Reviews (page 6 of 7)
Honestly kinda boring, I do like Pet Shop Boys just fine - this one just didn't have anything that stood out to me
Nothing makes you appreciate Tears For Fears more than getting Pet Shop Boys the next day.
2.5. Love some PSB hits, but this album felt flat and boring.
Neil Tennant says that he isn’t good at being boring on this album, but he gives it a pretty good go. This feels a bit Pet Shop Boys-by-numbers, with lots of low key synths that meander along. There are better and livelier moments like How Can You Expect To Be Taken Seriously, but not enough to rate this especially highly.
This wasn’t a terrible album by any means, but I did find it pretty bland, which wasn’t helped by the fact that most of the tracks are very downtempo and lacking in energy. The production sounds quite dated nowadays as well (much of it sounds like the presets on a cheap school keyboard, lots of synthy orchestra hits and the like). I also find Neil Tennant’s voice quite grating after a while. Nonetheless, it was generally fine enough to have on as background music; I just doubt I’ll ever choose to listen to it again. Upper end of 2 stars.
2.5
Really not the best stuff they made. Meehh…
Until this moment, I honestly thought the Pet Shop Boys were the same as the Beastie Boys. Musically, I feel like this is a miss. There are so many songs that feel as though they're shit to get you with a good hook but then fall flat right before they do. I kept thinking I was missing a stair.
Listened in the car and on a walk. Being Boring is a very fitting opening track. Really not sure how people enjoy this. Not for me.
Yawn
meh, its boring already man
I thought I was gonna enjoy this more honestly. It's a bit too samey. Nothing really stands out in particular. The songs are mainly good on their own (some are a bit dragged out if you ask me), but as an album, I feel like it bores me too quickly. It fails at keeping me engaged for some reason. So Hard is my favourite song from this, exactly for the fact that it's a bit different in instrumental. This is clearly not for me, but I won't blame anyone for liking it. Again, good individual songs, but when smashed together in an album it's not doing it anymore for me.
Chato.
Not enough synth, and not the type of pop I usually enjoy. Overall pretty boring. Would not recommend
80's PSB > 90's PSB The imperial phase was now over.
Being Boring is such a great opener, idiosyncratic confessional whispery voice, great melody, kind of spy movie music vibe which I always love, interesting observational lyrics. But turn up the synths, turn another page in his diary, and the rest of the songs get real repetitive and unexciting real fast.
Honestly didn't really care for this, why does it seem like the synth was just so forecefully used within the 80s, like god, its downright horrendous at times. I was kinda leaning 3, but honestly -1 for the bad synth patches, just sounds cheesy. I'm curious to listen to other Pet Shop Boys, and see if I feel the same. At the very least these guys sparked a curiosity in me. As much as it probably sounds like I am not the biggest fan, I guess they had some intriguing moments on here... 5.5/10
If it says anything about how interesting this album was, I set it up to play on my commute into work and drive for ten minutes before noticing I forgot to press play.
Mid
03/03/2026 Surprisingly I found this really boring and disappointing. Shame. Spotify listeners: 10.7 million
Meh
Meh
meh
Always cooler in theory than in experience.
This is my third PSB album in the generator and the one that stuck with me the least. There just aren't any bangers on here and I just felt I needed more from it. Giving a 2 seems harsh but calling your opening track Being Boring seems like a tacit omission that this isn't your best work.
The opening song title should have been a warning about the album, as it was a little boring and samey sounding. You then get, actually get a bit of switch up with a nice song which was ‘My October symphony’, I liked this one it had some great instrumental elements to it. Then in the next song ‘So hard’ whilst the energy was good, I couldn’t stand the intense electric sound effect thing, I think its aged horribly and honestly just don’t think it fitted into the song. For me as well the vocals started to become slightly annoying for me as well, the album started out as a 3-star but for me dropped to a 2-star in the end.
I would’ve enjoyed this but I’m not a fan of the vocals. What a weird way to sing the word, ”years”
It's not every day that you hear this kind of electronic music from this time period that hangs around major keys; it's kind of a nice change actually, but it also feels just kind of different. Unfortunately it didn't really gel with me. In fact, when the first song started and it was moody electronic synths and 80's style electronic drums I was really into it, and then around the 1:30 mark it switched to a major and more pop chord progression and the vocals came in I groaned. I also just don't really jive with the vocalist.
Wasn't my thing.
Enjoyed but there weren't any stand-out songs that grabbed me. Like to hear these guys voices though.
This sounds like it was made on an iPhone, don’t know how they did that in the 90s but it just does. Specific rating - 2.5 Fav song - being boring Least fav- how can you expect to be taken seriously
Not for me
One of the cooler things in music is that you can take the same (or very similar) instruments, give them to two different bands, and get completely different results. For example: Pet Shop Boys and Skinny Puppy. Anyhew, 80s synth pop is obviously not my thang.
Not great. None of the classic PSB hits on here. Some criminal rhyming.
Snooze fest
well written songs but not to my taste. they took the title of the opening track a little too seriously
I think I've found something new to listen to when I can't sleep. Two stars for synthpop blandness.
(3/7) appropriately begins with "Being Boring" and doesn't get more interesting after that
We hebben het nog wel eens over vergeetbaar. Maar ik was bij deze plaat al vergeten dat ik hem überhaupt zou opzetten. Dat zegt vooral dat ik er op voorhand nou niet bepaald zin in had. Niet vanwege ervaring met de band. Want 'Very' kreeg een afgeronde 4 sterren-notitie. Maar vooral omdat ik behoefte had aan wat meer enerverende platen. Door een verwijzing in een 1001-notitie van een luistermaatje, bedenk ik me, dat ik deze ook nog 'moet'. Inmiddels kan ik wat meer rust hebben. Dus kom maar op dan! Maar dan beginnen ze met Being Boring. Hallo, je geeft de luisteraar alvast een waarschuwing zeg. Zoveel saaiheid is toch teveel voor mij. Ergens aan het einde wordt ik wakker als So Hard voorbij komt. Meer een dance-nummer, dus meer energie. Maar laten we eerlijk zijn. Niet een nummer waarvan je het echt moet hebben. En als je die dance klank waardeert, raad ik je toch echt Very aan.
