music of the era. That, yes, would be worthy.
3/5
fun, okay highlights: penthouse and pavement 2.5/5
Good for its historical value. And it really isn't BAD. But this will be the last time I listen to it.
very 80s
I went into this expecting to hate this. I've been burnt too many times throughout this project by dated synth-pop that should have been left in the eighties. I'm happy to say that this record was weird and quirky enough that I could enjoy my time with it. One glance at the cover art and you can see that there is a sense of self awareness with these lads. They are riffing on the corporate culture of the time and it almost feels like they are satirizing how safe and commercial this style of music would become. That's pretty impressive when you consider that this album came out at the start of the decade! The goofiness of opener '(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang' won me over with its absurdity. The bass and synths on this record are very funky and the vocalist has a strong deep voice that drives the songs forward. There's a sick bass line on 'Soul Warfare' that made the track stand out amongst the rest. I'm not saying this is a classic album by any means, the quirkiness wears thin eventually and the band does feel like a poor man's Talking Heads, but this is still better than a lot of their contemporaries.
its fine, not really my thing. Is this the first new wave album? Hard to see why this one in particular is a big deal.
Bass carried the whole way. First half wasn't very good but the second half made up for it. 3.1/5
5 for the basslines, 2 for the rest
It's quite an unusual album this. The music in it is strangely engaging, even though it's a bit mad and frantic, and with weird synths. I'm not sure I've ever really heard anything else quite like it. It's very 80's in terms of production though. Way stripped-back sounding and without much oomph. I'll be generous because I appreciate the weirdness. 2.5 rounded up.
that 80s sound!!!
We Don't Need This Fascist Groove Thang rings very true today. Very funky, happy sound that is covering some dark themes.
This is an early synth-alternative album. Interesting, but not great. Pitchfork: n/a Rolling Stone: n/a Best Songs (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang
Nice
For some reason when I first glanced at this album cover I thought it was some obscure Pavement album. PSA: this music does NOT sound like Pavement.
Hey, wanna start Marxist corporate funk band blending dance rhythms and bleak, intellectual punk? Throw in some 80s synth, and baby you got a stew goin'! I don't love this... but I don't hate it? How about "I admire it"? It's clever, stylish, and distinct, but also as emotionally withholding Lucille Bluth. (That's two Arrested Development references if you're counting). Not a chunk of music that invites you in, more spreads the cheeks and lifts the sack, but a decent view!
I... I like this? Something about the industrial, mechanical, communist sound really held my attention and kept me engaged. Good for background, not distracting, couple of interesting lyrics that perked my ears up here and there. Yeah, I think I like it!
didn't finish :/ at a certain point it truly sounded the same which was meh.
Heaven 17 produced two absolute bangers of tunes : Fascist Grove Thang (on this album) and Temptation (not on this).The rest is.... middling.
You guys aren't ready for the cheesy might of 80s alternative pop and it shows
Not what we thought it would be. Strange at parts.
Quite fun to listen to, but not really my cup of tea genre wise
Quite interesting, not what I thought it would be….
Interesting, but weird
(We don’t need this) fascist groove thang is such a good song title - the songs pretty good too but the rest of the album doesn’t live up to it
I don't like the vocals and I dont much like the music (I same the same for all of these British New Wave bands), and it's very dated now. But it's groundbreaking, it has good lyrics, and it deserves another star just to piss off all the Facism-embracing Americans on the site who gave one-star reviews.
Decent 80s vibe. I liked the anti fascist themes and lyrics.
Somewhat manic. I think in a good way?
The bass on this is amazing - real funk powerhouse stuff. The synth programming is rather cheesey. The songs are a bit samey. There's even a squelchy 303 line in here, many years before acid reared its head.
I was originally going to be bitchy and say this was Temu-Pet Shop Boys/kraftwerk BUT I actually didn’t mind it - and when imagine it sitting in a timeline between Kraftwerk and Pet Shop Boys then some of its awkward dorkiness is forgiven because these music techniques were probably pretty ground breaking at the time - and also I appreciate a bit if sparseness in music.
5/10 I thought Heaven 17 were electropop, with emphasis in the Pop. But I was confusing them with Haircut 100... Makes sense now. This is a sparser and more mechanical take on synth music. Lacks much soul (or tunes). Easy to see how this would have been much more impactful in its day, when this sounded modern. Today, it sounds very dated and uninspired
Album #1,068 Right off the bat, Leftists calling Republicans fascists. I guess some things never change. Ignoring the on-the-nose political lyrics, the music was kind of ok early 80s energetic pop.
I enjoyed the Penthouse side quite a lot but the Pavement side wasn’t as good. I had listened to it a while ago and didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I did this time around. Really tough between a high 3 and low 4. Also was cool to learn they didn’t even do live performances until late 80s. Anyone who is on the Trainspotting soundtrack is alright in my book. Rating: 3.5
3 stars
This was fine but nothing special.
Timing of this album couldn’t have been better
Going to say it was not the most exciting music in my life, but still perfectly listenable.
