Sulk

At first I felt like we'd been had -- first few tracks felt spooky to the point of silliness, but something clicked around Skipping. Maybe all I needed was a chorus to hold my hand and lead me down the spiral staircase to synth hell. I'm not surprised this hadn't crossed my desk until now, but there are a solid couple of bops in the back half. I fear any party these two would host, but I guess I'll dance anyway.

Just a genuinely bad listen.

Very interesting 80s record that spans a range of styles. It's engaging, entertaining, quirky, fun. Has its odd, unique moments, which are also cool, but overall it's a lively 80s rock record.

This was interesting, but unfortunately an album that I loved at the start and then slightly lost interest. The pop-punk synth aesthetic was cool, and I loved the opening track, but the vocals began to grate slightly on me. Would love to hear one of these during a cool dance night, but all together is a little overwhelming and not in a good way. Love Hangover at the end though really kills and ties the whole thing well.

You bite through the big wall, the big wall bites back You just sit there and sulk, sit there and bawl You are so pretty when you're on your knees Disinfected, eager to please Sometimes you sulk, sometimes you burn God rest your soul When the loving comes and we've already gone Just like your dad, you'll never change Each time it comes it eats me alive I try to behave but it eats me alive So I declare a holiday Fall asleep, drift away Sometimes you sulk, sometimes you burn God rest your soul When the loving comes and we've already gone Just like your dad, you'll never change Sometimes you sulk, sometimes you burn God rest your soul When the loving comes and we've already gone Just like your dad, you'll never change

Never listened. Expectations: None - Verdict: Good - The opener has a strange, stuttering quality that is quite unique but I’m not sure if I like it or not. No is a good track with very melodramatic vocals and I also like Bap De La Bap. I really like the insistent synths and the climbing vocals on Gloomy Sunday. Nude Spoons is the most high energy track so far and it definitely has a certain kinetic momentum. Skipping is the most generic song so far that doesn’t really interest me. Unfortunately It’s Better This Way carries on in a similar vein. Party Fears Two is a bit different but I’m not really a fan. Club Country is the strongest track on the second half of the album.

No

I put this on and then forgot about it

I didn’t love this guys Playlist add: “Bap De La Bap”

Interesting

Average 80s pop. Nothing special, though not very bad.

This felt like a waste of time, and even though it sort of got better by the end it was still too dogshit to be a 2

Love the 80s vibe

Some honestly pretty great and colourful gothic rock and new-wave moments here, that are unfortunately tainted by some very questionable mixing choices. I do generally enjoy the vibe of this album; it jumps between deep, ominous, with probably the album highlight of "No", and something a bit more lighthearted, albeit still with a dark undercurrent, like with 'Gloomy Sunday' and its cutesy key pattern. And the bellowing and exaggerated vocals on this record certainly help evoke that spooky feeling. It honestly reminds me of the SoTN soundtrack, especially 'Skipping' with its very lively composition. But the record suffers from some really thin production; it's trebly, and the drums are gated beyond repair. It's surprising how much that takes away from an otherwise pretty enjoyable record like this. Most songs suffered from this, though the remix of "Party Fears Two' sounded significantly better, and was a great song at its core. Ultimately, I enjoyed the music here; it's hazy and dizzying, and honestly felt like some distant fever dream when it was done.

Oh no I have never liked opera or melodrama. I kept skipping to the next cut. An hour thirty-eight minutes of this? Can't get past the moment he starts singing. Then I just quit.

Was this everyone's first day on their instrument? I absolutely hated the drums. The rest was pretty much just as awful.

get the fuck outta here with this nonsense

middle of the road

So the first thing I thought of when this album started up was that goofball skit on SNL when Chris Kattan, Horatio Sanz, Jimmy Fallon, and Tracy Morgan would get together with their synthesizer and sing a Christmas song. The synths and preprogrammed drum loops, in that skit, are ill timed and the song is terrible (but kinda funny). This is like that, except not as well put together, and not really funny at all. Actually, I take that back. By the time I got to Bap de la Bap, I was actually audibly laughing. This is terrible. Like, “how was this actually allowed to get made?” levels of terrible. It’s probably getting an extra star for making me laugh, but wow, this is bad. 4/10

#1048. Like the Talking Heads, but worse. 2/5: nah

Man, I don’t know what the appeal of this is or was. The album was indeed a giant sulk.

Just by looking at the cover photo, I’m going to say that this album was or is a gay anthem. Let’s see…. Ok so maybe not Frankie Goes to Hollywood or The Village People. Sort of a lighter Depeche Mode or Sisters of Mercy. It is a tad bit odd that there is so much going on in the background of pretty much every one of these songs. Like, it works in a sense but it’s just so busy. I don’t know if these guys were trying to delve into the industrial side of music and their producer said he could do that for them but really didn’t know what he was going and neither did the band? They just liked the name, industrial music. Choice cut: No

Terrible listen. Not sure why it is included on this list.

I don’t hate myself enough to force myself to listen to the whole thing. God awful

I mean, did I enjoy this? No, not at all. It was awful. But it almost being in the bottom 20 along with noise, industrial, and kid rock? that seems utterly bizarre.

bit jarring tbh. is this underground for 80s? didn't hate it. Would've given this 3 for novelty, but why does this go on forever!

Wasn’t really great. Monotonous.

Wowza. Tell you what man, you gotta put some respect on these guys for making this album. Seeing as they've never listened to music once in their lives. Or even heard of music in general. And what it's supposed to sound like. Also considering the fact that neither of them were born with a functioning human brain. Gotta respect it.

Nearly 2 hours of this shit

bel synthpop ma niente di che troverò di meglio sicuramente

inevitably , I find post punk to be needlessly depressing music, and consequently, to justify emotionally or thematically maintaining the status quo, a post punk album really needs to push the boundaries and get it right. unfortunately, Sulk has done neither and I thought it was shit. makes me feel like I am stuck in a conversation about someones 5 year plan at Surfa rosa.