Eigenlijk ken ik Pet Shop Boys met name van die echte oude 80s nummers. Dat album krijgen we nog, al krijgen we gek genoeg niet hun debuutalbum, met wat ik hun beste nummer vind, Suburbia. En dan natuurlijk nog die revivalplaat met Go West. Dit album is een beetje een vreemde eend in de bijt lijkt me. Het is een gekke keuze ergens, maar ik vind het dit keer wel interessant om te luisteren. Al wil dat niks zeggen over de kwaliteit. Eerst de inhoud: het is een soort kruising van 80s synths, die later door Daft Punk weer veelvuldig gebruikt werden. Maar er zit ook zo'n drumcomputertje in, die van die (zo noem ik het altijd maar) druppelachtige beatjes maakt. Van die blikkerige beatjes waar een klein beetje galm in zit, en die je heel veel hoorde rond 1990. Met name bij van die gare artiesten als Milli Vanilli en Paula Abdul enzo. Hier hoor je het het beste bij track 5, Only The Wind. Daarmee komen we dus aan bij de kwaliteit, of eigenlijk meer het luisterplezier. Dit is namelijk verschrikkelijk gedateerde 90s muziek. Of ze nu voorloper waren, of dat ze gewoon met de tijdsgeest mee gingen, dat maakt me in dit geval niet veel uit. Ik vind het meestal erg matig, een enkele uitzondering zoals de openingstrack daargelaten. Een karige 2 voor de moeite, dit had niet in de lijst gehoeven.
MEH!!!
hmm. for how well known their name is, this didn't do anything for me Would I listen again? No Deserves to be on this list: No 2.4
Surprised we're nearly 900 albums in and this is our first pet shop boys album.... Can't say I've ever really given them a proper listen, but this sounded pretty much as I expected it would, if not a bit less upbeat. Didn't have any of the hits on that I am familiar with. I think I greatest hits pet shop boys album would do me, even that may be too much. I don't particularly dislike it, just doesn't do much for me. Very unique and distinctive sounding though 2.5
Yeah sure, sounds okay, probably just not my day for this one. It's fine.
The third time Pet Shop Boys have come up. This one would be the one I would cut. The compositions were rather dull. It was like an experiment to see if they could get away with doing as little as possible. It wasn't what I expected from the Pet Shop Boys or could have just been the wrong day
The only thing that saves this from being a 1 star album for me is the occasional nice melody. Everything else just kind of annoys me - the cheesy drum tracks, the affected way of singing, the lyrics. No thanks.
Nooooooooo not Pet Shop Boys 😭😭😭 disco if it SUCKED 😭😭😭
I don’t hate the Pet Shop Boys, they have some good songs and no doubt have appeal but I’ve never been particularly fond. This started out ok and sounds well produced, but the longer it went on, the more it grated.
Last year Pet Shop Boys went to Way Out West and I attended the festival but I missed their set. However I liked this album and my favorites were So hard and My October symphony
Pet Shop Boys created a full sound in a time where everyone else was treble heavy. There’s a lot of talent and skill but it’s not super enjoyable album. Angsty whiny pretend darkness.
526/1001 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑
Produced by Faltermayer.
pretty boring and sleepy, few interesting tracks for me.
Too chill. Feels overdosie.
I love 80s pop Synthwave, but this is just boring with pretty bland vocals
I don’t really get the appeal. It’s just kind of bland and runs together. The dude’s voice sounds the same on nearly every song. If there weren't cross fades between tracks I would have thought the album was one long song
This was okay. I prefer their "Actually" album.
Kinda boring album, it had some interesting changes at a times but over all I wanted tii skip most of the songs.
First song is about not being boring. Great irony. Snoozepop.
Nice voice, some good tunes, but the squeaks etc behind the voice sounds like a Star Wars battle. Not my cuppa
Meeh
Too British for my little American brain
It was fine, but not very memorable.
Sparse but not in an endearing way - I like their big pop, and there was very little of it here
Meh.
Really was not a huge fan of this one. Tinny production and the album cover looks like Sam Altman.
Before I started my 1001 albums journey, I would have confidently said that 80's British synth pop would rank amongst my least favourite genres. I am not sure if I am softening on this take or if I have just been so saturated with British synth pop that I have had to resort to categorising it in to stuff I really don't like and stuff that I find tolerable. I still don't think that I like British synth pop but after listening to Depeche Mode, Eurythmics, Tears for Fears, New Order, The Cure (the list goes on) I am left to feel that some I definitely appreciate more, and almost none of it is inherently bad, so I am left in this sort of paradox that gaslights me into considering that maybe I really do like 80's British synth pop... Then I hear a song like "So-Hard" by Pet Shop Boys and I revert to realizing this genre really is not for me. Can't wait to see where I end up in two years time when I can say I have listened to ALL the Synth Pop!
I wasn't sure what to expect from a band I'd heard of but never consciously listened to, but I think I'd thought I'd like it more.
It wasn't my vibe but it was really fun.
The opening track is called Being Boring. That tells you a lot about the rest of the record. It's fine, just a little dull.
