The Rise & Fall

uopće mi nije loše, naprotiv, dosta mi se sviđa! čini mi se da je ovaj bend izvršio velik utjecaj na našu scenu osamdesetih i da je koliko-toliko poznat tu, možda je i danas omiljeniji nego na zapadu. slušam evo drugi put. kao slabu stvar izdvojio bih možda jedino »new delhi«, možda je tada zvučala bolje, danas se dosta izlizala. ostatak mi je jako dobar! :) [odslušao i napisao 21/10/26]

Pish

Fine, but not particularly interesting or memorable.

Fine in small doses. Completely untenable to listen in one sitting.

I loved it

We had the greatest hits album back in the day and always thought of Madness as a ‘singles band’ because they had tons of catchy, tunes. Maybe ska-lite/pop/novelty (?) however much of the rest of the record is also good. Like the title track and the buy a drink song particularly. Lots of little reflections and observations about their youth. The odd racial stereotype would be frowned on now - dodgy Asian-type accent in one tune (anyone else spot the blacked out face on the cover?!) Deserves a reasonable 2.9/5

Expected it to be all high tempo ska but loved the more thoughtful feel. Favourite: Madness all in the mind - a lovely remix of Fever 's main melody

I came to this album as a Madness fan already. I didn’t know every song on this album but I knew a few. The ones I already knew are definitely the stronger tracks on the album: Our House (possibly their best song), Tomorrow’s but I enjoyed the album in its totality. The complexity of the music is great fun and thematically interesting, nostalgic and very British. Rating: 4.0

It was worth a listen

Really not for me man, but there are just enough decent tracks here to keep it out of 1 territory. The horns are also somewhat interesting, but not enough to make me wet my pants. Let's lose the black face though, guy

Pretty good stuff honestly. The standout, "Our House", is pretty recognizable but honestly it doesn't even sound like the other songs on the album! That's huge praise since most of these are pretty one-note, but this band has a lot of interesting range.

It’s easy to characterise Madness as a fun singles band, and that’s certainly true. However, this is an interesting grown up album full of nostalgia but also a warning about the dangers of nostalgia. Like the Kinks but if they’d realised the hole that always looking back leaves. Throw into the mix the pop nugget that is our house and you have an album that has layers… but maybe think about losing the cover and the last 30 seconds of New Delhi

Fire

Okay so basically now even 1 hit wonders can be included in the list as long as they were born somewhere in the UK? By this standard why aren’t the Bay City Rollers in this list? Plus 1 for Our House, the rest is just typical 80s pablum.

You should've seen me getting progressively more annoyed at the lack of Ska on this album. The genre thing says, quote, Genres: Rock, Reggae Styles: New Wave, Ska So you'd think there's either some Reggae or Ska on here. Nope. Entirely New Wave. It's not bad New Wave or anything, I mean Our House is an all-time classic, but WHERE'S THE FUCKING SKA, MR. 1001 GUY?

I know that single!

Notable Textzeile: Balanced on the edge only time could tell Some say he was pushed, others say he fell Standing on that rooftop his brain told him 'no' But all the dreams in nights before told him he must go Das hat mich nicht nur genervt, sondern richtiggehend geärgert. Ich kann gar nicht genau sagen warum. Es ist eigentlich komplett so doof und nervig, wie ich es mir basierend auf dem Wissen um "Our House" vorgestellt habe und trotzdem dachte ich irgendwie es könnte mehr sein. Musikalisch gar nicht meins, textlich hatte ich keine Lust mich damit ausführlich zu beschäftigen, also falls ich ihnen da irgendwie unrecht tue bitte ich um Verzeihung.

Ok, wir hatten jetzt Dexys, Ian Dury, Specials, Pogues, Madness... irgendwann ist Pubrock auch mal durch, oder? Immerhin kann ich das jetzt besser unterscheiden. Madness machen recht komplex arrangierte Popmusik, hier so was wie ein Nostalgie -Konzeptalbum mit manchmal recht treffenden, oft aber auch einfach egalen Texten und Melodien. Gefällt mir geht so.

nice enough

Some cheeky fun. Our House is a classic, but Mr. Speaker (Gets The Word), Tiptoes and Madness (Is All In The Mind) are some solid tracks as well.