My era of musical bias but never listened to it - just fine

581/1089 - It's kind of a trainwreck. A diverse trainwreck but a wreck nonetheless.

Why do I think that if this book were done by an American author this wouldn't even remotely be considered?

2/10 Some of the instrumentation was interesting but came of repetitive and let down by poor lyrics. My favourite was club country but wouldn’t say I loved it really, the vocals reminded me of morrissey but it just didn’t really work with how the music itself sounds so it came of quite pretentious, and i know it’s a bit nit picky but the song titles also sound pretentious like “arrogance gave him up” sounds like they’re taking themselves a bit too serious. Also it’s not britpop, just because it’s British and pop music doesn’t make it britpop, just like how country music doesn’t have to be recorded in horse stable to be considered country music.

2/10 = liked the synthy 80s instrumentals but the vocals were a bit too a lot warbly and not very memorable for the time, sort of parodied itself and im surprised it made it on here tbh

What a weird album. Very flamboyant, like something you'd hear at a halloween costume party? Kind of (?) enjoyed this but listening to more than two songs in a row gave me a headache. I think this will grow on me though.

Some parts are listenable, but every bit of this album is missing something for me…

Never heard of this band or album. I can appreciate how cool this must have sounded in 1982. Some songs have a good melodies. Others sound they they pressed every button on the drum machine. 2.5 stars

eh

Why?

Marginally better than yesterday‘s album, but not by much and not buy enough to earn an additional star.

This was alright for a bit, but then it just kept going on and on and it felt like they just backloaded it with a toooon of shit at the end. I didn't enjoy it and I won't be listening again. One star.

Spotify is going to know that I listened to this and that scares me. Okay, Spotify is going to know that I skipped through the first three tracks and that still scares me.

Can’t get over the voice and the squeaks and squiggles of 80s synth. I do like some of the wrinkles in the drum programming.

It was OK, just generic early 80s

Like this sound in general but nothing in the album particularly gripped me!! Would listen again tho

This just didn’t quite do it for me. Adjacent to music I would enjoy but the lyrics were indecipherable and it was a little wail-y

The music was alright and on the last song the vocals were ok but I really didn’t enjoy the vocals on most of the album.

Cool

new wave is such a hilarious genre... good for you guys... no knocks, three stars

Aggressively 80s

This isn't doing much for me, but at least it is not over an hour... oh.

no variation

Art Pop una combinacion que se suma a la ola de los 80s. No se si fueron pioneros en esto, pero se nota la búsqueda por cambiar el sonido que iba a resonar en la época. Tintes de bowie, la oscuridad de deepche mode y the cure, estan en el aire. Incluso alguna cosita de new order me parece. A pesar de esto, son inspiraciones, no logran generar algo totalmente formado, ya que a veces la escucha se torna dificultosa. Estribillos y versitos que funcionan como mini estribillos, llevan a que sea un disco más que interesante. Porque si bien digo esto, buscan un cambio en el sonido, las letras y las veces que no es pesada, la escucha se siente mística, fresca, nueva y en ciertas partes ambiciosa. Buscan con efectos, sintetizadores e instrumentos diferentes el equilibrio entre lo mainstream y lo experimental. 3,5/5

I didn't hate the sound of this and was going to give it a 3 until I realized I was only 45 minutes in to a 98 minute long behemoth. Minus one star for not knowing when to quit.

Yeah. Not much to say on this one.

this album is too long, cut like half the chaff and this would be an easy 4 star

The worst kind of 80s music in my mind. Couldn’t finish.

Post punk, synth pop. I’m surprised that I did not like this more considering that it probably influenced a lot of indie music that I love from the early aughts.

What a nuts album. The synthpop scene of the 80s is just so cool, all these creative and weird artists coming through. The Associates really made magic here and the story behind that is pretty crazy. Great album I enjoyed all the way through

Very 80s, and I'm only listening to the first 10 tracks of the remastered version on apple music, which was plenty. First track sounded like some filler background stuff. And then they started singing, holy shit pretentious. He has no business singing that high. Shitty bargain bin Bowie. 1*

NEVER AGAIN

Easy to see the influence, but I don’t know if it’s one I’d come back to that much as a listener. Incredibly lush post-punk-y soundscapes on the synths which I’m all for, but the drums often feel like they’re sort of slipping in and out and the vocals take the sort of “new pop” vocal-theatricality a bit past where I like to hear it. There’s a few standout songs in the back half, but they just can’t pull it up out of the mid average level. I’m glad it’s there to work as an influential stepping stone for so many other artists and albums I do really enjoy to work from, but I think that’s its big gift for me.

Not quite my thing! Has a solid foundation in the instrumentals but the vocals don’t quite hit for me here. I really liked the last 3 or so tracks but didn’t like this one enough as a whole to keep going with the bonus tracks.

I'm good

Good album. A very interesting mix of new wave and pop.

This is my seventh generated album placed in the bottom 20 and for the seventh time I am left scratching my head. All of them are decent at worst and some of them are really great. Reading the top reviews of Sulk leads me to believe we listened to an entirely different album. I am far from an '80s guy, but this album really has a lot to offer. It's obviously a product of its time, but it does some really interesting things that sets it apart from your average New Wave release of the era. I love the gothic atmosphere it slowly presents more obviously as it goes along, it's cleverly done. The vocals are great. They are deep, crooning and explosive in just the right moments. Sulk has a couple of tracks I'm not entirely on board with, but they are all decent. It also gets better as it goes along, in my opinion, especially because it gets more and more diverse. Not my favourite new discovery on the generator, but definitely an interesting set of songs I'm glad I heard. This list has some really odd picks, but this is not one of them. Favourite track: Club Country

2.0

This was embarrassing to listen to. Not gonna be nice here. 2 stars. So dramatic.

Really liked this. Never heard of them but this was varied, weird and even poppy.