This will be something new. I have never listened to an entire Pet Shop Boys album. Of course I heard many of their singles on the radio in period but that was mostly earlier. I'd moved on to other genres by 1990. Two tracks in and I am missing the energy I expected; it's all quite mellow and laid back. Lyrically it is a little awkward at times, occasionally the words don't quite scan. 'How is he going to rhyme with that? Oh... he didn't bother'. Four in and "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?" is the first vaguely 'Pet Shop Boys sounding' track. Then track 5 is back to the ballad format. I am genuinely perplexed. I was expecting 'dance', 'upbeat', occasional biting social comment, humour. Instead I get ballads, fake strings, awkward lyrics. Was this album an attempted change in style? Anyway, not what I was hoping for. I was in the mood for some upbeat synth pop and I got this... a disappointed 2/5 from me.
Hmm, another one of those “background noise albums” I’m sure they are people who enjoy these but they’re just not for me. For consistency’s sake I’ll give it the 1.5 rounded to 2 stars,
Eh, this was a slog.
Never heard of them before and for good reason.
This didn’t do it for me. I know PSB gets better with catchier songs, but this album wasn’t it. Great for doing cocaine to but otherwise could be left in the 80’s
On track 1 i was thinking "hey,not bad!" I liked the instrumentals but then song after song kept getting worse. Nobody likes a sub par pet shop!
From my memory the Pet Shop Boys had more up tempo songs that you could and should dance too, but from this album it was not like that. The only two memorable songs, for me, were the first and the last.
Did little to dispel my feeling the PSB never bettered West End Girls. High two
Being boring passt ganz gut.
#753. Man, when this album opened with a song called Being Boring, I should have guessed what was coming. 2/5: boring
Dated, and I didn't dig it nearly as much as 'Actually'.
Bland and samey.
Needs more Go West.
Never been a huge Pet Shop Boys fan but I like Neil Tennant’s voice and they have a few good songs none of which are on this album imo
This sounds like shitty singing over the DEMO button on my childhood Casio.
I grow weary of the Pet Shop Boys' Behaviour, despite a few bright spots, and I'm only 40% in. This record solidifies for me that they'll always be a singles-in-the-club band — a few songs scattered throughout the night at a dance club is the best way to experience their music, whereas listening to an entire album is a chore.
Not bad. second Pet Shop Boys album in a short time span. I liked the other one.
1,9/5
Not my favourite.
I'm convinced that they built this entire record off the funny sounds from an electronic keyboard. Favourite Track(s): My October Symphony Least Favourite Track(s): Being Boring, So Hard
Don't know what it is with The Pet Shop Boys; for me, they merely exist, there's nothing about them I particularly like or dislike. This album is no different - it just potters along, neither inviting me to listen more attentively or to switch off.
Didn't do much for me, is this some sad sack breakup album or what. I remember they had another album on the list being way more interesting.
Meep merp morp. As a genre I find synth pop to be pretty hit or miss and this one is a miss for me. Thus continuing a sequence of albums that don't do much to inspire... Vocals throughout feel pretty lazy, and while the instrumentals are at times wonderful (a prime example being My October Symphony with its dreamy flow and slick soulful guitar), they often lean into some of the cheesier tropes of 80s production (fake blaring horns, cheesy electro guitar plugs, etc.). Not something I plan to come back to anytime soon... 2 / 5.
Ikke dårlig, bare ordentlig kjedelig. Var plutselig på andre gjennomlytting uten at jeg merket det. Lite som skilte låtene fra hverandre. Husker kun How Can You Expect.. Fin den.
Not a fan whatsoever. Boring, uninspiring.
Pretty bland and just lacking different varieties in their album
Fine. Incredibly boring. Don't like his voice. British.
if you've heard 1 track by Pet Shop Boys, you've heard them all. same synth heavy loop tracks, same monotonous voice, same of everything.
A little synthy for my liking (that’s a bit of an understatement; it’s very synthy), and they can tend to be pretty longwinded, but Pet Shop Boys can write some pop hooks. Still, a little of this goes a really long way for me. 2.7/5
Very bad album.
A few good songs but overall it was kinda boring
This is fine as background music but don’t feel it’s worthy of being included on this list. I assume that if this made the cut there will be more Pet Shop Boys on the list since this contained none of their popular singles.
Not too bad, wanted to enjoy it more than I did but perhaps too many slower songs on the record.
Way too dated sounding, doesn't hold up
Utterly forgettable
Yet another rerun. One Pet Shop Boys album is sufficient for this list.
I like Pet Shop Boys early music. I don’t like this. Plods along.
2/5
It's not good when you get to the halfway point and wonder how much more of this you have to endure. I've never been a fan of the Pet Shop Boys. I think I might have been too young when they were popular to really "get" them. I don't seek out their musical aesthetic. Neil's vocals grate on me a bit. I don't mind synth, but this album sounds dated and cloying. I appreciate that others like this, but yeah. It's not buying with PSB is selling. Being Boring, So Hard, and To Face the Truth were mildly interesting. My October Symphony was dreadful. Jealousy was too over the top to be taken seriously. On to the next!
Best Song: Being Boring. I think I liked this more simply because it was the first song, before I grew tired of the schtick. Worst Song: To Face The Truth. Another case of the Pet Shop Boys sounding like they're singing the song they sing right before they murder you. Overall: Everything about this album feels dated. I don't like the campy theatricality of it. The contrast between big production and stage-whisper vocals never worked for me. Not an album I'll be returning to.
By the end of the listening session, I’d lost muscle mass and most of my body hair had fallen off. Quite an experience.
Not a fan of the lead singers voice. Album was fine.
Anodyne, antiseptic, engineered and machined within an inch of its life. They undermine what I know is a deep well of humanity and understanding by putting it in the most perfectly machined box. An utter disappointment.