I like ska, but this is a little bit all over the place. «Our house» is a great song but the rest of the album is not of the same quality. Favourite: Our House

I have a soft spot for Madness, they have that weirdo music hall Englishness beneath the surface that I really like. let's just not focus too heavily on that album cover or the one song where he's doing an Indian accent

Great album, but docking points for racism of "New Delhi" track and black face snake charmer. 3.5

sorry lads this ain't it

Ska is dross

Bright and Fun and Madness.

3/5 Solid musically, some tracks were even interesting.

A bit of a mixed bag - little touches of class, but a whiff of shite. Favourite track: Tomorrow’s (Just Another Day)

Our House takes the points, all the rest had it's time, I guess

Developing Madness, but always a singles band. 1. Tomorrow's (Just Another Day) 2. Our House 3. Calling Cards

Easy but quirky music.

Det begynner smått okay, men jo lenger det går, desto mer begynner beaten å gå meg på nervene. Dette er jo basically oompah musikk...? Nytt bidrag til samlingen "nå kan jeg navnet på bandet som har _den låta_ og stiller sterkere på musikk-quiz enn jeg gjorde før."

Our House is a great song, the rest are not. 2.2

It was a really good album. It was Pop and Ska, but I really liked it. It's one of their greatest albums and was really important and had a really strong influence on pop culture. Amazing!

I usually like ska because it has this driving intensity. Its kind of telling you, its rough out there but keep on. This has none of that.

Madness is ok. I don't think this is their best album, though. I was in the mood for some ska and got some pop instead. Whatever, it's not bad or anything and I still enjoyed most of it.

These boys are very unserious

I've listened to my fair share of Madness, but this is my first time listening to one of their albums in full. This album is more new wave than ska so I don't think that labeling this as reggae feels appropriate whereas the Specials albums and Fishbone you can kinda make an argument for. Far from the first time that the genre labels haven't been completely accurate but I just think this is silly. Anyways this was a fun little romp. Favorite track: Our House 3.5/5

One hit wonder from the 80s.

idk man

Leuk man, ik hoop stiekem op een full on Ska album, maar denk niet dat dit helemaal aan mijn verwachtingen gaat voldoen. Instrumentaal is dit dus echt top. Er gebeurd een hoop, hallo saxofoon en trompet solos. Krijg daardoor ook heel erg big band achtige vibes van dit album. Wel een prettige afwisseling op de meer standaard rock n roll die normaal voorbij komt. Our House is wel een rammer maar merk dat halverwege zeker niet elk nummer even goed binnenkomt. En oprecht bijzonder hoe anders het klinkt dan de rest van het album. Maar uiteindelijk? Dit was een prima album, maar niet iets wat ik heeeeeel snel nog eens zal luisteren. Vind het instrumentaal best wel nice, maar merk dat ik richting het einde het toch een beetje circus muziek ga vinden. FAVO: Tomorrow's (Just another day), Our House

Really boring music

Our House jumpscare. Honestly, I had no clue who made that song, so did not expect it to show up at all. Genuinely a legendary song for a reason. There are a few other bangers on here as well, I really enjoyed Blue Skinned Beast, Mr. Speaker (Gets the Word), and New Delhi. The rest is hit or miss, sometimes leaning towards annoying.

Really well played and recorded, and to think this was happening during new wave and post-disco. This must have been a breath of fresh air. It's oddly charming, unpredictable. House of Fun and Blue Skin Beast are absolutely wonderful.

That was delightfully quirky and fun.

Unfortunately, today brings another album that just doesn't do it for me. For me, a lot of 80s pop music is a no-go. "Our House" was all over the charts back then; I think I even danced to it with a girl—though we were apart, not wrapped around each other. Aside from that, I can't really connect with the album. It hasn't improved with the passage of 44 years, either.

