The Rise & Fall
Madness
1982
Album Summary
The Rise & Fall is the fourth studio album by English ska band Madness. It was originally released on 8 October 1982, on the label Stiff. This album saw Madness at their most experimental, exhibiting a range of musical styles including jazz, English music hall, and Eastern influences. NME described it at the time of its release as "the best Madness record". It has often been retrospectively described as a concept album. Though the album was never released in the US, several tracks were later placed on the compilation Madness, including "Our House", the band's only top 10 hit in America.
WikipediaUnlistenable. Just awful. Music for uncool dads trying to prove they didn’t bit brexit, even though they did. 1/5
Madness are massively underrated (on this side of the pond). Our House is a perfect song and the whole album is wonderful. Was tempted to give it a 5, but the guy in brown-face on the album cover kept it a 4.
Tout le monde parlera bien sûr d'Our House, mais le tube de cet album est bien sûr Mr. Speaker, qui sera utilisé comme générique de l'animé Inspecteur Gadget. Gadget au chapeau, Gadget au point, Elastico-gadget... tout y passe. Madness réussit avec ce titre son enregistrement le plus iconique.
is that mf in the album cover in black face????? wtf dont know if ishould listen to it osea es ska nambre ya me enteré nunca se disculparon de esto ni nada y los han acusado de racismo por cosas diferentes eran muy populares entre los skinheads en uk so...
3.5/5. Dope British concept album, feels like a soundtrack to a musical. Standout Track: Tomorrow's Just Another Day, Mr Speaker Gets The Word, Our House, New Delhi
So that's where the coffee commercial got it. Anyway, this was a pretty cool album. I enjoyed every single song and would re-visit.
I've always liked Madness but only really as a passing thing for their hits and what not but as a full album this was ruddy good.
Was surprised when Our House played. Was not aware it was on this album. The rest of the album stayed interesting throughout
This album wasn't available in full on Spotify, so I listened to 'Madness', which shares most of the tracks. It was an interesting listen! Very creative and smoothly crafted, with insightful lyrics and complex arrangements.
The Rise and Fall is not on spotify, so I listened to the greatest htis. I heard... SKA, pianos, horns a different sound from everything else in the 80's. At times I feel like I hear wallflowers. Did i just find an 80's band to dive deeper into, or am I becoming brain washed.
Really like the experimentation with sounds in this album, didn't know this is what ska music was like
I vaguely remember ska kids liking madness back in HS. Not sure I ever heard a song. This reminds me of The Jam, another brit band that I didn't really hear until way too late.
Just love Suggs and the Nutty Boys, their cheeky cockney music hall inspired Ska is just typically English,(Small Faces/Kinks/Blurlike) not taking themselves too seriously whilst producing some great music. Not sure this would be my choice of a Madness album for this list (I prefer their debut for it's rawness) but some great tunes on here. "Tomorrows (Just Another Day)" "Our House" "Blue Skinned Beast" and "Primrose Hill" my favourites on this one.
I was waiting and hoping for my crazy Rocksteady crew. Not disappointed.
The 80s were a strange time for music, and I'm loving every second of it. Nothing but praise from me for the pioneers of modern ska.
Madness is such a great band. This album has some love time favourites, and I've definitely picked up several new favourites.
Such an underrated band. I've been listening to Madness more this year than any other year. I love their playfulness mixed with serious punk-ska beats. This is one of the bands I wish I were old enough to see live. Thankfully, YouTube exists & I can watch their videos & live performances there. Excellent album.
Love this band. Not my fav album of theirs but has some of their best songs for sure.
It's like if Avenged Sevenfold was an 80s british rock band and wrote The Wall. 4 stars.
this album shows the versatility of Madness, and it's criminal people don't know more of their songs except "Our House" and "One Step Beyond". my favorite songs were definitely "Mr. Speaker", "Blue Skinned Beast", and "Madness". would definitely listen to again.
I really liked this album. I’m a big ska fan so was familiar with Madness prior to listening, but I had never listened to a whole album. Very fun and Our House is such a good pop song!