2.0 There are some neat little riffs here and there but the Pet shop boys are not for me
Meeeeeeh
I thought "How Can You Expect...?" was a decent pop song, but otherwise this album was just full of dull synth loops.
73/1001 :: Pet Shop Boys - Behaviour Heard before? ❌ Would I revisit? ❌ Rating: 5 Listen before you die: No Fav Songs: This Must Be The Place I waited To Leave This was better the 2nd time around for me but all in all this is not my bag. Some really interesting industrial beats but honestly I didn’t love the singing. It was also too dancy for me in spots. Love the artwork though. On to the next...
Never really listened to these guys so this is very new to me. I find this album intriguing as it has a mix of textures and moods and interesting lyrics, but the overall vibe and production isn't much to my liking.
point8.
“We were never boring,” sing the Pet Shop Boys in the first song on “Behavior.” I don't know their earlier work well enough to judge, but at the very least, the next line should be, “but now we're starting to be.” The tracks aren't really bad, but somehow you expect something like a camera pan through a canyon or a montage of the day's images, or at least something relevant or interesting that this music can play in the background without distracting from the images. But I don't understand what this album is supposed to be good for on its own.
plätschert vor sich hin.
I actually quite like the Pet Shop Boys, but this was tedious shite.
No thanks
Not really my taste. The keyboard instrumentals take me out of this genre.
Скука
If your opening track is Being Boring boasting lines of Never Being Boring, you best not be boring. You were! Even when the beats picked up, I was still bored.
I had this playing in the background and almost none of it stood out to me, it was just there. Like end credits music. Only The Wind sounded like something out of a Persona game but outside that this album was mostly a miss.
Decent 80s pop
This genre really isn't my cup of tea. Some songs were good, but I don't like the style.
Why was this style of singing where you aren't really singing so popular in 80's pop?
This isnt the pet shop boys album for me. Was a bit of a snooze fest.
This is 80's radio synth pop at it's absolute peak I think, and peak in the sense that the genre is encapsulated by this album, not that it is the best. The singing is competent to good, especially since there isn't any obvious autotuning going on here. It's the musical parts that are so painfully casio keyboard kit that bring it down to me. The technology was there to make some really interesting sounds (see the Duran Duran album we got a few days ago) but this is right out of the sample kit that was included with every keyboard. The songwriting elevates it a bit but if you take the voices out it, it becomes elevator music. Thankfully the voices are center stage but I can't get over that part of it. It isn't bad, it's just aged pretty poorly and absolutely seems like one of those things that you'd have to be a certain age at a certain times to be in to it.
On the opening song I was thoroughly enjoying myself. The production felt crips and clean. Then at 1:49 he singing began. Blegh.
Sounds like a listening tour of New Wave from the 80s. Some sounds like Depeche Mode, some sounds like Culture Club. "How Can You Expect to be Taken Seriously?" is a rip off of "Straight Up" by Paula Abdul.
Unfortunately, it did not age very well. Here and there it reminds me of elevator music. Fav: Jealousy
I'm not going to say the vocals or music were bad. Quite the opposite. This album was relaxing, but underwhelming for lack of a better term. It was a bit "meh" and didn't really excite me. By the time I got to the end of the album, I didn't remember any of the tracks all that well as none of them stuck out.
i wanted to like this but it was just wayyy too mellow and smooth in the bad way. even the tracks that are not ballads manage to encapsulate the ambiance of boredom found in a ballad (ballad hater over here)
Gay
This grew on me as I listened and it seems well recorded. However overall this was still very boring to me and I will not listen again.
Album 809 of 1089 Pet Shop Boys - Pet Shop Boys (1990) Rating : 1.5 / 5 The track "Being Boring" aptly summarizes how this album came across to me. Dull boring and too melancholic for what I expect from them.
lisää näitä taas jahas. pojat eläinkaupassa yhä. oisko seuraava kerta sporttikauppa.. urheilukauppa.. enemmän pojille eikö? jjeyeeaaas to leave. tälläs kertaa aika tylsäntylsä.. ei hidas tai hiljainentai toistuva.. vaan tylsä. uskomattomat syntti poppi tekniikat hallussa ja tälläistä garage bänd musiikkia on lopputuloksena.. mitä tässä tapahtui mitä ihmettä ja miksi ihmeessa arvostettu listanarvoiseksi? vähän voimaa siihen laulamiseen ja myös.. ujottaako siellä? miksi ujottaa.. kuin kaksintaistelussa ampuisi laukauksen vahingossa omalla vuorolla ja sitten oksentaisi konsanaan kuin sillälailla.. herätyyys... herätyyys.. My October Symphony
Not a huge fan of the band but they had some really nice hits in the 80's that I remember. Not one of them was to be found on the album. I'll mark this down as confirmation that Brit Pop is not for me as it seemed like a pretty meh album.
fuck... 2 Pet Shop Boys albums IN A ROW. I had good associations with this band until now. Neither this nor the previous album had a single one of their top hits on it. Just kind of cringy 80s synth pop. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy some 80s synth pop now and then. Just not from these guys, I guess.
Eh. Kind of boring.
Forget Iran, we should just bomb the heck out of every recording studio in the UK and end this decades long war on music
Fairly pleasant
Just kind of no energy like they usually have.