I know synth effects were all the rage in the 80s, but this album just overuses it to such a ridiculous extent... I didn't hate it, it was all perfectly listenable, but it was also pretty dull. Each track was like the band just found a synth sound they liked and then decided to use it non-stop through the entire track. The lyrics were decent at times but then were also just repeated over and over and over. The vocals are pretty typical for the era, so they don't really stand out to me, and they aren't my favourite style. Not terrible though. In terms of creativity, I did like the fact that this album seemed to like doing some deliberately off-beat vocals, that was pretty unusual and it did catch my attention in a good way. Very low 3. Probably not something I'm going to listen to again but it was OK...
found myself enjoying it as simple fun but not something i could say much about or see myself going back to
It's synthpop to me, it can never be much higher than a 3 star. I'll be honest this is a good example of synthpop, but it is still nothing that amazing. I will say there are some fantastic song titles on here though
It was definitely a weird album I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it so I think that it’s a lower 3
Listening session: february 22nd, while getting ready in the morning Listened to before: no Thoughts: I mainly liked the first couple of songs because I’m a sucker for groovy bass lines but other than that this album didn’t wow me Favourite track: (We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang & Penthouse And Pavement
Heaven 17 because this is music for 17 year olds. 3/5
bit boring ngl, though i enjoyed it
Pretty cool snapshot of this time and sound. Not the best synth-pop album ever, but a fair entry into it's catalog. Does it deserve to be on this list? Probably not, but I've been forced to listen to a lot worse than this.
This is *very* Sparks and *very* DEVO but not as funny as either of them. Still, kind of groovy. Favorite Tracks: We Don't Need That Fascist Groove Thang, Geisha Boys and Temple Girls, Let's All Make a Bomb, We're Going to Live For a Very Long Time
3.3
not bad, just good background noise
i liked this, very surprising 3.5
This wasn’t bad for background but I won’t seek it out. To be honest probably won’t even remember listening to it.
I was so prepared to hate this album but it was quite good.
This album is better than what I thought, but I didn't like it to the extent to say it's good. At least some songs are nice, and some arrangements too. Well, it was nice... I guess.
A New Wave State back in the day - Everyone's darling band. Listen and get a taste of what you missed if you were born in the 90's
We don't need no fascist groove thing is the anthem I didn't know I needed.
I love the Human League, their early stuff is tremendous. This breakaway group could have been the best. But there is something missing, I can't put my finger on it. It may be the overblown tunes?
Okay an interesting one. I've literally never heard of these guys before, maybe cause I'm American? idk. I didn't hate this, there's a lot of sounds in this that I really enjoy in music I already love, but this one isn't entirely clicking with me. It's fine, there's nothing inherently bad about it, but I just don't see myself pressing play on this ever again. There's so many other versions of these sounds I already love. (I only listened to songs 1-9 because that's the original tracklist)
So 80s! Love an anti-fascist bop
banger intro into middling new wave.
Honestly liked this much more than I thought I would. Let's all make a bomb is so good.
Nothing remarkable nothing bad right down the middle
Track 1 is ready to go viral on tiktok.
Decent, very decent. Short enough good stuff No complaints Easy 3
I never got super into them but I liked Human League. I've seen both at Cruel World haha! Cheesy new wave fun
I had never heard this album. It was good 👍
Exactement le genre de découverte que j'attend de cette liste. 3.49 étoiles
Ce n’est pas ce que j’écoute au quotidien, mais c’était une belle découverte.
Not the biggest fan of the shoegaze elements, not bad but not my cup of tea
Really weird, but I kinda enjoy it, in a weird way.
# Playlist Track - (We don't need this) Fascist Groove Thang # Notes - First few tracks are pretty good but it loses steam along the album. Still a very pleasant surprise. - Doesn't live on the pantheons of synthpop, but it's a fun listen, all things considered. - Very annoyed that in 2026 not wanting fascist groove thangs is still relevant.
A surprise. Quite good
Ekkert spes. Early synthatónlist en þeir vissu ekki alveg hvert þeir voru að fara með þetta. Þó ýmsir góðir hljómar og pælingin er þarna.
A typical 80s synthpop album - not the best but not the worst in this genre... just mid I much preferred the vibe of the first few songs, anything after that became very repetitive and uninspiring Best = (We don't need this) Fascist groove thang Skip = We're going to live for a very long time
Bastante chulillo
Weird 80s experimental/noise album. Was pretty funky and groovy at times, I’ll probably revisit as a joke to my friends lol
This had its moments
Great first track. The rest was pretty fun but nothing I hadn't heard before.
Surprising to me that, given this kind of weirdo stuff is my bent, I'd only ever heard the name. I liked it though I felt it was a little sparsely designed at times and perhaps a little to twee to be arch.
Fascist Groove Thing was repetitive and annoying. But Penthouse and Pavement (song) was very enjoyable. Despite a few of the songs being a bit repetitive there are also some cool melodies here. Let's all make a Bomb is catchy. Height of Fighting is not bad, either. Song with No Name is a catchy melody, too. They have a very 80's synth sound. Puts me in mind of Axel F.
5.5/10
Less interesting version of Talking Heads. Enjoyed it, but would rather listen to Talking Heads.
I hate live albums.
A few nice 80s songs, but a few are very monotonous. 3.4 stars
This wasn't bad, but from what I can tell they weren't the first band to do something significant to musical history and nothing in this album screams "greatness." I think this might be one of those "Oh man, I'm at 998 albums and I'm out of Elvis Costello and Blur. What do I pick? To the dartboard!" Personal enjoyment: 3/5 Relevance to this list: 1/5
I liked a number of the signs, but found others tedious
For this kind of music, that 80sish pop stuff, this was probably one of the more enjoyable albums from that genre. 3.5.
Crqp. I liked this.
Nunca me tomé en serio este grupo. Siempre lo vi como una especie de Depeche Mode prefabricados. No suenan tan mal pasado el tiempo y la primera canción, pues muy oportuna para los tiempos que corren: "(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang".