Well it's not electronica or Brit pop, so I am thankful for that. And for that I give it a 2 even though I really didn't like it at least I can understand why its here.

SKA!!! But British ...

Madness is perhaps my least favorite Two Tone band.

6/10

DNF

Mostly unavailable on Spotify

I was really surprised by how much I liked this. I was expecting it to be meh with just "Our House" as the highlight, but I found myself liking most of the songs throughout! They have a very distinct style with a cool blend of rock and ska. Really catchy songs and great instrumental moments. I feel like this should be more popular. Cool music. Side note: why is this still not available in the US? Top Songs: Tomorrow's (Just Another Day), Blue Skinned Beast, Primrose Hill, Our House, Tiptoes, Madness (Is All in the Mind)

1001

Uppfriskande optimistiskoch svängig musik. Älskar blåset. Men vid sidan av Our House saknas det minnesvärda låtar. En fyra

Couldn't find this album on YouTube Music so I listened to their self titled instead, which has some of the same songs. UK music scene in the 80s must have been a lot of weird shit.

I felt like a supervillain walking through the streets of Britain in the mid 1900s. Would I listen to it again tho? Probably not.

I’m sad by how much better Our House is than the rest of this album.

Every Madness song sounds absolutely like Madness. Blue Skinny Beast and Sunday Morning were particularly highlights

I hadn't really given Madness a proper go until now. I gotta say, I enjoyed it. The album is light and fun. It is poppy more than ska, Our House is the highlight.