This looks like it has the potential to go either way I suppose. This is a band I'm vaguely familiar with, though only through their 80's work. For what it is it's fine, so I'm hoping it's an evolution of that sound. I'm expecting some alright, but not extraordinary synthpop. Being Boring The synths are really good. They have a very distinctly warm sound to them. Catchy chorus. Kinda cheesy. Gets a bit repetitive to be honest. The datedness adds some charm to it. Sounds great, but lacks some substance. Fine. 3/5 This Must Be The Place I Waited Years to Leave Clunky title. Great synth sound, even the drums sound alive and vibrant. The vocals work well enough. The clunkiness of the title sort of translates to the performance itself, it just doesn't sound great language wise. I really like the instrumental, though I'm fairly ambivalent about the rest of the song. Fine. 3/5 To Face The Truth Yeah this does not work. Hate the vocals here. The slow tempo and echoey and exaggerated production does it no favours. Really don't like the loud hi-hats either. I find the lyrical writing very cliche and stale. A slog to get through. Awful. 1/5 How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously? I wish there was a world where I couod like this. Some of the synths sound good. The rest just sounds dated to the point where I find it annoying rather than charming. The singer's voice contrasts way too much against the electric guitar to the point where the combo of the two just sounds ridiculous. Awkward chorus. Awful. 1/5 Only the Wind Sterile and cold. Hate the crashing synths. That sound has never sounded good. Otherwise the instrumental is mostly uneventful other than a couple half pleasant solo and a slightly overpowering piano. Hate the repetitive drum machine. This style of songwriting just isn't for me. Awful. 1/5 My October Symphony The tempo is at least fun. Has an uplifting beat with a groovy guitar. Feels maybe a bit empty around the verses. Kinda like the bassline. Kinda like the static and cold vocal performance here. The vocal sample adds a bit of additional dynamism to the track. The psychedelic guitar solo and the out of nowhere violin is a fairly effective way to end the song. Strangely works. Good. 4/5 So Hard The base drum and synth combination works pretty well. Still hate the crashing synths, ruins the smooth vibe completely. Decent enough chorus. Goofy synth break. Decently dancable I guess. The final string of repeating choruses sort of gives life to the general idea of the song. Brought down by its worst feature. Average. 2.5/5 Nervously Not entirely unpleasant, but absolutely not a favourite. Really don't like these slower paced songs on here. His voice doesn't convey the emotion that's required for this to be interesting in any way. At the same time the production of the track makes it sound extremely melodramatic and cliche, especially with the oscillating synths that move in a chime like pattern across the mix. As well as the soft percussion. I guess there's a cool vocal effect on the chorus that sounded pretty cool. Did not like. 2/5 The End of the World The general sound of this is good from a production standpoint, though I find it perhaps a bit sterile. To my ears this is extremely generic for a synthpop track. I guess the chorus is kinda catchy, but otherwise it does nothing for me. Average. 2.5/5 Jealousy Another track where the instrumental really works. Feels large, and has some depth to it. I think the vocals work better here than anywhere else on the album. He has a bitter intonation that fits with the themeing of the track. Very colourful and rich outro, love how lush and melodic it feels. Quite liked that one. Good. 4/5 I'm just gonna say that was a weird first impression. First and foremost I'll have to praise the general sound of this, as it's produced wonderfully. I'm really impressed with the richness of the recording and the way each track is layered. The synths sound absolutely magnificent throughout this album, having a crisp, potent and full sound that stays with you from start to finish. It's composed in such a way that every instrumental is distinct and unique in the context of the album. There are plenty of instrumental lines that pop out and become more and more effective as they repeat. Pair this with some alright melody work and you get a few infectious moments. All that being said, I can't say I like it that much after this first initial listen. The songwriting style feels clunky and forced. I'm really not impressed with the vocals. And while I praise their synthesizer work there's usually a glaring creative choice that I really don't like in almost every single one of these tracks. I also think the lyricism on here comes of as shallow and melodramatic. It's not incompentent, and I somewhat can understand it at times, but in the end it gets too much for me. It's a shame as I can tell talented people worked on this. If there are any other Pet Shop Boys albums on this list I'll make sure to revisit this one afterwards. Perhaps it clicks with me, with that added context. 2/5
It's ok... Not great but not terrible.
First song is "Being boring". They're experts. They had quite a few hits. None of them are on this album. They always made dance music with serious undertones. This album is more on the serious side. They had songs like that on their previous albums. The songs on this album are OK. The arrangements sound cheap. The singer is not very good. I think they belong on the list, but this album doesn't.
From Pet Sounds to Pet Shop Boys. It’s a long way from the best. Weak is a good description of this album.
Meh, no me llamó la atención.
Pretty standard casual synth-pop. Some smooth grooves, atmospheric sounds and somewhat catchy melodies. More of a chill listen than a dance party album. Pleasant enough but overall left little impression on me.
The first song, Boring, Boring, sums it up really
A record so boring it just finished and I already can’t remember any of it. So un-noteworthy it doesn’t even deserve 1/5.
I found this to be very boring.
I wouldn't go searching for this album.
Good album. Not something I'd listen to often.
Bailed about 1/2 way into this one. Admittedly not that bad, but lame. Like super lame. Like these fuckers should just wedgie themselves and steal their own lunch money.
I like old Pet Shop Boys stuff but didn’t enjoy this one. Over-produced and just weird.
First track says it all for me. ‘Being Boring.’ I couldn’t tell one song from another and all I could think of listening to the drum machine was that it sounded like Tenny on his keyboard.
Not terrible just a bit repetitive for me
Back to back? Hopefully this means I'm done with them.
Wish I would have liked this more, but it lacks something :(
The 1001 did not need three Pet Shop Boys albums. Insert eye-roll emoji here. Frankly, the two words that came to mind repeatedly while listening was "boring" and "cheesy." The music is inoffensive, so it's not necessarily a problem as background music, but every time I paid attention my reaction was "wow, this is cheesy." Here are some of my track notes: "Being Boring - Aptly named." "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave - Aptly named." "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously - Aptly named." If I had to pick a couple of tracks that caught my attention: The End of the World. That's it. Just the one. Time to move on...
Incluso cuando no me aburre es porque estoy haciendo un esfuerzo para que no me aburra.