I never knew they spun off from the Human League, but this is definitely an improvement over Dare, and Fascist Groove Thang has some staying power. Still not enough to push it past a 3, though.
Okay. Good.
fascist groove thing- 5. i like the bass solo penthouse and pavement- 5 play to win- 5 soul warfare- 5 geisha boys and temple girls- 5 lets all make a bomb- 5 the height of the fighting- 5 song with no name- 5 we're going to live for a long time- 5 groove thing- 5 its funky but boring
As an electronic dance album from the early 80s is was good but there are better groups and albums out there. “Fascinating Geoove Thang and Penthouse and Pavement were the standouts for me.
(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang is one of the best opening tracks ever. Everything else is pretty nice synth pop music, but nothing too outstanding to write about.
first listen bleh
Never heard of this band before today. Didn't know what to expect. This album was a lot of fun! A little samey at times but didn't take away from the overall experience. I'd give it a 3.5/5 if I could. I was going back and forth if I should round up or down for my score. Upon a second listen I think I'll round down. Didn't have enough to push it into 4 territory.
very discordant, its listenable, and innovative for its time
This is the ultimate eighties style almost like a parody seen from today. The rhythm is robotic as much as it can be. I can't understand how anyone can enjoy this kind of music. But it is really interesting from a historical point of view.
To me, this feels more post-punk than new wave (I can't quite put my finger on what the difference is, but it's there to me). Usually, post-punk bands have to choose between emphasizing the ability to dance to them or being dour, but Heaven 17 here are attempting to do both at once. I don't think it quite works, but it does lead to a post-punk album that doesn't quite feel like any of the countless others I've heard. I do really like the cover; gotta love these ironic representations of corporate life!
The streak of 3/5s continue Pretty solid album with beats that I’m sure were groundbreaking at the time but are pretty standard nowadays Some of the songs would sound great on a DJ set It’s got a little bit of kraftwerk with some super catchy hooks Standouts: Let’s make a bomb, the height of the fighting
Fuck I wish I could have this hour and a half back
I'm leaning towards a 3 with this album. It was an absolute delight with headphones on, and I really enjoy this type of music. I'm not so sure it needed to be included in the list, but it's a happy lil discovery nonetheless
Wasn't aware of this record. It has always been my personal belief that we don't need this fascist groove thang, so it's very reassuring to see this sentiment echoed in popular music. I like the funky "pavement" side (first 4 tracks) a lot more than the second "penthouse" side.
holy early 80s, batman!!
This is a 3.5 for me, but I can't really round up to 4 stars, as I feel the music is mostly novelty in this album. It sounds like Devo doing New Wave, which I can understand, but I would imagine a later album would pull it together in a better package. I don't dislike the album, but there wasn't a lot I really wanted to hold onto, and it just feels a bit too early to be praised too highly.
This was an odd sounding one to me. I do feel like with another listen or two I'd like it more, but I don't feel inclined to test that theory.
1981 British synth pop. This isn't a neighborhood you want to be in, but if you are here, this might be the best restaurant in that part of town. Not offensive. Enough real sounding instrumentation and backup singers to enjoy.
I want more anti-fascist dance music in my life but the music was just kind of so so.
Any album that starts with an anti-fascist boogie gets bonus points. This should really be one of the anthems of our time. The rest of this was kinda cheesy 80s fare, but I appreciate their efforts.
Fun, but unfortunately dammed by the post-album shuffle: when the first song auto-played after the album is over is by the same artist but much better than what you’ve heard so far.
Helt ok
Repetitive and honestly sounded like a bunch of retro game sound effects for a lot of it. The bass was great on the first few songs and some of the synth sounds were cool, especially the “wet” synth sounds which I just love for some reason. There was some funky moments as well with the guitars (and the bass again) especially on the second song which I wish was more representative of the rest of the album as the female vocalist was great. I don’t really understand why this was on here though as it literally says this didn’t chart at all and doesn’t have any cool context to justify it here otherwise other than it being “an important outing”. At least it was a decent one though but only with a few major highlights for me. Favourites: title track and Let’s all make a bomb. Overall, 5/10.
I usually stay away from this kind of music. That is, angular early 80s punk. But this album is more than that. While I admittedly don't care for the primitive synth tones, the drum machines, or the vocals, the grooves themselves are undeniable. The synth bass and drum sequences really carry this album for me. I'll only mention this album if I'm trying to impress people. Favorite songs: Song With No Name, Play to Win, Geisha Boys and Temple Girls, We're Going to Live For a Very Long Time.
Starts off well, falls off midway. That leaves us in the middle.
Hmm sure interesting, the perfect hybrid between post punk and new wave, but not 1001 worthy 3/5
So 80s, es principi m'ha sorpres. Valor originalitat.
Pretty basic as far as synthpop goes, but still manages to be catchy some of the time
Best thing was that it was short
nothing special but not as annoying as I was expecting which is nice. Definitely a product of its time. feels like a 3.
Odd. Questionable lyrics but pretty catchy? 3 ⭐️
Meh, whatever. The first track really seems to think it's making an Important Political Statement, so of course the album gets docked points for that. But "Geisha Boys and Temple Girls" is fun.