Let's start a band where we sing like Bill Sikes

Regular usual experience

5/10 Madness are one of those bands whose singles I've always enjoyed to a decent extent but I've never really felt the need to dig deeper. They were massive in the early 80s with their quirky two-tone based pop, which had a light hearted and up beat tone. Strangely, this album isn't really like that at all. The general tone of the record is much darker than I expected, and the wacky edge of their hits leans further towards the madness that their name suggests. Music with an edge, or even a healthy dose of insanity tends to work well for me, but in this case, it kind of felt like it didn't fully commit in that direction. It also didn't offer enough in their more poppy direction either, bar Our House, the big single. It's a strange one really, because a lot of this album deals in minor keys and modal compositions that in no way offer the pop music or ska styles for which the band is most famous. There are flickers here and there, but it's a much thicker tonal blend with a density to the production that gives it a bit too much weight to my ears. There was stuff in there to enjoy though and the elements of art pop and richer orchestrations were at least interesting. But there were also times when I found it to be quite plodding and rhythmically repetitive. In all honesty, I couldn't really work out what to make of it. It feels like a record that lives between two worlds and doesn't really satisfy either, which is a shame because the ambition of the intention is to be applauded. But despite the bits of quality, it doesn't really hit the mark. Rise And Fall - It’s a pretty slow-paced start with a more downtrodden tone and more synthesiser work than I was expecting. They do lift things up in the chorus and through the sax solo, which adds a bit more zip and interest, but the rest of the track is quite plodding and lacking in dynamism. There are some good elements in here, but for me, it just doesn’t really have either the nuance or excitement to really hook me in. Tomorrow's (Just Another Day) - They start adding a bit more depth and nuance to things now and it does lift things up a bit. I do find it quite rhythmically repetitive, but when considering the more interesting approach to their chord structures and how they combine with the melody, it’s at least a bit more musically interesting, and there’s a slightly dark and weird edge to the tonality, but I’m still not completely sold. Blue Skinned Beast - Now we’re getting a bit more range between the verse and chorus and a bit more variety to the rhythms. It sprawls musically, but pulls things back in really nicely. The pre-chorus is fleeting, but really good, and then the chorus is delightfully weird with a dark edge and some great textural choices. Maybe I’m warming to this a little more now. Primrose Hill - Again, there’s pretty good range here and it maintains the slightly erratic and dark edge to it that feels pretty suitable given the band’s name. We get sections that lean towards marching band territory. It’s actually quite an odd song in that it changes forms quite a lot as it progresses, and as with some of the earlier tracks there are aspects that I like, but I still can’t quite fully connect with it. Mr Speaker (Gets The Word) - This is better again. It feels like there’s a bit more of a consistent thread that runs through it, while maintaining that slightly dark edged madness (nudge, nudge). Stylistically, it lands somewhere between two-tone and art-pop. The rhythms are very good fun and the edge of discordance that they drip through some of the parts make for really interesting listening. I still don’t really know what to make of it, but I enjoyed this a lot more. Sunday Morning - I think the slightly meandering sequences they write are part of why this isn’t completely sticking with me. It’s quite stop/start too. But as with much of the album, there’s quality in there, but I just can’t quite find something to fully cling on to. Maybe it’s the fact that it’s a bit weird, but not fully off at the deep end, while also not having enough on the more poppy side to satisfy either. Honestly, I just feel a touch confused. Our House - As if to answer my question on the poppy side of things, here’s a flat-out pop classic. It’s more musically complicated than it probably gets credit for, particularly the way it modulates through different keys. It still retains a slight touch of weirdness to it, but commits pretty strongly to some great hooks and a consistent approach to melody and, let’s face it, fun. It’s a proper banger. Tiptoes - Now this manages to the thread the needle far better. It’s got weirdness and darkness to it, but holds on to a more consistent thread through its centre. It does drift away here and there, but never strays too far. The sound blend is very well balanced, and there’s decent range, from starker, more snappy sections to fuller and smoother ones. The instrumental section at the end is really good to, with the interwoven lines and falling synth tone. New Delhi - Ok, so now we get a weird departure about a trip to Delhi. It’s quite funny and absurdist in its own way, with some interesting orchestration, particularly with the string parts and the sitar. There’s a depth and darkness to the production, as well as a slight insanity and overwhelming busyness to it that does feel a bit like the sensory overload you get when travelling through Delhi in a taxi. That Face - The rhythmic choices here are good and the way the parts pass focus around between them is a cool compositional technique. There’s a bit more of a central thread to this, but it’s another that I’m struggling to get a complete connection with. I appreciate what they’re doing, but it doesn’t really float my boat. Calling Cards - And now they’re almost verging on deranged fairground music. I should really like this, but I don’t. Are You Coming (With Me) - I think there’s been too many slightly too slow tracks on this album, and this is another one. It’s got quite a dark and sombre tonal approach, but by this point on the record, I’m just a bit tired of it. Production-wise it’s great. Musically it’s interesting. I even appreciate the edge of lunacy and dark humour to it. But I’m just not feeling it. Madness (Is All In The Mind) - Now we’re back on stronger footing. It’s got a jazzy bent to it and the edge of craziness is still there, but there’s a more upbeat centre. The darkness of the production persists and works really well with the compositional choices. It’s pretty good stuff.

Soms word ik echt ongelofelijk boos van een plaat en dit is daar een van

Halverwege de tweede track al helemaal klaar mee, dus alleen nog ff Our House aangeknalt en heb het daarbij gelaten. Muziek voor oude witte mannen die voor brexit hebben gestemd. Our House voorkomt de 1 ster.

Seems like I was totally unaware of anything Madness put out aside from the chorus of Our House. It really was a cool album to listen to; I enjoyed the odd and quirky nature of the songs but felt they were still pretty accessible.

Some of this is fun, some of it is not. Our House stands above the rest by leaps and bounds.

I've listened to a lot of music in my life, I think. Trust me when I say Our House is the best track here and that song is strictly OK.

Incredible

I was born at the end of the 70s so although I would have been heard some of the Madness hits growing up I was a bit too young when they were at their peak. Lots of people on here are commenting on how Madness embodies British-ness but they actually don't really speak to a lot of Britain. They are thoroughly London, with lots of references to places and life in the metropolis. I grew up in the countryside and it was probably the end of the decade before I had even visited London, so again many of the details in the songs don't resonate for me either. That said I liked Our House and they did have a great run of pop singles in the early 80s but as an album this doesn't hold together all that well and seems like they were a lot more pop than ska by this point. Light 3.