Feels like elevator music for some reason.
It's... alright. Listenable. Not very exciting. I think I've liked other stuff from them more.
Nice enough sounding semi-electronic music, if a little formulaic. This sounds like a Pet Shop Boys take on New Order/Depeche Mode, with the integration of guitars throughout. Being Boring is by far the best track, though the remainder doesn't really offer too much else. Best Tracks: - Being Boring Worst Tracks: - My October Symphony - The End of the World Rating: 4.5/10
I'm feeling pretty indifferent about this album. It's easy listening for sure. Some smooth melodramatic pop beats in there. The vocals don't do much for me. Not that the singing is bad, it just doesn't stand out in any way. Overall I think this album is pretty forgettable.
Ok...but gets boring after a while
Competent and doesn't engage me. Seems like an album out of place in the 90s. Had it come out years earlier, it may have been more significant. I suspect had I been a PSB fan, I would be moved by this more mature and serious turn in their style. But I'm not.
Just not...into it.
so lala
not bad, too chill for me
This was pretty funny to me, kind of felt like Muzak and/or lounge music. Just pretty cheesy. Enjoyable enough but I will not be revisiting.
Tried listening a couple times and kind of struggled to get through it. Not bad but pretty meh.
Ugh. I can't listen to anymore of this 80s British popsynth nonsense.
Was listening to it, then I forgot I was, must have been real interesting.
not my jam
Rating: 5/10 Meh.
The singer’s voice only seems capable of being either saccharine or insipid. The music is completely dated and sounds at best like neutered Depeche Mode. The album starts with a very long, very boring song about not being boring and gets worse from there. If you told me this was the soundtrack to Early 90s: The Musical, you’d be believed. So lame.
I was looking forward to the Pet Shop Boys thinking it would be some nice Sunday morning bleepy bloops but it was actually Really Boring
Nothing new here. Typical low effort talk-singing
4/10 Non nelle mie corde, anche se musicalmente è indiscutibile la qualità.
Blegh. This is so boring and has a quality that I can't describe that's just really off-putting. Their very limited vocal talent is evident on this album. I don't mind the music - with better vocalists singing more interesting lyrics, this could've been an album I enjoyed. But it is not. 4/10
Pretty boring
2 out of 5. I liked how dreamy this albums gets at times but on the whole a bit slow for me.
I was not moved by this album when it came out in 1990 and I remain unimpressed. It is boring compared to Depeche Mode's VIOLATOR, for which Neil Tennant has admitted was the inspiration for this album. I love Harold Faltermeyer, the producer of this album, but he is certainly no Mark "Flood" Ellis at the peak of his power. I am a huge fan of all electronic and synth pop music, particularly from this era of music history, but this album was such a dud. Pet Shop Boys' most important albums continue to be PLEASE and ACTUALLY. This list ignored both of those albums. Instead they put this lame DM ripoff on this list instead. Those albums had relevance in the United States electronic scenes, while this one did not. As you might imagine, I don't think this album belongs on this list. Other, much better albums got bumped to make room for this one.
super boring. super 80s/90s sound.
I enjoy the general vibe and the vocals of PSB, this album didn’t really have any songs that stuck out as particularly good though. The first song was long and meandering, after that the rest of the album was just alright. 4/10
Incredibly boring. 2/5
smooth and soothing, but at some point it just got repetitive and boring.
If this album were a sandwich it would be a bread sandwich. A slice of bread between two other slices of bread. That's how this album made me feel
It's okay at best. I think every song sounds the same.
Just lame.
Worst of the 80s + worst of the 90s
Got boring quickly
not a great record. Just kind of 'nothing' from my perspective. The biggest takeaway for me from this record is how much I actually dislike that poppy keyboard-demo radio crap that seemed to be everywhere in the late 80s. As usual for PSB the vocals really turned me off more than the synth-wave/pop which had it's nice moments actually.
Gear: DCA ÆON 2 Noire Artwork: 🌹😌🖼️ Production (2001 Remaster): 😲🙂👌 Music: 🎹💔🧼 Rating: 🧼🧼/5
Ok pop
There are far better releases from this band that I would play from start to finish.
The title of track #1 sums it all up.
I find them so bland and pompous
Yeah this album is just not for me. It is quite boring, dated, and the vocal style is awful. Dreadful music.
Found this to be quiet boring, the droning vocals do not help. Hard to even consider one highlight. But not particularly offensive either though 2*
Meh. It didn’t have West End Girls so. . .
I don't like it, but cool if u do. Will I listen to again: 0%
I found this super boring and of its time.
2,5
Did I already make a joke about returning boys to the pet shop? Yes? Ok, well,
2 Stars (5/15)
A handful of decent tracks, but a lot of dull fillers.
Pet Shop Boys were a British pair that made synth-pop in the 80s and the 90s. Behaviour is their fourth album, and more somber than their earlier work. The band makes danceable, melodic, synthesizer based pop songs, and they were one of the groups that help make this the defining sound of 80s pop. Some of the tracks, like "Being Boring" and "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously," are upbeat, danceable tracts. The ballads weigh the work - for example "To Face the Truth" - with a sappy melodrama that wanders towards "easy listening."
It’s okay - but I didn’t think that there were real standout tracks. Perhaps My October Symphony is one of those. To me, there are better PSB albums out there
Nothing background music
Really? I recall PSB having a couple of hits, none belonging to this album... Snooze
Ironically, I just found this boring
boring boring synth pop snoreeee 5/10
meh
The first track in this album is called Being Boring. So you can’t say they don’t warn us! Okay that’s a bit harsh. Actually, ;) I don’t dislike the Pet Shop Boys and spent a fair amount of time in the late 80’s dancing to their hits. But much of this album is monotone in both sound and attitude. It lacks the energy I enjoyed in their earlier work. It’s broody. I don’t find that electronica and drum machines really lend themselves to broodiness. They deserve to have an album on this list. They have three. In my opinion this one could have been passed by. 2.5/5
ha un sound che mi metto l'ansia...