Apparently I'm really not a new wave fan like I thought I was? I'm really starting to get sick of all of these albums that only charted in the UK. This was quite annoying to listen to (why do none of the beats actually line up?). These guys really thought they were doing something profound and experimental, and instead it's just straight up not good. Let's just say I got excited when I realized I could skip the last 7 songs on the Spotify version of the album since they weren't part of the original release. Favorite tracks (maybe?): Bap De La Bap

The first couple tracks were almost okay but it went downhill fast

The 80s are my fav music era when I came of age. There are so many better new wave albums than this….

Another post punk artist I'd never heard of. Interestingly odd, like an intense David Bowie tribute, but not my cup of tea really.

Very happy to DNF this POS.

#415/1001. This is one of those either 1 or 5 stars albums. I've listened to it before, but didn't get much out of it then. And now, after the first few songs I was thinking what a waste of money to give an untalented band £60K, and they spend it on clothes, hotel rooms (also for their pet whippets), drugs - but also for studio time, where they sonically experiment by e.g peeing inside a guitar. But slowly the album grows to an interesting whole, clearly a manifest for the weirdos and outcasts out there. But in the end I am not one of them, just glad for you that it is there for feeling at home.

More 80's. Not bad 80's, but not great 80's. Middle of the road 80's.

Way too long...especially for an album not produced in the CD era.

I listened to it twice because I was distracted the first time. It's peak 80s synth heavy post punk. Not much leapt out at me.

Unusual and dark. I'm not actually sure what I think of it. It is intriguing but I'm not sure I'd be interested in pursuing that intrigue.

Simply didn’t like it at all.

Yikes! I made it to Party Fears Two (US/Europe release). Wow, this is horrid. I would rather listen to ABBA, and I don't want to listen to ABBA. Bad, simply bad. 1 "generous" star.

#196/1001 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 I enjoyed this more than i thought that i would after the first track. Its got a kind of a gothic, new romantic, new wave vibe as you would expect from the early 90s. The best tracks are towards the end. Best Tracks: Club Country, Party Fears Two, No.

Oh just not for me lol a little too out there but not like in a bad way lol

the Ass. This album gives me a bit more context into the British new wave/post-punk scene in the early 80s. It's too atmospheric and all over the place for me; totally not the pop or even rock I'm used to. Giving experimental Bowie and that Ocean & The Bunnymen album vibes. The exceptions, "Party Fears Two" and "18 Carat Love Affair", are probably the closest to an 80s pop sound. Why didn't they just sprinkle the poppier tracks near the beginning of the album? Personally it wouldn't have been as bad if listeners got a break with something more commercial and familiar in-between the more experimental tracks (2.5-3).

This album was very unique and musically interesting which proves those two qualities don't necessarily mean a great listening experience. This is my first time hearing this album or this band, I hope it is the last.

Don't really remember this.

PSA: I listened to both the original 10-track UK/Canada release and the original 11-track US/Europe release (three swap outs and an extra track from the former). For what it's worth, I think the latter is the superior version and the one I'd recommend for this project. If you happen to fall in love with that version, then go ahead and track down as much extended bonus material as you feel comfortable consuming, but I strongly caution against diving into the deep end first (standing advice for any artist, really). The Review: Contrary to its poor global rating and the pan reviews, I didn't think this was all that terrible. Sure, my first playthrough (the UK/Canada release) was a bit rough, but the second playthrough (the US/Europe release) landed a bit more smoothly thanks to the four (better) tracks that weren't included on the UK/Canada release ('White Car in Germany' is the best track on the album, in my opinion). I have to admit, however, that it did take a few playthroughs for the album to fully sink in, and even after that, I still found the shrillness of the vocals to be enough of a distraction to be a detraction. In a lineup with its synthpop and new wave peers, this album would be on the lower end of the spectrum (instrumentation is decent, but those vocals truly are a hard sell). In the larger context of this 1,001 challenge, however, this easily floats atop the thick mire of the dozens of honky-tonk, noise-rock, prog, jazz, blues, folk, nu metal, gangsta rap, and Radiohead albums I've had to sit through.

Some cool ideas. As a whole package this was just ok. The vocals were sloppy, and nothing really drove me to need more of this.

Ok. Why is it here? What happened? Who hurt you?

Have never heard of the associates Have never heard Sulk Had never hea d any of the songs. First listen was a tough one. There's Bowie, there's synths, there a lot of clashing sounds, but I didn't hate it. A couple more listens and it grown on me more. I think I agree with its inclusion in the list. It definitely pushes boundaries beyond new wave, Synth pop & Electro pop.

There is just too much art-school horseshit on this list. I feel like I'm being trolled. This is just hot garbage. "Bap de la Bap"?! How the fuck am I supposed to recover from that? I'm afraid to continue using my ears now for fear that something just as horrible might enter them!

very sparksy

Pretty neat. A lot more upbeat than Fourth Drawer Down, but still pretty unique

I’m sure it was influential or important in some way, but I don’t get it.

This is the 81st album that the site has served up to me, and it is only the second one where I have no memory of ever having heard of the band or the album. While the other one (The Monks, "Black Monk Time") was released when I was an infant, this came out in the US when I was a senior in high school — prime time for me to have experienced it. Looking at the Wikipedia article, I wonder if that's because their US tour was canceled so they didn't get the radio attention that might have accompanied one. The vocals in "Party Fears Two" really caught my attention.

At first I thought this would just be 2 stars but as the album went along I realized it isn't actually just the usual 80s stuff but it's quite experimental and still fun in that 80s way.

I’m getting to the point where generic new wave is going to be an automatic 2-star… mix it up a bit

no no no. So much good news wave and this is what's chosen? for shame!

I like their sound! Very strong start with Arrogance Gave Him Up and No! Some of the melodies are a bit out there though.

Pølsemandens David Bowie.