Not available in the US (and thus on Apple Music!).

Second wave ska

Bien

Okay

Oh! It’s the our house guys!

BRO ANOTHER ONE THATS NOT ON STREAMING UGH It’s a real shame it’s not on streaming cause I’m really liking it so far especially primrose hill. I enjoyed this! I loved all the instrumentals, the horns, strings and energetic pianos. My only qualm really was the singer’s monotonous voice. It felt like there was very little emotion behind it and it kind of stayed in the same tone throughout the entire record. Other than that I would listen again, though bc it’s not on streaming I would have to go out of my way to do it which will probably deter me. 4.16/5

4/10 over half of the album isn't available on spotify so I ranked what I was able to hear

A great album. I’m not sure why it wasn’t released in the US (forcing me to endure ads on YouTube to listen to it), but it was worth the inconvenience and annoyance. Some of their hits that went mainstream, but also just some nice ska tunes. Very expressive bass, which I love.

Sunday, 6 September, 2026 Eh. At best. “Our House” is a good track. There are a decent number of these British one hit wonder bands on the list. I don’t mind the hits, but they are not worth an album. I’d rather listen to one of Phil Collins’ solo albums from this era. Or *Invisible Touch*. None of which are on the list.

Our house is a banger but the rest of the album is a bit all over the place

It was ok, one big hit and the rest just ok.

I think I'll stick to the greatest hits

What genre is this? There’s ska, new wave, synthpop, minstrel pop…I’m so confused

Minus that one song, this feels like I fell into UK alice in wonderland

Everyone loves Madness. Many tracks that still have impact today and are culturally significant. Some filler tracks but nothing bad

the full album was not available

Bright pop songs that feel both simple and extravagant. Simple because structurally they're pretty straightforward, but extravagant because of all the piano and saxophone in them. The most notable thing about the horns on this is how much it makes some of the songs sound like an old action cartoon; "Mr Speaker (Gets the Word)" practically sounds straight out of Batman. Others, like the hit "Our House," are more traditional new wave songs, and while those are less interesting they may be a bit better because they're less busy. Ultimately none of this is is incredible, as much at it achieves a sound not quite like anything else. Even though the sound is cool, I wish the songs were stronger.

Indie vibes. Fantastic all around.

first of all apparently this was never released in the us so to youtube with banking and mayonnaise ads it is. i jest because those were the ads i got the first time i had to listen to an album on youtube but also i literally got double ads for usbank and kraft mayonnaise before blue skinned beast so this is unfortunately reality. that aside... eh? i guess i prefer my brassy cacophonies to be in yiddish. they don't hit the same when i can understand them also the modes of british music are foreign to me. yah that was madness. technical prowess merits a 4/5 but personal taste is ... a surprise tomorrow. (2/5)

Nah man

I can understand how this wouldn’t be some people’s cup of tea, but I found myself surprisingly enjoying the album. 4/5

Inoffensive, I thought with it being ska that it's gonna be worse. Enjoyed it fairly well.

It's Our House and a sea of bland, indistinguishable, mildly-fun Ska-Pop music tracks, it's fine for hearing but it's not particularly special

Floored when it got to Our House. This was a fun listen overall. 3.5

oh, hated this. which is a shame, because "our X, in the middle of our Y" is a huge vocal stim for me

Enjoyable despite having to listen on Youtube

Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house Our house in the middle of our house

Well-could not find it on Apple, link not good, and I refuse to chase albums down. I listened to their album "Madness" that was the same year (1982), which I found fun and hoppin'. especially with hit "Our House". So it gets a MOR rating of 3, with - points for inconvenience

JL : 2, Madness (Is All In The Mind)

No es mi estilo, no me gustó.