Such a weird conglomaration of genres compressed into one album. This weirdness is what I signed up for. 3/5
Pretty standard early 80's synthpop and new wave. Not much to say about it, there seem to be a lot of these on here. It is quite funky, though. Key tracks: (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang Play to Win
Interesting music from a band that got its name form A Clockwork Orange
I was a little surprised to see this band having an entry in the book, they are definitely not the best of 80s UK pop, that crown going to Duran Duran, and the only single I ever liked was Temptation. Their lead single off the album “We Don’t Need this Fascist Groove thing” with such brilliant politically charged lyrics has sadly a tune so dull I wonder if the BBC banned it for being boring. That’s what I wrote before I heard the rest of the album. Track 4 onwards is great and credit for making a political pop album, so ultimately 3 STARS.
Forgotten gem. A little too clubby for 7a, but good stuff nonetheless.
Some solid dance floor tracks, some cool hooks. This album is a pass from me. I'm not fan of the synthesizer on this album, it just tends to sounds more obnoxious than anything else.
Devo dire che non mi è dispiaciuto tuttavia che dopo 1h e 20 ero un pochino esaurito
Does anyone need a fascist groove thang? Anyone? This groove thang was almost a four but not quite.
A little bit I like here, though weirdly more like there’s bits of certain songs I like and other bits I don’t. So I have to listen like I’m eating a salad. You know how make yourself a salad with ingredients you don’t like, so you have to eat around them?
Started out stronger than a three but ended pretty shit.
Was scared going into this with the sound of the first 10 seconds, and the rest of the song blew me away. Beginning of Geisha Boys is fun af. Same with Let's Make a Bomb. We're Going to Live for a Very Long time is pretty terrible. It was probably in low 4 range before that but that brings it to a high 3 instead. Still much better than a lot of the British synth dribble we get here.
Yeah, I like it well enough. At first I thought it was some second-rate version of Human League or ABC or something. Turns out it kind of is, as 2 of the guys were in Human League. I think this might be better. It is a bit same-y throughout, but it's fairy high quality for this type of music. They've got some horns in there for variety. Pretty good. The bass player is doing some fine work throughout. Most notably on "Penthouse and Pavement" and "Soul Warfare". (In the latter, it starts out with a few minutes of fairly repetitive sound, but then they just say "Hey, bass guy... go for it!") While I am one of the rare(r) listeners that quite enjoys longer songs, this has some that are too long for no good reason. Extra time is good if you're going to take some twists and turns. Here, it's just doing the same things for a few too many minutes. I'll end this review in an analogous way, ending on a down. "We're Going To Live For A Very Long Time" is Far too repetitive. Sad that the album ends on this sour note. 3
Alright
I don't really know what to say about this one. It is painfully 80s. But still fun. Great bass lines for the songs that actually have a real bass. It sounds like a soundtrack from a silly, feel-good 80s comedy. It gets a little repetitive. It's short and to the point though. I don't know why this album was included. I feel like whoever made this list was just to the point of 'yeah I need like 50 more, what's an album I've listened to that's not here yet?'. But still, it was fine for one listen through. 2.5/5
White boys gettin funky. The A-side is pretty solid, but unfortunately this album is extremely frontloaded. The schtick was already worn off by the time the B-side started and it didn't get any better across the rest of the album.
Weird album. They're really good at the funky, danceable tracks they open the album with, but they gradually shift into some Kraftwerk-style, almost industrial synth experimentations. There's an ironic touch I enjoyed about the final track -- they're singing about dancing their way through collapse, meanwhile all of the danceability they had at the start of the album has crumbled away by this point. The entire B-side was a rough first listen, but there’s something strangely infectious about it that kept pulling me back. I think I’ve come around on it now, I think it's a solid record, though not one that's going into the rotation. Standouts: (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang • Play To Win • Soul Warfare • Let's All Make A Bomb
title track goes hard
3.25
Börjar rätt bra och därefter mer ojämn. Rätt kul lyssning på det hela taget ändå, även om det inte är en skiva jag lär lyssna på fler gånger.
Interesting snapshot of its time, but it’s tough to imagine people listening to it a lot today. Fascist Groove Thing remains a great song
Pretty groovy early '80s synthy dancer tracks, fit for the most neurodivergent club in the most dystopian future sci-fi cybercity
For a second I thought we were finally getting some pavement in the mix! Instead it was disco. This was ok. The Height of Fighting was fun. Light 3.
Dance pop with some political commentary.
Certainly not lazy musicians - bewildering bass and enchanting piano arrangements. The vocals the weakest link. The vocals somewhere in the same influences as Orange Juice, Human League, Japan, Duran Duran,.... DEVO. I don't know how I missed this band before other than probably being hijacked by The Smiths. Anyway, let's make yuppie business suit skinny tie pony tails avant-garde again.
Funk
British pop / new wave vibe
This might be one of the weirdest albums I've heard for this project, but not in the way that other albums have been weird. Something like the Residents is obviously weird in a way that was clearly intentional. That's the usual "weird album" for me, but this Heaven 17 album is weird in a way that's hard to explain. I really don't know how to put it into words. It all starts with the opening track, "(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang." This song is outwardly anti-fascism and anti-Reagan. As a fellow hater of fascists, I love that. Songs like these are awesome for existing, and the fact that this song has been covered a number of times to be more befitting of the Trump administration is great considering how terrible both Reagan and Trump are. Fuck both of them. Anyways, let's keep talking about this album. While I love the politics of the opening track, it's kind of weird to hear it paired with the musical style. Yeah, this is a straight-up 80s synth-pop album. It's a little cheesy in the sound department and it's definitely dated. There's something about the sound throughout the album that just feels a little... off? I can't explain it. I like things like the bass, but the overall tone of the album doesn't really vibe with me. Additionally, while some songs are political in a respectable way like the aforementioned opener and "Let's All Make A Bomb," but other songs feel kind of meaningless, like the title track. I don't really know why this album's even on the list. It's not like it's super important or even a cult classic. It has good elements, but when you already have other 80s synth-pop acts like the Human League on here, I kind of get this feeling of redundancy from this specific inclusion. Speaking of the Human League, I guess this is kind of a side project of theirs, which makes this inclusion seem even more redundant. This album isn't bad, but it's kind of weird and I can see why others might be put off by it. Still, it has some things that I really like mixed in, so I can't give this too low of a score. 3/5.