Det er meget 80er lyd og ret teatralsk. Men det har også et mørke i lydbilledet som jeg finder interessant.

Героиновое оперное безобразие. Практически все слова в кратком описании негативны и не имеют положительного окраса. Каждая песня неимоверно скучна, и в одном из описании данного альбома было написано, что-то вроде "группа написав один успешный альбом, так и не собралась вновь для написания следующего". Мой комментарий - и слава богам этого не произошло. Это явно спонтанный проект в который вложили чересчур много денег для пиара. Слушать невыносимо больно. Оценка 1/10

Its Better This Way was the first song to catch my attention. The whole album is monotone although the opening song (Arrogance gave him up) is an instrumental and while a bit chirpy is also worth a listen. Same for the Nothinginsomethingparticular instrumental. The Room We Sat in is the only other song differing from the rest of tha album with a slight Metal taste. Their later album sounds bit more rich/diverse but still all in the same style other artists do a song or two in and not a whole career.

Mezcla d ritmo entre indochina y voz de David Bowie. Aburrido

Just sound effects and strange singing. No thank you.

I love new wave and the 80s are a favorite decade, so it pains me to rate this album so low.

Sounds like the lead singer is singing a completely different song than the music playing.

Number: 187 Familiarity: None (1) Rating: 2 ======= I might have liked this in 1982. I don't like it now. I found it very difficult to listen to and had to skip through most of the tracks. I'd give them an A for effort but a D- for execution unless they were actually trying to make the worst possible music in this particular style.

I love 80s music, especially synth pop, but overall this was not good. There were parts here and there I liked (the opening of "Skipping" for example) but those were few and far between. The singing, in particular, was especially bad. Not recommended.

Fabulous album.

This is an album from an obscure Scottish band. I listened to the original UK release plus one extra track (“Love Hangover”) from the US release. The album started out nicely enough with an instrumental track, then rapidly went downhill. The last (instrumental) track also is pleasant. The lead singer is not good on many tracks. The music is standard 1980s, and there are some good tracks on the record, just not enough. Some of the songs give off a Talking Heads vibe.

A lot of these albums seem named by a random word generator, which I guess I support. Very 80s vocals. I dunno, it's not really working for me. Notably, this album includes a version of the Hungarian Suicide Song ('Gloomy Sunday'), and the lead singer later committed suicide. Good thing I didn't start keeping track of how many tragic deaths are on this list, because it's probably more than the "the"-less bands or backwards words songs or albums I own... Lowlight: 'Nude Spoons'

Album of the year? Really??

No miro nada relevante en este álbum, más que probablemente haya sido influyente

Didn't enjoy this at all

Just very very very boring. Nothing here is attention grabbing and you could listen to much better new wave.

Oof. Not a fan. Sounded like a bad copy of David Bowie, the Cure and Tears for Fears. If this album helped create those bands, great, but it lacked what made those bands great. Favorite parts were when they drop the music and give the drums or guitar a solo.

These guys feel like Bowie wannabes

Another album that I didn't even know existed. With obvious inspiration from David Bowie, The Associates manage to not be a copy by incorporating a lot of experimental elements from New Wave and Post Punk, making it a fun album I'll definitely listen to more in the future.

Nice album but very eighties sounding. The falsetto Bowie-esque vocals started to grate a little after a while but overall a good listen.

5 star album for the musi, - 2 stars for the self important vocals

This sits at a rather bizarre point between the angular experimentality of post-punk and the pop sensibilities of later new wave, in a way where I'm not 100% sure it either resolves to either or combines into a new and effective whole. However, it was still quite solid new wave, so 7/10 it gets!

I made it 6 songs in. I was not strong enough to go further.

You know, the first instrumental track actually caught my attention right away. It had me thinking this was going to be an interesting spin on 80s synthpop. In a way, I guess that's exactly what it is.... but the captivating instrumentals quickly take a backseat to some bad Bowie-wannabe singing?? Turn down the vocal mixing a bit!! I'm trying to enjoy the synth line on Gloomy Sunday!! I'm trying to enjoy the Cure's bassist's part!!! (wish granted on Club Country) There are definitely elements I enjoy here; none of them are exactly unique to the album. I don't think I need to revisit. Standouts: Arrogance Gave Him Up • Club Country

Confused and conflicted! It reminds me of the more out-there stuff by The Cure before they pivoted into commercial friendly territory in 1985. I definitely don't like every song on here but over two listens it really grew on me. Tentative 3, could be a 4 later.

I didn't enjoy it. It was very 80's, but not in a good way. I feel like the lead singer was just trying to sound like David Bowie most of the time. Nothing stood out.

Nah

Some seconds of songs sound great others sound incredibly overproduced

Very 80s, and kinda sounded a bit like Brandon Flowers...from the 80s

A few years ago I started doing one album a day using a different list, tracking all of my ratings in a spreadsheet. There weren't many low ratings from me, but when looking at the data I noticed a pattern: I just really seem to hate 80's music. In almost any genre (some 80's punk/hardcore/alt-rock are an exception) I just pretty much hated every production choice made. All of that to say: this album was a downright painful listen for me. I came VERY close to quitting in the middle. I don't personally have much redeeming to say about this record, but I am not going to say to stay away from it, because it is far from bad in an objective sense. It is just the exact opposite of my taste in a way that made a listen straight through impossible. I had to take a few breaks. So, if you really love 80's Bowie but have always wished it was just a little bit more unsettling and that he was doing his best impersonation of a ghost the whole time, this is the album for you!

Not my cup of tea, but rather avante garde. I probably would like it more on subsequent listens

This isn't so bad as to be amongst the lowest ranked albums on this whole list. Sure it started like I was going to be listening to the personification of a 'sulk' but I warmed up to it and it got musically better and a more interesting listen as the album progressed. Giving it a 2.5 that raises to a 3 just so it can lift above some of the albums that are way worse than it.