7/10. Some good songs, some weird songs, nothing that really calls me back to it.
Pretty good listen! Our House is on this album, was not expecting that, but that sound is consistent throughout the album.
Очень понравилось. Очередной закрытый пробел. Не знал Madness вообще, пускай и слышал Our House.
I'm very familiar with Madness's singles, but I've never given their albums a listen. I really should have, because this was fun! Beyond the hit singles "Our House" and "Tomorrow's Just Another Day", highlights include "Primrose Hill" and "New Delhi".
Punk overtones and vocals interlaced with brass band, Old time piano, harmonica vibrato. Very madhouse/Tim burton/haunted mansion feel. Fun and interesting listen. Rise and fall, mr speaker, tomorrow’s just another day.
Hoppa! Weer zo'n band die ik nog een keer live wil zien. Heerlijke Britse popmuziek met bekende nummers. Dit album begint met een eentonig titelnummer, waarna het echter los gaat. Goed gespeelde muziek en melodieuze zang, wat wil je nog meer? Topper is natuurlijk "Our House", maar er staat nog veel meer leuks op zoals o.a. "Tomorrow's Just Another Day", het western-piano'tje van "Mr Speaker", "Tiptoes" en het jazz-achtig nummer "Maddness' zelf. Helaas wordt het meer up-tempo ska-sfeertje van "One Step Beyond" niet gehaald. Dit is een serieuzer album en ik mis juist dat extra beetje madness. Daarom geen volledige score voor mij. Luister dus gewoon ook even de "greatest hits" als je toch bezig bent, er is zoveel leuks van de mannen van Madness :-) ****
Not on Spotify, so I found it on the YouTube and had to watch it with M&M ads every 3 minutes. That kinda sucked but the album doesn’t. It definitely shows a growth away from the 2tone ish sound of their 1rst album One Step Beyond and bands like The Specials. Really enjoyed the arrangements of horns, especially on Primrose Hill, and the strings in other parts of the album. Of course Our House is the standout standout, but their are plenty of other good songs on here too. They still follow that jaunty and off kilter giddiness of Madness- just this time a bit more formal and “pop sensible”. I still think that “One Step Beyond” is more grabbing and probably a better album, but this one gets brownie points for straying away from the traditional ska formula.
I haven't listened to a lot of early British ska, so this was a pleasant surprise. The music fades into the background a bit while I'm listening to it, but it's consistently good. 4/5
És el disc de sublimació del pop més elegant de la banda, sense perdre encara els tocs ska dels començaments. Més tard arribarien els discos de maduresa, que tendien massa a l'ensopiment. Aquí encara conserven la flama, embolcada de lletres sobre l'Anglaterra de la seva infantesa
Eindelijk weer iets vrolijks! Daar was ik aan toe. Brings back memories van roodharige middelbare-school-klasgenoot yvo op wie ik een oogje had en die me z’n madness-cd’s leende.
J'ai passé un très bon moment en compagnie d'Inspecteur Gadget, même si j'ai trouvé la structure des pistes un peu redondante: Gogo rise and fall, gogo tomorrow's, gogo blueskinned beast. Vous l'aurez compris cet album présentait des sonorités très intéressantes.