Ok
From what I read both guys in this band were also founding members of The Human League. Fun cheesy '80s new wave with really prominent and groovy funk basslines. I really loved the one hit from this record (We Don't Need This Fascist Groove Thang) and of course Temptation and was hoping it was something like that. It's not, it has more of a dorky yacht rock vibe, but it's still fun and delightfully '80s, just not really something I'll come back to most likely.
Came and went, weirdly short.
Lots of interesting instrument choices. At one point said this is the most whistles I've heard in any song. Could kind of hear influence they had on later stuff.
The song eponymous with the album is the stand-out song. Rest is mid. 3/5
Första sidan består av funkdisco som verkligen inte faller mig i smaken. Jag tror att få skulle tycka att det åldras väl. Den enda höjdpunkten är facist groove thang som är en av deras bästa låtar nånsin, en banger. Sammantaget är det max 2 stjärnor 🌟 på sida 2. Sida två förvånar och är kall elektronisk musik som påminner mer om vad de gjorde i Human league, jag älskar sån musik lika mycket som jag har svårt för funk. Här är det fler stjärnor 🌟 , kanske en fyra eller trea. Så svårt om helheten är 2 eller 3.
As a fan of the 80s music era and particularly of this genre this was one of the more mediocre records. Lacks the hooks and epic fun that made the best records from this era delightful. Their pretentious Cold War obsessed lyrics are eye-rolling. You leave The Human League to create another band, in order to do this?
It's interesting. There's a weird pop-sensibility to these tracks which are actually angry post-punk. It kinda works, but the voice for me is a bit grating after a while. Nice though, overall.
More wacky 80s stuff. There were a lot of sounds on this album and I’m not sure if any of them were that good but I know I liked them more than some other sounds on this list.
Too disco for me personally.
Good early New Wave. People think there was much more of this than there really was, especially in 81. It doesn't fully hold up and there may be too much of it on this list but I like it more than the 35 Madchester albums.
Employing the typical 80s pop sound (Wham, a-ha) but juxtaposed with unusual song structures, melodies and lyrics. Interesting keyboards and bass guitar (in some songs).
I guess I appreciate that the content is still currently relevant but I just couldn’t get into it. Rounding up from 2.5
I never heard of Heaven 17. This is pretty middle of the road for me.
A stellar debut from the eighties' preeminent Bop-it based band.
While I do agree that we do not need this fascist groove thing (now more than ever), that song might not be the most convincing approach. However, the rest of the album was quite good. Some great grooves.
-“vaguely gay British synth pop band i’ve never heard of” seems to be a very common category in this list. but it’s one i always enjoy delving into -this was an alright listen i’d say.. not my favorite at all, sort of generic, but the opening tracks for both sides were really fun. 80s synth pop just has such a cool aesthetic -Favorites are (We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang and Geisha Boys And Temple Girls
Kind of mesmerizing honestly. Very unexpected. Best tracks: Penthouse and Pavement Play to Win 3/5
Preachy lyrics for generic songs that sound like what other artists have done better — but it was short and upbeat, so not unpleasant to listen to
The first song is still super relevant! Fun album, I enjoyed but I wouldn’t actively listen to this again Fav songs: (we don’t need this) fascist groove thang
Here’s another debut album, this one is from the British trio Heaven 17. Two of the three band members were with Human League previously, and the similarity is apparent. This album came out in 1981, at the tail end of the disco era, and there’s some disco vibe here too. A few of the tracks went on too long with too much repetition in my opinion. The record is a fusion of techno pop, disco, and 80s music.
Some good shit but not my vibe
Never heard of this band. This was pretty decent 80s sounding stuff.
Not as good as I seem to remember. Still good though.
Classic 80’s bliss. Not really my style of music, but I could definitely listen to it again. Rating: Good/Mid
This one screams early '80s from the first synthetic snare hit. Half Human League spin-off, half business-funk experiment, it's all angular synths, stiff grooves, and anti-fascist posturing with a dance beat. I can practically see the college apartment: Flock of Seagulls haircut, safety pin earrings, a Union Jack taped to the wall, someone pouring cheap Jägermeister shots while pretending to understand Thatcherism. I might dance on the coffee table later, but for now, it’s 3 stars.