2.3 de média geral nesse aqui é loucura como o amigo disse, é coisa boa e bem executada gostei bem

novamente, o público médio desse site eh burro e tem mau gosto. dito isso, achei esse aqui bão demais. postpunk com um cadinho de new wave e synth até o cu fazer bico, mas sem perder a experimentação e barulhada. se fosse mais anos 80, explodia (eh um elogio aqui). a produção eh bem bagunçada, provavelmente feita sob efeito de pó, assim como deus quis. coisa boa demais!!!

7/10

They tried a lot of things - electronica, new wave, light-punk, being David Bowie - and in the end did none of them well.

not as good as Joni Mitchell’s Blue

This is sure a hit or miss. It's weird and experimental and sometimes annoying (probably on purpose). I felt sounds I never heard elsewhere.

I expect to dislike it waaaay more than I did. It’s a bit long, but overall a good listening experience

Was looking forward to this, because I absolutely love Party Fears Two. Quite liked some of the arrangements and synths, but overall it's fairly average.

Ik wil deze vage synthpop graag leuk vinden maar het gaat niet. De hitsingle is quirky én catchy, maar de rest slaat vooral door in quirkyness en pakt me nauwelijks. 5/10

Klinkt erg postpunk en begin 80-s. Waren er qua synthpop in '82 er nog best vroeg bij. Je hoort dingen als Joy Division en the Cure heel goed, maar het is een rommeltje zonder dat het werkt. Zulke postpunk moet op een gegeven moment gaan vliegen, en dat doen deze tracks totaal niet. Dit krijgt van mij geen voldoende. 5/10

I just can't finish it. Srry.

Trying to be experimental but it just sounds noisy, the music isn't that great and his singing is grating. There are some interesting post punks moments but they are few and far between. There is nothing on this album that I will come back to relisten too

Very stereotypically 80s. Not my thing.

There's a lot of good ideas and some great tracks but it's ultimately an inconsistent effort. Still enjoyed my listen but could be a lot better.

They are suprisingly weird but the beat i like it, maybe because i try looking for some resemblance to 80’s music and style

Ok, I didn’t HATE this as much as the reviews led me to think I would. It’s freaky and I’d put it on a new wave or gothic playlist, it’s performing within its genre. That said, it’s telling that the best song here is their cover of Gloomy Sunday. It would be hard to make that song sound anything but melancholic and sublime.

M,eh, very dated

ja ganz cool

Not for me.

Back three tracks on this one are pretty good, which saved me from not entirely disliking the album

Probably more of a Spotify listing problem but didn’t need to hear all the extra versions. That said a couple songs grew on me a little like Party Fears Two and Club Country but not something I’d revisit.

Lots of 80's Shite. Some catchy songs though. Probably would have been better off just going instrumental like song one.

Lame

I am not into this at all. Some melodies are fine but the vocals are meh and the music is meh.

Garbage

When i listened Gloomy Sunday, i said "Holy hell, why does this album have reviews so low?". Lo and behold, rest was shit. I agree with the bad reviews, my 3 is given only due to the fact that i really loved Gloomy Sunday.

I only knew the great "Party Fears Two" beforehand, but the album as a whole is a fascinating combination of post punk, synth pop and David Bowie. I'll definitely listen to this again.

Boring

Very decent I think i could like it more with more listens Party Fears Two is the best song by a mile and its superb High 3

This was… not good. Sounded like bad video game music for a lot of it, and the rest I just wasn’t that interested in.

the reviews and background info I read made me think I was going to love this album (allegedly so catchy, beloved by New Romantics, widescreen synth based) but it really did not live up to that hype for me. not at all unpleasant and a bit cure-esque in parts but hoped for a lot more and can kinda see why the name The Associates is not widely remembered

Reminded me of Let’s Dance era Bowie and some of the Cure’s more depressing things but worse. Couldn’t single out anything I enjoyed and I’m usually all for Scots doing weird things.

parece a trilha perfeita pra um filme adolescente dos anos 80 com pegada comedy horror

shite

Listens: 2 Standout Tracks: Bap De La Bap This felt pretty "out there". Experimental sound with what I assume are lots of synths. A two person band, so quite minimal in its approach to making music. I didn't really much care for it. Mostly because its like the 50th New Wave/Post-punk album I've heard, and the second in as many days, by another wildly obscure band. Another reviewer said it best: If your album hasn't been talked about much over the past 50 years, there's probably a good chance it doesn't need to be on the list of albums you must here before you die.

There is a reason you have heard of Human League, Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, David Bowie, Heaven 17, Depeche Mode, ABC, XTC, Thompson Twins, Flock of Seagulls, OMD, Ultravox, Erasure, etc etc - and NEVER heard of these guys. 1.5⭐️

Moody, dark, dramatic dance-pop. I'd say club music but it's not as electronic as that. Sound a little like a despondently drunk Bono met Ron Mal during a bout of depression and they made this. None of that is complimentary. The album is aptly named. Again, that's not praise. What if you couldn't dance to the Cure? Couldn't screw to The Smiths? This is that. The bass playing on 'Club Country' is pretty good. But it's a bit lost under all the swirling, cursed synth. Sparks, but ominous and vaguely threatening. Honestly, it's of a piece with what other 80's dance-y music from the UK sounds like to me. Possibly important listening so that you get the full scope of how much this sort of goth-spectrum stuff took over. On the other hand, it's neither revelatory nor especially enjoyable. Protip: Spotify has the 2000 remaster, which contains seven additional tracks. As far as I'm concerned, you can skip them -- stop after 'nothinginsomethingparticular'. Or earlier. You won't miss anything. 2/5. Might be a boring 3, if I were feeling more magnaminous, today. Not insulting, which is basically the only way I give a 1.

As the kids say, this was pretty mid. There were some highlights, including nothinginsomethinginparticular, which is quite a fun song name. The vocals were good and the backing was enjoyable in a sort of early 80s new romantic meets post punk meets pop way, but there was little to really grab you by the something in particulars.