Kolejny pik wyspiarski, ale tym razem bardziej tradycyjny i pasujacy do listy, bo plyta z 82, grupy ktora po statach spotifajowych mozna okreslic jako bande jednego przeboju, chociaz mnie samemu zarowno nazwa zespolu, jak i albumu nic nie mowila przed odsluchem, dopiero trak numer 7 uswiadomil mi, ze gdzies juz to slyszalem, bo kto nie zna tak brytyjskiego kawalka jak our house, ale jestem zdziwiony, ze plyta sluchala sie tak dobrze, a tylko jeden czy dwa traki sa z niej sluchane na lastfmie czy spotifaju i grupa wydaje sie dosc zapomiana muzycznie w porownaniu do takich specialsow, ktory tworzyli w podobym czasie i calkiem podobny gatunkowo material, chociaz ciezko tutaj o jakakolwiek klasyfikacje, bo discog mowi o popowym krazku w stylu ska, to juz bardziej 2 tone pasuje jak w na drugim albumie specialsow, ale jednak calosciowo ta plyta o wiele bardziej przypadla mi do gustu, bo ma ona na siebie jakis pomysl, tym pomyslem bedzie motyw poczatkow i koncow jak wskazuje tytul, za czym ida motywy dziecinstwa, przemijania, dekadencji, wiec nie obylo sie takze od disu na thatcherowa, pojawia sie takze motyw pajeeta znikac na traku new delhi, wiec takie niezbyt popowe motywy, za to od strony instrumentalnej jest o wiele bardziej zachowawczno, bo siedmioosobowa banda jak przystalo na okolo skawowe klimaty uzywa mocno instrumentow detych, wiec trabki i saksy sa mocno slyszalne, do tego wykorzystanie zarowno kontrabasu jak i standardowej giaty basowej jest odczuwalne, wielkim plusem jak dla mnie jest brak synthowego brzmienia, a zamiast tego piano, prawie cala plyta jest spiewana przez jednego wokaliste, to jest pana Suggsa, ktory pomimo tego, ze brzmi jak prawdziwy wyspiarz, to jednak artykuluje sie wystarczajaco czysto aby wokale byly zrozumiale o co ciezko na niektorych brytyjksich pikach, jedynie ostatni trak madness (is all in the mind) jest wykonywany przez wokal wspierajacy albumu trebacza bandy mistera Smytha, nie spodziewalem sie, ze tak mi podejdzie ten 43 minutowy krazek z gatunku 2 tonowych, na plejke wrzucam robotniczy kawalek tomorrow (just another day), wspomiany juz wczesniej madness i najpopularniejszy song zespolu, czyli our house
What a wonderfully weird album, A side is more rock, B side is more pop but always with a special psychodelic/mad edge
Great blending of genres that isn’t forced and truly comes off authentic and original, maintained from beginning to end. Great production as well.
Brilliant side A. Side B tails off a little after Our House. Tomorrow’s (Just Another Day) possibly their most underrated single.
Two-tone was a cool movement, genuinely integrated and responsible for great bands like the Specials, The Selecter and Madness. Previously on this app I stated that I didn't care for polite AC/DC, and to a degree I think the same applies to Madness. Nothing here hits the zany heights of 'One Step Beyond', 'House Of Fun' or 'Night Boat to Cairo'...but as a collection, this is really solid. I don't think a band should be penalised for spreading their wings, and here they try on a few different hats, including cocktail jazz and music hall. There are some quality tracks here too! 'Our House' is a deserved commercial behemoth, but less heralded tunes like 'Tiptoes' and 'Mr Speaker' are ace too. I feel like on this album, Madness were edging into the same territory as Squeeze - and doing it fairly successfully. Bonus points also awarded due to the fact that Suggs' speaking and singing voices are exactly the same.
our house ken ik (wie niet) maar de rest vond ik ook goed ! misschien net iets te lang. maak het korter, cut the crap en je had mss een 5. mr speaker was top
an album that grabbed my attention! i had known "our house" initially and only vaguely at that. madness kept me on my tiptoes the whole album. some jazz sounds, some reggae sounds! i came away impressed that madness didn't confine themselves to anything, really. i mean, "new delhi" brings some beautiful indian sounds and instruments to this album. the piano, the saxophone, it was all very enjoyable.
You could say it was Madness that I had never listened to the full album. Listener note, Spotify wasn't showing a lot of the tracks so I listened on youtube instead.
What a delightful display of Britishness. Got that great bank holiday feel, like Blur's Parklife, and some tantalizing carnivalesque moments.