I'll admit - I didn't love this album at first. But that's because the first half of this is the "Pavement" side, which consists of cocaine-fueled, overly-busy, panic-inducing electro-funk. It took some getting used. It's clear the band was growing into this sound, and wasn't entirely sure how this kind of music should sound. The mix is CRAZY, especially on "Fascist Groove Thang." The second side, "Penthouse" is more fun (and interesting) than the experimental funk of "Pavement." The band is clearly more comfortable with straight-forward electronic pop. "Geisha Boys" makes absolutely no sense, but the rest of the songs on the B side are excellent. I guess I'm more of a Penthouse guy. THREE STARS
I feel I would listen to this a lot in another universe where I also like silly pop music but I’m more cool and interesting and weird but in like a cool and normal way. The album, at least the spotify version I listened to also had some extra 7” and 12” versions of a few songs which I half feel I didn’t want to listen to but half feel some of the songs grew on me a bit more. I still have one of those 12” tracks to listen to but I’m writing this now for the sake of writing this before I go to bed
Not bad! 3/5
Never heard of this....but I bet LCD Soundsystem has. This cannot be from 1981. I call shenanigans!
Not bad
a primeira metade eh PEDRADA demais, synthpop com outros ritmos e um baixao gostoso demais na segunda metade fica mais atmosférico e um pouco experimental demais... mas num eh ruim nao!!
Like a lot of these albums, I find it interesting because it's important rather than because it's engaging. Heaven 17's best tracks are on The Luxury Gap. On this, they've clearly got a soft political message to make and they're very experimental with the electronics.
3/5
Weird, but not without charm.
I thought it was fine. Some of the songs got a bit repetitive, but that's not unique among new wave. I always find it funny when Brits act like Reagan was the epitome of right wing terribleness while they're in the midst of the Thatcher government.
01) (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang - 7,5 02) Penthouse and Pavement - 7,0 03) Play to Win - 6,5 04) Soul Warfare - 6,5 05) Geisha Boys and Temple Girls - 6,5 06) Let's All Make a Bomb - 7,0 07) The Height of the Fighting - 6,5 08) Song with No Name - 6,5 09) We're Going to Live for a Very Long Time - 7,0 TOTAL: 6,78 (68/100)
Early 80’s new wave and throwing everything against the wall. Drum machines and synths meet horns and samples. Curious flow to the record but not in a bad way. Kind of leaves a road map for those that came after. Like experimenting with this and that only to have another artist clean it up and make it theirs.
A few of the songs were pretty interesting, but nothing stood out as being really special to me.
I liked the first half better than the second half - surprisingly catchy.
Weird!
At least it was relatively short.
Fun
80 's pop, new wave?
Synthie-Pop. Kann man sich anhören, ist aber über das ganze Album ziemlich ähnlich. 3/5
Not bad..... I liked this one.
I don't see what all the hate is about.This is actually a pretty fun and interesting record.Sure.It's a bit tedious and corny, but isn't that what music is supposed to be?Doesn't that what keeps us entertained
1981. Early 80's groovin and social commentary. I kinda like it but it also seems very cleche but since its so early in the 80's maybe it is the trendsetter
yeah pretty lit
Penthouse And Pavement was just a really weird album and a really difficult one for me to speak my opinions on it. I guess one thing i can really say about it is "The 80sness is strong with this one" as this is probably one of the most 80s albums i have ever heard. You can just tell that this album was from 1981 with all the synths, the style of the vocals and all the quirks that this album had. The quirkiness is the real make it or break it moment for this album for a lot of people. I can see why some people find it annoying but oddly enough, i did kinda enjoy just how quirky this album is. Its definitely an odd one but still a somewhat enjoyable one. Best Song: Play To Win Worst Song: Song With No Name
The lyrics are interesting... Would like to hear someone remake this in a non-synth pop style. As is, it's fine to ignore while listening at the gym.
Fun New Wave album
B-minus grade 80s synth pop that pales relative to peers like Human League, New Order, and Depeche Mode, but still mostly fun and listenable if you are a fan of the genre. A more funky and danceable variation that at times sound like a combo of Chic and Kraftwerk
One of the more interesting new wave albums. Cool synths
Не особо впечатлило, однако достаточно необычно и иногда можно послушать. 6 из 10.
Synthy Pop. Nothing special.
Enjoyed more than expected and grew on me as I got into the album and accepted it for what it was. 80s electro/synth pop with some nifty samples and experimentation. Bordering on parody at times and a kind of pet shop boys / Alan Partridge bass mash up. But good fun and energy. Would expect to really not like this but something is just getting under my skin, in a playful, fun way. Interesting history with BEF and Human League. There is something cheekily infectious about this album. (3.5)
Summary: An album that I would've hated as background noise, but upon close listening it's unprofessional and silly enough to wrap back around to being kind of good. Lots of goofy synths, following in disco's footsteps and doing the experimentation that would be capitalised on by Prince, Jackson, and many others. The record starts with a few densely textured tracks, but as soon as the piano and guitar drop out, the rest of the album is missing a little something. (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang: The synths set up a cool chord progression that never really resolves, so it's a bit unsatisfying. The low synth solo at around 1:35 is pretty nifty. In general, the singing is mixed quite low, and I think the music would sound better with something more "upfront". But it's still groovy. I do worry that the lyrics imply Reagan was a fascist president. Listen, I dislike Reagan and his stupid economic policies as much as the next guy, but he's no fascist - especially compared to some other (unspecified) presidents. Penthouse And Pavement: Another prominent synth