Side B + the bonus tracks are astronomically better than side A holy shit. talk about lop sided. i really don’t care for gothic post-punk. it always comes across as the songwriting gets tossed to the side in favor for “mood” and “sadness”

Very dated. I didn’t enjoy listening to this.

With its glittering synths, this is engaging in places, but very much of its time too. There’s some good songs, but I struggle with Billy McKenzie’s vocals.

I like some of this, although I found the vocals a bit of a hard listen. Too much of this I did not enjoy.

Some interesting stuff, but the lows are low here

Solid 2.5

The warbling vocals on this are too damned much. Nah, man

meh total. 5/10

Reminds me of David Bowie. And general early 80's upbeat pop.

I don't think I disliked this nearly as much as other reviewers on this list, so I might be rounding up a bit. Has a vague "Talking Heads covering unused Joy Division songs" thing going up. Not great, but better than a lot of the annonymous 80s & 90s post-punk bands from the British Isles on this list.

They're throwing a lot of things at the wall and give Siouxsie crossed with Depeche with a sprinkle of Bowie...and maybe Bauhaus on a bad day. But none of it really lands and would have vastly preferred a mediocre deep cut from any of those other artists over this.

3.5/5 https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/associates/sulk/ I guess I might like this more upon relistening, but it didn't grab me as much as other 80s synthpop does. I think this will benefit from repeat listens however, because it does seem a bit less 'surface level' than other music from the time.

319/1001 The Associates - Sulk Heard before? ❎ Revisit? ❎ On the one hand, this is an incredibly frustrating album and on the other it's something that I really don't like. When it's at its best, it leans into the post punk sound, but the vocals ruin that aesthetic. When they decide to go down the pop route it becomes even worse. The melodramatic, overwrought vocals do absolutely nothing for me.

I honestly didn't give it much of a chance but I don't feel that it deserved one. Sorry, European.

Seems to be a mix of poppy punk with half the album holding on to this haunting colorful graveyard vibe, kinda odd especially with the Bowie style wailing through most of it. There were tracks I enjoyed and many others that fell flat. Fits for a specific place and time but glad I know of them now

It would be a lot better if i was on lot of drugs

only listened to half. very cure esque. reading about billy mackenzie makes me want to listen more

Not really my sound, a bit too chaotic for my taste

So take the worst histrionic excesses of a coked up David Bowie and mix it with some New Wave, post punk synth noise and you might get something like this. Only, not as bad.

very interesting...

I’m almost a loss for words here. I don’t know what exactly this is, but I really think it’s best we leave it in 1982. I’ve never heard of this band before, and I’m suspecting, after listening to this “album”, that it’s for very good reason. Just terrible all around.

After the first track I was totally invested and ready to love this album, but after that it quickly devolved to be both weird and boring; monotonous.

Pre Listen: Another band I've not heard of in the slightest, to my knowledge. I like the album cover, it's pretty. No expectations. Notable Tracks: Gloomy Sunday - First song that's popped out to me. The instrumental work specifically stood out as pretty cool, but the vocals suck. Nude Spoons - Can you stop shouting and wailing? In my ear? Thanks. Ulcragyceptimol - Least favorite track. So bad it made me want to clobber the vocalist with a baseball bat or shove him into a locker or something like that. Post Listen: Even though I said I had no expectations, this really wasn't what I was expecting. I guess I thought it was going to be typical 80's British Radio Pop. Unexpectedly, I got something a lot...darker, and Scottish? I probably could've seen that coming with the title "Sulk". It wasn't awful, at their best they sound almost like a blend of The Talking Heads and New Order. At their worst though, it's damn near unlistenable. I couldn't pinpoint a favorite song, as all of them have genuinely awful moments. I didn't appreciate the vocals 9/10 times, all the other instruments varied in how much I enjoyed them across the board each song. The album goes on for longer than I'd like. There was absolutely potential for a banger album here, like having 5-star ingredients for the world's coolest cake, but then they baked the cake out of order, then dropped it all on the floor. 2/5

I like how the album cover makes my eyeballs feel. That's about it though. Best bit of music I heard from this was the bit playing in the American Airlines ad that came up between tracks while I listened on YouTube. Why do the vocals so mismatched with the instrumentals? I already just don't like synth but I especially don't like it with the moody voice leading the album. Maybe I'm just getting sick of the synth shit we get every other album but I feel like I've heard a better version of this album maybe 3 or 4 times this month. When they try to do something different (e.g. Nude Spoons) it just feels grating and I was just begging for it to be over. They can't do the overdone stuff well and they can't put a unique twist on it. Skipping and Club Country was okay. Still not happy with the screeching voice but the instrumentals were pretty cool. In fact I may try to find a fully instrumental version of this album and see how much more I like it when there isn't a jarring, dime-a-dozen, britpop banshee shrieking in my ear every 15 seconds. If so, this could be the most tragic waste of a guitarist/keyboardist I've ever heard. Really. Keep listening to Party Fears Two until you can make it through the whole thing without feeling a little sick at the end. I dare you. This sucked.

One of the worst albums yet, this one is right there with The Shamen in terms of awfulness. Disjointed arrangements, terrible rhythm, and vocals that'll make you cringe. Another album where most of the songs had around 30k plays each; this is not some undiscovered gem, this is the author being a contrarian asshole and refusing to put more popular music on the list in favor of some 80s electronic dogshit from the UK. With extreme prejudice, The Associates will take their place in the Hall of Shame as my 16th 1/5

This was pretty cool. I feel like they needed to edit a bit.

It's good at what it's going for, but not my jam as it's going for intentionally confusing and a little hard to listen to

Not an easy listen, but there's a lot of interesting stuff going on here. Sad to see so many reviewers writing this album off because it requires the listener to put in a bit of effort.

Wow, okay, I did not like anything about this.