I'd only ever heard "Our House" before but the rest of the album was pretty good too. Very 80s
"The Rise & Fall" is the fourth studio album by the English Ska band Madness. It is known as their most experimental album by also incorporating a range f other styles - jazz, English musical hall and Eastern influences. Within those, I mostly heard the musical hall category. I would say that this is also kind of in the pop category...great choruses and happier-sounding, upbeat music. It was originally conceived to be a concept album about child nstalgia. According to lead singer, Suggs, each band member was to write songs about their childhood, but not everyone did that. The album has been compared to The Kinks' "Village Green Preservation Society" and Blurs' "Parklife." I see the "Parklife" comparison. For some reason, this album was not released in the US. I'm not sure why; "Our House" was a huge song. I enjoyed pretty much every song. There is a lot going on in almost every song with these band members. "Rise and Fall" starts things off in grand fashion with sax, piano, keyboards and quickly changes to a quicker more ska-pace tempo. It then slows back down and speeds up. Nice sax solo. "Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)" was the second single and has a more melancholy-pop feel. Defintely music hall influenced. Cool harmonica. Great vocals and chorus repeating the song title. The third song "Blue Skinned Beast" takes a swing at Margaret Thatcher and her Falkland's War handling. Quick and changing tempo, more in the Ska style. Great sax. Not much to say about "Our House." Love the start, the way each instrument is incorporated and especially the vocals and lyrics. "Brother got a date tonight, we cant hang around" The last song. "Madness (Is All in the Mind)" is also worth a listen, more in the jazz style. Madness was a big band in the UK and Europe overall. Not so much in the US, besides "Our House." This was my first dive into them and two thumbs up. Not a bad song and a good listen just to appeciate the activity of the band overall.
Un album muy fresco, más que algunos modernos a pesar de acusar sus 40 años. Con un clásico escondido dentro de yapa. Buena experiencia!
great ska album, also nice its a concept album thats kind of unique in being positive and human
Definitely my vibe. Very good. Didn't know I knew so many songs by these guys. Great album, on my vinyl collection wishlist.
Spotify link only has 2 songs. Found full playlist on YouTube page. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPjcc9Vi-9s&list=PLwTsihu-EGpB-o1DIUfRUq0O2b1VSinBY
Our House is a banger, as is Tomorrow's just another day. However feel like the only great madness album is the greatest hits, they have a lot of shit
Has some interesting and peculiar moments, but doesn't really grab me. I feel I would need to listen a few more times before I really get it. Feels like it owes a lot to Ray Davies.
Otro disco que es clara influencia a lo que oímos en Latinoamérica unos años después, aunque al escucharlo tan cerca del disco de Dexy's, creo que este me gusta menos. No es que sea malo, al contrario, me gustan mucho los arreglos de los metales, pero sí lo encuentro un poco repetitivo. De rolas, me gusta la obvia, Our House, y también la de político con piel azul.
De este grupo sóo conocía la canción de "One Step Beyond" (que supongo no le sorprenderá a nadie), y bueno, este álbum no se parece nada a esa canción; es un estilo totalmente diferente. Igual que con otros álbumes, not my cup of tea, pero tampoco me desagradó. La canción que más me gustó fue Don't Look Back.
Spotify only has partial album. Oh this is the “Our house “ guys. Love that song
I enjoyed this, although I had to listen to most of it via youtube as spotify only had a couple of songs. Very listenable. 3 stars.
De entrada esperaba un album de ska totalmente estándar. Inició y tanto el ritmo más asincopado, el piano entrometido en muchos lados, los saltos y cambios de ritmo en paso a coros, el contraste entre letras llenas de desesperanza y una música que a ratos quiere ser alegre y levanta pero no la dejan. Iba muy encaminado a ser muy muy bueno. Y después empezaron baches y canciones mas mensas (Sunday Morning), pretensiosas musicalmente sin llegar a ser buenas (New Delhi) o que tratan líricamente de seguir el concepto de nostalgia y depresión de las otras canciones pero con una letra muchísimo más forzada y trillada (That Face). Las dos canciones que son claramente políticas (Mr. Speaker y Blue Skinned Beast) aunque no sean super mordaces si tienen cierta chispa en su letra y musicalmente ambas muy agradables. Rise and Fall, Tomorrow's, Madness y en especial Primrose Hill valen muchísimo la pena. Sería un enorme disco si le pudiera cortar unas 4-5 canciones.
apparently our house is in this album :D but in general it was just a fine album. did not like all the remixes.