part. I see a theme. This one captures the early-80s electronic fascination that makes that decade such a charming little time capsule. Cool percussion, especially when it's soloing at around 4:00. The piano (with a convincing chord progression!) and back-and-forth female backing vocals give this a post-disco feel, which I would normally shun but is actually pretty good here. The song's too long, though. (Pah. Typical disco.) Play To Win: This sounds very much like Let's Dance-era Bowie. Except, unlike with Dave, something about this singing is just unprofessional-sounding and unappealing. The reverse fade-in noises in the backing(?) vocal continue to make it sound like a Bowie parody. The synth solo in the middle of the song doesn't quite save it. But the synths, guitar, and bass do. I just hope Heaven 17 grows out of this disco feel before the end of the album. Soul Warfare: Essentially the lengthy outro of the previous track. It's the same tempo and uses a near-identical set of instruments. Great little bass solo around 3:10. The basswork throughout this album, so far, has been really strong. With this particular track, the bass really sells the entire song. The percussion definitely anticipates Michael Jackon's 80s material, and I wouldn't be surprised if he took notes from Heaven 17's output. Geisha Boys And Temple Girls: The noises in the intro could be best described as "squirty synths". They're unpleasant and I have to imagine they just haven't aged well. It's like if the Star Trek universe had water guns, and the water guns made an appropriate or inappropriate) sound. The rest of the song is uninspiring and the synths are a bit of a nuisance here. Let's All Make A Bomb: The texture feels a bit thin here, and I guess that's a good thing. It creates more of an "album experience" to have some variation in thickness and loudness. The octave-harmonising is fine, though I think there should be some more interesting vocalising going on when they sing the song title. This has the beginnings of a good song (maybe good for covering?) but as it stands it's not *that* great sounding. The Height Of The Fighting: "HEAT. WAR. SWEAT. LAW." These vocals are unnecessarily grandiose (and kind of cavemannish) which definitely adds to the charm. Again, another fairly thin texture - pretty much every instrument, including the vocals, is played with staccato. I miss the fatter synths and piano. Still, this is a fun track. Song With No Name: Lots of interacting synths here. Complex textures are always a win, and this is probably the most interesting track so far in that regard. I don't know what the heck's going on with the melody. Definitely some polyrhythms going on, but at times it sounds completely improvised, for the worse. There's also a construction drill noise that's very distracting to the ear. I kept hearing it and glancing out the window to admire the phantom blue-collar workers outside. (Still a good song though!) We're Going To Live For A Very Long Time: Are we, now? A very high synth mimics the melody and also gets a few solo lines. It makes the whole song sound silly and nonserious. And great at the same time. Why am I enjoying this? It almost objectively sucks. But hey, at least these guys aren't actively trying to sound bad for the purposes of societal revolution (I think they aren't, anyway) - and for that, this entire album gets several bonus points above punk, post-punk, and industrial music. Repetition of the track title at the end is goofy and such an odd choice to send off the listener that I have to give props. Because, perhaps unexpectedly, I enjoyed this album. 3/5 Key tracks: (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang, Penthouse And Pavement
Favorite song: pay to win. Overall score: 7,2/10
Kinda Duran Duran-y, with a hint of talking heads
british synth-pop with political themes. good listen.
Enjoy a bit of 80s.
anche lui senza infamia, senza lode
2.7/uh i liked one track from the deluxe and i don't even think they made it, lol
I had not heard of Heaven 17. After listening to this album I’m not sure there’s any reason that I should have. It’s not bad. But it’s not better than a dozen other bands that were doing the same thing at the same time.
Gear: Focalman Cleardara Artwork: 🤝💼🏙️ Production: 🤔😐👍 Music: 🎛️🏛️💣 Rating: 💷💷💷/5
Good album, interesting lyrics, quite easy to dance to, but way too much 80s synthpop for me. It might be a seasonal thing, but I'm feeling terrible listening to those beats.
Very fun album, lots of great moments
Very 80s with some interesting sounds.
Partially listened before Fa tracks: (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thing, Play to Win
Gotta be a 3 just for the bass alone!
This was the first group recommended through this project that I had truly never heard of. It was good- sounds like a precursor and/or peer to Kraftwerk almost?
It's crazy to think that in the 70s, when synthesizers first started to widely appear in music, the prog bands got it right pretty much immediately, but the rest, for some reason, up until pretty much the 90s had... this... This album is fine, but it's early synthpop, and it shows. It feels more like a proof of concept than a mature work, which is weird since we had had good synths a decade before that. It's too minimalistic for my tastes, and the instrumentation feels a little dry, especially in the second half. It's very much a product of it's time.
Classic 80s pop, some good catchy melodies but it’s just too dated and cliché for me. That classic 80s vocal on show, synths, drum machines. It’s ok.
Penthouse and Pavement is the debut album from Heaven 17, a British synth-pop group. Ian Craig Marsh and Martyn Ware were part of the group Human League until 1980; they added a few members and became the British Electronic Foundation. Heaven 17 started as a side-project; they recruited vocalist Glenn Gregory and changed their name for the release. The albums opening track, "(We don't need this) Fascist Groove Thing, was banned by the BBC for concerns that this may have slandered Ronald Reagan. The album was re-released as a self-titled work in the US, with this and two other tracks replaced with less political tracks, as a self-titled album. These are melodic, danceable tracks, with a unusual political bent. The album is an interesting example of early 80s dance pop.