I kinda dig this but it’s not a consistent listen. It started off strong but song three then took me out of it and that’s pretty much the rollercoaster I was on for the rest of the album. Some amazing songs but also questionable choices. I’ll rate it on the higher end though because overall I enjoyed the theatrics.

great. new fan

no

Цікаво. Пост-панк, пост-поп, сінт-поп. Ну на трієчку)

Dull. Roxy Music "light." Nothing to see here.

Last song absolutely tanked this one for me

Disliked

The album art screams 1980s synth driven pop. The first track, a fully instrumental song, completely took me by surprise. Then the rest of the album settles into a Cure/Smiths type of vibe. 2.5

Did some reading into this band and many similar bands like this and how they were very underground and lesser known today because that era was just weak for UK music. Overall, not the biggest fan, it was long but there were some good tracks. Not an essential listen at all.

Wild, weird and wonderful. Never heard anything like it.

Oingo boingo with worse mastering and less interesting lyrical topics. I didn't hate listening to it. This was my 600th album of this series. I guess I was hoping for something more auspicious.

Alright. This is something new for me, something good for me!

never thought i’d hear a new-wave cover of gloomy sunday, and that it would sound this bad

sounded very awkward, not a fan

There is a song that plays on the music system at work that I had deemed one of the worst songs I had ever heard. Turns out it was track two on this album. This singer is just not for me.

Gave me the skeeves tbh

4/10

Oh they are sulking FOR SURE. It’s funny how much this project is making me have an ear for decades. I don’t think I had that as much before. Anyway, 80’s, obviously. NEXT.

This man has a surprisingly wide range for his voice. Kinda felt like I was in a British circus at times.

Adrian Belew?? Sounds kinda like him. This album has so much cool shit in it, but it's entirely too long. Shorten this down to the best 40ish minutes and it would be a strong 4. Instead it's just a bit of a pain to get through.

Loved the kooky-ness of this. Halfway between 80s cheese and bizarre post-punk. Kinda wish it skewed more to the latter but still good!

1 - not good

2.5

I dislike this album a good bit. His vocal stylings feel like he's trying to mimic Bowie's Berlin period. The best parts of the album sound like a really bad version of *Loger* to me. The opening sounded like one of the new wave instrumentals that John Hughes would employ. (There's like a half dozen bits like that on the *Life Moves Pretty Fast* box set). That inconsequential piece of music was the highlight of the album. It went downhill from there. (4.3) ★★

Synthpop and new wave are not my favourites, and I don't paeticularly like the vocals either. 2.5 stars

Not sure about this band or album. At their best, it kind of feels like a Cure/Bowie kind of sound, but it also drifts into this annoying synthpop realm I don't care for. The middle section of the album was the best. 2.5 stars.

Good Halloween music. Sounds like a big haunted mansion that belongs to a howling werewolf vampire ghoul hybrid and there’s 17th century style fancy portraits of David Bowie hanging on all of the walls. It is bewildering, sometimes brilliant and barnstorming. Best song and biggest hit is Party Fears Two where they dim it down and rely on a baroque riff that sounds a little like the piano runs in Beatles In My Life.

I was probably a little predisposed towards this as I have loved Party Fears Two since I discovered The Divine Comedy’s cover of it many years ago, but this whole album didn’t disappoint. It strikes a balance between its arch, overblown delivery and catchy 80s pop, striking a point somewhere weirdly between The Cure and ABC. Interested to see how much this divides opinion among the 1001 rankers. Personally I loved this.

bold, dramatic, ambitious, extravagant - full of ideas and experimental sounds and wild melodic arcs

Wel tof! Veel van hetzelfde in de hele plaat, maar er zitten een paar bangers in (zoals Party Fears Two) maar ook wel tikkeltje glamrockerig op een verkeerde theatrale manier

This was aptly named

Some of that early '80s gothic new-wave with the overtheatrical glam boy lead, this one's more synthy and the songs have nothing on Killing Moon Still likeable though, especially for a skeleton party

That was.... Odd, not sure if I liked it, but quite sure I'm not going to listen to it again

Decent album of its time that still sounds good beyond Party Fears Two

hmm auch bisschen lang ahh

This is trash.

They just include anything on this site, huh?

Was digging the 80s/synth vibe for about 15 seconds on the first track. That's where the enjoyment stops. This was AWFUL

Nope

Not for me

I wouldn’t choose this album to listen to. Ever. But it’s kinda rad for 1982.

Normally I love weird shit, but this is just bad. 1982 me would have probably loved it, but 2026 me just finds it annoying.

5/10 I've been going through a streak of... less than great albums recently, so I was worried when I saw this was on the bottom 20 list. Interestingly, I don't think it's that bad. It is EXTREMELY new-wave, with the synths and exaggerated singing to show for it. I think the album is perfectly fine - not a standout for being good or bad. Other reviews criticize the singer's voice, but like I said, he just sounds like a typical new-wave vocalist to me. This should receive 2.5 stars, but I'll give it 3 since I didn't have a bad time listening to it.

Okay. This was good old wacky fun, you can clearly hear the Roxy and Bowie influences, and they're having fun with them. Yessir. I like this quite a bit. A few tracks that don't jive exactly, but only a few.

About as self indulgent as it gets. This record has crossed over from extravagant to bizarre, but has enough musicianship to not be a total flop.

For some reason I was under the assumption that The Associates were a punk band, so color me surprised when this turned out to be some of the most orchestral and sumptuous post-punk that I've heard. Just a great listen, and it made me want to listen to the rest of the band's music.

Wow, I really went into this with an open mind. Really quite horrible!

While it was enjoyable it just reminded me of other bands I like that much more.

Music was obviously of its time. I was giving it a go but by half way through his voice was way too grating.

did not like it.