So many of these songs just went on and ON. Make it stop.
The singer’s sweet voice saved this album from being a complete failure.
All their stuff sounds the same to me. Decent background music, but nothing exciting. Not sure why they have more than one album on this list. 2.5
Like 80s MGMT?
C'est dommage, tous les ingrédients sont réunis pour que ça me plaise... Mais la mayo ne prend pas. La faute à quoi ? La voix du chanteur ne me séduit pas spécialement, les chansons se ressemblent trop à mon goût, avec souvent un côté balade électro-kitsch qui ne me touche pas. Certaines chansons sont plaisantes, j'aime la veine électro, mais ce n'est pas suffisant pour que j'ai envie d'y retourner.
..
Tad boring to me. I like the writing here and there and wouldn’t complain would it be on but… to me a bit boring, wouldn’t come back as quick.
Found it to be quite boring. Mix of slow electronic music and melancholy lyrics, just not for me. 2/5 Won’t listen again
Because of Pet Sounds I thought it was The Beach Boys. I'm so glad it wasn't I wish the first song never ended, it was so good~ Such a shame, it only went downhill from there. Some nice chill songs but mostly snoozers
They were as a matter of fact being REALLY boring
Probably more like 2.5 stars. Has a fun blend of 80s and 90s sounds.
Didn’t love it
Better than the other album of theirs that I've heard, but still not very good. The music feels so synthetic and the singer sounds like he's bored out his mind
Didn't wow me, found it a bit same-ey. 2 stars.
Sequencearnir eru oft ágætir og stundum bætast við önnur hljóðfæri sem eru fín líka. En þetta er svo meinlaust og ég er svo innilega ekki hrifinn af þessari rödd. Næstum of fagmannlega gert fyrir tvist, en bara ekki nógu skemmtilegt fyrir þrist.
Here we have Pet Shop Boys, two days before CHVRCHΞS. Both are synth pop, but they’re more than two decades apart, and even further apart stylistically. Pet Shop Boys is maybe closer to dream pop, but it’s dream pop that is still way too 80s with vocals so annoying that they crush any decent atmosphere created by the synths. They claim they were never “Being Boring,” but that’s exactly how I would describe much of “Behavior.” Don’t bother going down to the pet shop, regardless of the boys’ behaviour. Instead, Be Your Own Pet. Their self-titled garage punk album in 2006 is a hidden gem. Check out “Adventure.”
Best part of this album is the strings on October Symphony...which are immediately ruined by the super 80s laser sounds at the beginning of So Hard.
Being Boring lives up to the name. Not a good start. Things pick up with To Face The Truth and How Can You Expect To Be Taken Seriously. The album turns downward from there with The End Of The World a welcome respite.
All this 80s (esp. if it's 90s) throwing me off a good bit. Don't really abide that synth pop sound. Good for the dance club (I've been to one accidentally in my life), not so much for my graceful attentiveness.
For the life of me, I don't understand what it is about this band that makes anyone get the slightest bit excited. It's fine if you dig mid-tempo whispery blokes singing over nondescript synths and programmed drums. But I vote meh.
This may be the blandest album I've ever heard. It's so tame it makes that other Pet Shop Boys album we heard sound like Slayer. I kept expecting someone to start cleaning my teeth.
Very samey and didn’t think that was a good thing.
First of all, there's too much pet shop boys on this list. They're overrepresented here. Because all of their albums give me the same vibes: synth heavy withering and derisive verbal smackdowns for some poor schmuck caught in this band's crosshairs. I always feel so conflicted by them. The music is engaging, my ears are receptive to it, and it has this inherent catchiness that draws me in. But then I eventually find myself feeling uncomfortable as the listening experience goes on. I feel like I'm being chastised, like a small child who shat on the rug in front of company. Their pop hits are great, there's no denying that. But the deep cuts go too deep. There's a darkness here that I find ultimately untrustworthy, which is why they'll never be a favourite of mine. It's dangerous terrain. I hope I don't have to listen to another one of their albums, the odd hit of theirs getting radio airplay is plenty of PSB for me.
I thought I would like this record more. But in the end it was not as great as I hoped.
Oh no. Halfway through the New Jack Swing beats started and it physically hurt me. So many sampled orchestral stabs.
Pet Shop Boys songs all sound the same after a while. Don’t really need a 3rd album on this list to know that.
Snooze fest 😴
This album is OK, there’s some decent song writing here. BUT This is my third Pet Shop Boys album on here and that seems fucking ridiculous to me. There’s no way these lads deserve three albums on this list. Some decent songs but dated production and annoying vocals might land on 3 stars but I’m knocking it down because of you and your dodgy choices Robert.
i kind of believe these guys are smart and good at what they do i just don’t give a shit about what they do and figure we’d be just fine without it, ymmv
Disappointing
Va fan. De första tonerna på första låten är svinbra. Men inte fan låter resten av skivan så. Det är väldigt tråkiga synt-beats. Har alltid "ogillat" sången i Pet Shop boys. Först låten är dock bäst. Och med bäst menar jag, "meh". Ärligt talat är det inte jättebra. Trist.
1.8
Again, I really enjoy the music part, just not so much the lyrics and his quiet sing-talking. I'll still with my synthwave stations instead. 2/5
Do I really have to listen to this? As synth-pop goes, it's OK - but it's still just fluffy synth-pop. I would never choose to listen to this.