This was a surprising album- both in sound and duration. Actually found myself liking a lot of the songs- its an interesting blend of Synth pop / New Wave. I could see how this album influenced both genres
Niet goed, niet slecht. Gemiddeld 90’s album
This one ended up totally surprising me as a really fun listen. Like if Devo and Talking Heads banged and had a techno pop baby. Love the feel good vibe, really taps into the classic 80s vocal lines and instrumentation (wicked bass lines too) with some interesting lyrical themes. Feel like the album certainly could have cut down a bit, as it felt like a bit of a trek by the end, but overall cool, would serve as awesome study or chore music. Fav track: Play To Win
I like it that there's a bit of a string of unknown albums and bands right now in this collection. This one's definitely an oddball, but enjoyable in a *very* 80s/New Wave way, and with a surprisingly hard edge to the lyrics and more funk to the music than I would have expected, in kind of a Prince/The Time sense, at least on the "Pavement" side of the album; the "Penthouse" side isn't quite as fun (although "The height of the fighting" is pretty decent). And of course there's that fantastic UK/BBC-inspired album cover that succeeds in being very ironic. I'm not sure I could say I had many favorites on the album, largely because their style isn't really to my taste, but I enjoyed the opening track ("(We don't need this) Fascist groove thang"), and was disappointed to read that the BBC banned it from the radio because it might have dared to imply that Ronald Reagan was a fascist; hard to imagine that happening in 2025.... Interesting that they recorded this album alongside The Human League (I guess in part because two-thirds of Heaven 17 were formerly part of The Human League), as you can definitely see the connection. And kudos to them for the "Clockwork Orange" reference with the band name (Heaven 17).
I have been getting really into Model/Actriz recently (super hyped for their new album), and I can definitely see how albums like this would lead to their style of music. I really like the verses of Fascist Groove Thang, but the chorus is a little weak. And that is kind of the problem with this album, there are some really creative funky parts, and then some kind of lame parts that kill the groove. High 3.
Not really my thing.
breskt rafmagnsdanspopp. áhrif frá nýbylgjunni, líklega listaskólastrákar. ekki mikið fyrir mig.
5/10
I'm torn with this one, I appreciate the lyrics and what they're trying to get across, but the synth-pop-disco sound just makes me cringe. This is closer to a 2.5 for me, but I'll round up because they called out the fascist, Ronald Reagan.
Other than the first song, it left me a bit cold. But really into it
OK ok i am so hot and cold with this band, one minute i love them, one minute i am so bored and annoyed by them. Middle of the road
3/5
I only recognized the first track, the rest were some odd-but-fun 80's alternative electro-pop. Some fun weirdness.
First half is kinda odd, leftist/anti-capitalist funk (some amazing bass here) with some synth-poppy elements, and back half is just kinda odd synth-pop (less funky, lacks amazing bass playing). I liked the first half more.
About 20 minutes is enough.
Some bangers that hit a lot harder today than expected.
funky & i quite enjoyed the song names
- Enjoy the first three tracks despite them not being my "thing," per se. Especially appreciate them calling out Reagan as early as 1981. - Definitely prefer the funkier "Pavement" half then the more electronic "Penthouse" half. - Was most impressed by the bass. Then learned that that was just a session musician they added...so take from that what you will.
If you like 80's synth pop, you'll love this. I don't.
They're trying too hard to be New Order. But they are perhaps better than Happy Mondays.
2.8 - Maybe on another day I would have liked this but that day is not today
This was okay. Didn't do anything particularly wrong except maybe being too long sometimes. It lacked a particular energy and overall felt fairly generic.
A bit dated in sound but not in message
First two tracks good - rest were ok.
Definitely an influential album that wrote the guidelines for 80s pop with groovy basslines, zany vocals, and sci-fi esque synths. Song With No Name and Soul Warfare were my faves, but the album as a whole isn't absolutely groundbreaking.
Not too bad but every song just repeated a bunch of lyrics at the end.
Ok płytka, taki typowy przykład futuryzmu lat 80. "Let's All Make a Bomb" kojarzy mi się z jakąś piosenką z Laboratorium Dextera, której teraz za nic nie mogę znaleźć. Ona też była przeróbką jakiejś innej mega znanej piosenki z lat 80-tych, ale nie mogę sobie przypomnieć niczego na jej temat. Będzie mnie to teraz męczyć, więc jakby ktoś z Was wiedział, o czym mówię, to dajcie znać koniecznie. Tak czy inaczej - dobry krążek, ciekawie skonstruowany. Zdecydowanie bardziej podoba mi się pierwsza część płyty, tam gdzie więcej mają groove'u i funku, te ostatnie mocno synthowe utwory już mniej mi się podobają. Przez chwilę nawet myślałem, żeby przez to dać 2 temu albumowi, ale to chyba dlatego, że byłem po całonocnym locie i byłem zmęczony. Ten album zdecydowanie zasługuje na więcej. Lewackie zabarwienie tego albumu też na plus.
A new one to me, but it had a familiar sound in many parts. Reminded me of The The or other 80s English alt bands. Wasn't love, but I liked it.
The closest equivalent is probably DEVO. Some fun stuff on this album, but ultimately less cutting than that ground-breaking group.
Its got groove. But somehow it feels very small, the sounds feel very small, and the vocals seem very of. This is pretty bad.
This is a wild ride. Fun for 1981.
Some really funky stuff. Interesting the whole way through. I actually really liked it
Very 80's. The album cover is pretty funny. Not horrible. Short album, if it was any longer it would likely get old fast.
Starts off strong but loses it's way, but some great stuff at times.
Eh
So 80s, so robotic, so… up tempo. The grooves are there, but I can’t help but think it would benefit from being slowed down by half. I appreciate the anti-capitalist themes and the sound is clean and compelling. I liked it more than I feel like I should have.
The lyrics are insane in the best way, but I'm now wondering how many bands in England sounded like the human league in the 80's.