Had to stop, did not like even a little

Utterly unique and completely brilliant. There's never been an album like this, before or since. Billy McKenzie is much missed in these parts. Love, love, love! 😍 Incidentally, for those in the reviews complaining about this album being one hour and 40 minutes long, you've been listening to demos and B-sides for the final hour. Check Discogs or Wikipedia for the original tracklisting!

++: Arrogance Gave Him Up, Skipping, It's Better This Way +: Nude Spoons, Party Fears Two, nothinginsomethingparticular +-: Bap de la Bap, Gloomy Sunday, Club Country -: No 4,0/10

If the vocals weren’t that bad I might think it’s a better album then what it is.

It's not great or really any good, but I don't think it is as bad as people think. The vocals are really bad (one of the worst on this list). Some of the new wave stuff does not work. However, it wasn't horrible, and many albums are a lot worse and have a higher score than this.

Just very 80s, I didn't really like it

Mediocre.

I put it on while I sat and read the news and don't remember any of the album.

Did Muse get some inspiration from this, I wonder? Hate the 80s synth sound on some of the songs and the high notes of his voice. Other than that, it was better than I thought it would be. Recognised 2 songs.

Awful 80s synth pop. I could almost forgive the plastic music but not the vocals. Especially the slaughter of Gloomy Sunday - check out Sinead O'connor's version to hear how it's done properly.

Didn't like his voice or the 80s bibe :(

Halloween music. Pretty bad

If I heard heard this album back in the '80s, I'm sure I would have given it a five. But I'm a little older now. It was reminiscent of the lot of stuff that I listen to when I was a kid though.

Early 80s music. Nothing notable here for me.

It’s alright to run to but unmemorable overall. Upbeat, synth-y and new to me. But overlong and I’ve no urge to listen again.

This is a rare one where I’ve never even heard of the band until now, which is nice because it means I’m going in without preconceptions. This is some synthy new wave, similar to other groups of the genre. Interestingly (or not, depending on your perspective) it varies quite a bit in terms of sound, with some of it more in the realm of gothy post-punk, and other songs are much jauntier, making me think of an electronics-heavy Smiths. There’s a cabaret element here too that makes me think of Soft Cell. Of course, as always with albums from this book, there’s the question of if this album is significant or influential enough that it merits being one of a mere thousand must-listens, and I’m not convinced of that despite largely enjoying it, though it’s worlds better than the Eagles album I got yesterday.

1.3

On paper I loved this but my soul did not.

Why? This sounds like there’s three songs playing at all times and they never line up. Even the famous single isn’t great other than the opening riff.

Synths in a haunted house with a very whiney ghoul. 2 ok songs: Gloomy Sunday was low tier Bowie. Feel like Party Fears Two would be a good song with any other singer. The rest of this is utter shit. A very generous 2. And they can thank me for it

trevligt, borde typ lyssnat på 40th anniversary för ytterligare två timmar av lyssnande.

girl idk lowkey maybe a 2

not for me i don’t think we need burping in songs

If the guy from Bronski Beat sang for Depeche Mode. There was one or two on Sulk that were memorable but all-in-all there isn't much here for me.

Bad news wave/Britpop. I hated it.

fun!! another very sims coded song: ‘nothinginsomethingparticular’. thoroughly enjoyed this

Post-punk, electronica, very 80s. Synths. Goth, creativde. A bit weird.

Synth-pop, post-punk, art rock.

Not all it's cracked up to be, I really don't know how their one big hit, Party Fears Two, has endured this long, just an average 80s tune to me. The rest is meh

Favorite Track: Gloomy Sunday

So dramatic, so silly, so fitting for a bad horror soundtrack

Should of done track 6's name.

I'm struggling a bit to sort out my feelings on this album. First, I don't know if the version I listened to is the proper version as there seems to be a few variants with different track lists. Anyway, this was entirely new to me and I was not at all familiar with this band. It's definitely a quirky record and kinda reminded me of a stranger more psychotic version of The Cure (early years) blended with Depeche Mode. Although I don't typically care much for new wave or 80s electronic music, I could see this could grow on me with repeated listens. I'll give it a 3 for now.

Acceptable Brit pop that went on way too long.

I am a post punk type of guy, but this album doesn't hit. It's trying to be different and innovative but it honestly is pretty generic and not in an interesting way.

A surprise around every corner! Some songs that seem so familiar and others that leave you wanting. A real treat!

Meh...80's music that wants to sound like David Bowie. Love Hangover was kind of fun, but the rest just felt like it was trying too hard.

This was fun emo 80s music...I like the drama they create. Nothing really stirred my soul up, but I enjoyed it just fine.

Too new wave for my tastes

Very shrill, not my bag

Vekkulimusiikkia, semmosia erikoisia ja ei niin miellyttäviä sointukuvioita. Ei kauhean miellyttävää. Jotain post punkkia. Parhaat: Party Fears Two

i haven’t heard of this. looks interesting. i’m excited. i took the band name and cover of the album and incorrectly assumed it was going to be more like the avalanches. whoops. this is a little nuts for 1982. he sounds like david bowie. goes between being a bowie pastiche and a talking heads pastiche. i do love both of those artists though, so it’s cool. singer’s a little annoying. i was on its side for most of it, but this album kinda wore me down.

Interesting singing style. I think this belongs on the list as it does seem to have its own edges and style.

David Bowie esk pop. A little surreal. Not too bad.

Sulk is not perfectly disciplined. It can feel more intoxicating than coherent. There are moments where texture and performance matter more than structural payoff. Some tracks feel like they live on emotional tone rather than fully realized composition. And yes, there is a certain kind of listener who will hear all this drama and conclude that it is beautiful nonsense.

A little out of my range, but there's enough moments of high punk energy in here that it was pretty cool at times. Plus a Love Hangover cover? Wasn't my favorite but you gotta respect the taste.

could not enjoy...weird mix of 80s top 40 rock with haunting / terrible vocals and techno dance.

Jeez. What was that? You can tell the guys thinking they are making high art

No standouts, just noise