Great, more mediocre British synthpop. Thought it was going to be an average 3 after the first couple songs but it could pretty annoying to listen to the longer it went on. Nothing really notable here. 4/10 (2/5)
Not a fan of synth pop and this dull album didn’t change that.
Synthiepop war nie meins. Und die Pet Shop Boys gehören m.E. auch nicht in die top10 dieses Genres.
wenn ich diese musik höre, wird mir bewusst wie tief dieser aus drum machine, synthies und glatt gebügeltem gesang zusammengesetzte sound in meinem unterbewusstsein verankert ist. das ist es wohl, was eine kindheit in den 90er jahren heute ausmacht: das sich ankündingende, leicht wohlige gefühl, wenn das wiedererkennen einsetzt ohne es genauer bezeichnen zu können, quasi eine nostalgie ohne namen: seien es nun die pet shop boys, depeche mode oder eurythmics, rückblickend lief wohl dauernd das radio. auf diesem album fehlen mir leider die hits.
Meh.
I only Know Pet Shop Boys because of their song West End Girls. There was some good songs on here, but overall it didn't grab me.
Good 80’s-90’s band. Still making good music to this day.
Being Boring is right. sounds like a poor man's New Order.
More background music for me, when I definitely wasn't paying attention to the music and at no point was called to give attention.
I don't think I was in the right frame of mind to fully accept the Boys into my heart.
who told these guys that they werent being boring? this shot was boring as hell
Department store mellow electro pop. Really about as exciting as waiting at the DMV.
2.3 - really repetitive and just not into it
I just seem to struggle with the Pet Shop Boys so much. I find a lot of this album, like the previous one of theirs we listened to, to just be straight up bad. I think this is slightly better than that one - a couple of tracks "Being Boring" and "My October Symphony" I'm ok with, but the rest just ain't doing it for me. 2.3/5
This album came out during the unfortunate and not very graceful transition from 80s-90s and I feel that it shows. I only liked really one song off of this. It seemed that they were trying to stick with what they did before while sort of trying some new stuff with it, and it just really didn't make anything too memorable.
Opens with a song titled "Being Boring", which is a much better name for this album in my humble opinion. Why the hell do these guys have 3 albums on the list? PS1-era Final Fantasy minigame music, except way less cool.
could not listen. If link doesn't work, not my prob
Sounds cheaply made.
Not much to say about this; it sounded like Pet Shop Boys but also like other artists relevant at the same time like Depeche Mode. Looks like they drew inspiration from Violator, which makes a lot of sense. I don't think I'd come back to this album too often.
Man, I just don't care about this. It's not bad, but it's pretty boring. 2/5
Nope.
As was always the case - great beats and mood diluted by synth tropes and ruined by that nasal snark. They should have hired a singer
Recordaba a Pet Shop Boys con mucho más cariño. Esto no me ha llegado
The opening felt like a James Bond soundtrack...and then so smooth, soft as a pair of Hush Puppies. Got some SHAFT rhythm guitar sparking there on occasion. Melodic at least. Not my choice, but listenable.
This was just kind of boring. I wanted it to be over.
Nothing to write home about. Not their best. The songs aren't as catchy as some of their earlier ones. Nor are they as mind-bending and exciting as some of their later ones (such as, for example, 'Electric'). The track 'So Hard' is more akin to early Pet Shop Boys with the catchy tune and deliberately synthetic beat and keyboard. (The rhythms are everything that was awful about the charts in the late '80s through I guess to 1990, when this was made.) That's not especially my cup of tea but it is the Pet Shop Boys doing what they do well. The rest is a little forgettable. I don't think melodies such as many of these lend themselves well to the Pet Shop Boys style or Neil Tennant's voice. He does the abstract dancey / ironic cold much better. Nonetheless, the song titles are often intriguing with these guys: This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave / Being Boring
A wrong turn from their previous album
Very polished cheese, drum machines sound horribly dated now. Never understood the attraction, this music has no heart.
Just like every other Pet Shop Boys songs... its fine but doesn't really appeal to me.
Not my cup of pale ale, thanks
This is not bad. In fact, I really can see what’s good about it — the genre is not really for me.
Vocals are beautiful, but not a fan of electronic pop
Fine...not sure I would ever relisten. Just a big blah. 1.5/5
wasn't that exciting
Really not great. There were a few good tracks here and there but everything just felt very uninspiring and cheap. Not a fan of the production on this at all.
Twijfel ineens of Pet Shop Boys ooit mijn ding was, maar ze zijn het vandaag in ieder geval totaal niet.
Ik heb deze band nooit begrepen. Nu ook niet.
·Not owned: Streaming ·Pretty harmless pop album that starts off promising (love the chronicle of the opening track), has catchy tunes, but then overstays its welcome a bit. I appreciate the simplicity of "The End of the World." ·2/5
I think they did well for their style but it didn't speak to me. Nice use of early 90's electronic though
Did Duran Duran and Pet Shop Boys get together and decide to go from disco-y dance pop to sedate snoozefests as soon as 1/1/1990 hit? Whether it was a conspiracy to go from 80’s ravers to 90’s droners or not, I think both versions of both bands suck. “Ordinary World” is pretty good but that’s neither here nor there. The point is, if I didn’t like Pet Shop Boys before they decided to spend forever being boring - and I very much didn’t - then there was no way I was going to like this drab 1990’s version of them. Yawn and pass.
I wanted to like this album more but I didn't some of the soft vocal choices on what were otherwise strong or dramatic songs. My highlight was probably so hard. However, some of the arrangements and sounds seemed so familiar and you can clearly see how this album would have influenced artists that created in that genre after.
this album reminds me that all PSB albums are basically the same. some good stuff, for sure, but is one any more stand-out than any other?
I don't know how much more Pet Shop Boys I can physically handle.
Yikes