Generally a very fun album, and obvs enjoyed hearing the classics. BUT a few that just irritated me a bit. Great music but not all for me
Es curioso como un álbum que califican como "experimental" en wikipedia no me lo haya parecido tanto. Interesante para disfrutar de la banda que mejor aprovechó comercialmente la música Ska. Canciones buenas como Blue Skinned Beast, Primrose Hill, Are You Coming (with Me) o Madness (Is All In the Mind). Piano, percusiones, saxo, bastante entretenido musicalmente. Y por supuesto la mítica Our House.
I mean, Madness are fine. I'm starting to wonder if me and the person who chose these 1001 albums have the same outlook on life. I have to hear THIS album before I die? What is with the brownface on cover and fake Indian accents in songs?
It's fine. Doesn't overstay it's welcome but I probably won't listen to it again. 6
Our House is classic but some of the later songs were a bit much. Liked it less than some recent ones, so 6?
catchy tunes but all of the arrangements were just so busy and overcomplicated. also I had to listen to it on a YouTube playlist. 6/10
I don't love this, but it's not bad. Not a band that ever got big in the US. Their biggest hit is Our House, which is the only song I recognize.
O álbum parece ambientar se numa diligência no velho oeste, alguém teria de trazer o plano atrás, ou num saloon da época. O álbum têm músicas bastante boas mas outras assim indiferentes, no geral só por ser algo tão único vale a pena. Nota: 6/10
Enjoyable and interesting - I had no idea about the British ska scene. The horns bring something interesting here. They are all over the place in terms of genre. I'm hearing Ska, lounge crooning, rock, blues, and of course pub songs. I can see how this would be hard to crack into the USA top 40, but I can see how influential they could be to musicians.
Not available on Spotify....Sad face. Listened to other albums by Madness. I think I would have enjoyed this. Update...my kids were super dissappointed that I wasn't smarter(common problem). Told me to listen to it on youtube. 80s sound with creative tweaks. Nice change of pace.
A decent '80s pop rock album with some 2-tone influence. 7.5/10 Best Track: "Our House"
Only 3 tracks were available on Spotify, one being our house. This album gets a 3 for that song alone. The other two tracks were pretty good, one sounded a lot like the Specials.
I couldn't listen to the whole album on Spotify, but I liked what I heard.
You know it's iconic when there are 4 versions of the same song, it's a good song thought.
Unfortunately could not listen to the full album, but I enjoyed "Our House"
''THIS IS MADNESS'' ''Madness?? THIS. IS. SPARTA!'' - Our House, Madness
It's okay. Not really my thing, but I can understand why people like it.
A little bit of ska and a whole lot of wacky, vaudevillian carnival vibe (think "Being for the Benefit of Mister Kite"). Then, that song from the coffee commercial in the 80's.
considering I only know one song by madness, this wasn't too bad. This definitely represents ska music, but does this need to be on this list?
Nothing spectacular here… sounded like you’d imagine a madness album to sound!
Oh, god. I didn't think we'd see it but it's here. We have Ska on the list. To give it credit, Ska is not all bad. And it also isn't the kind of Ska you'd clown on these days. No, we're looking at 2 Tone! A "second wave" of the genre from England during the 80's alongside New Wave. Madness, as it turns out, is a pretty good example of 2 Tone. It's sounds a lot more New Wave than Ska at times, but the influence here is undeniable. And for what it's worth, it's pretty good! Catchy, fun stuff with lots of unique sounds to carry the melodies that would otherwise be unremarkable. It also has Our House (in the middle of our street), which is undeniably a classic. An album that's hard to dislike, good times all around! Oh, and there's a guy doing blackface on the cover.
This was kind of all over the place. Folksy, upbeat, new wave, big band, vaudevillian and even at times Springsteen/Costello. It’s a multi-genre kaleidoscope. Seems almost like an 80s precursor to King Gizzard. When I finally hit “Our House” I was like, “ohhh, this why this is relevant.” Not bad, but also a little too all over the place for me. In what context would you listen to this? 3.
Being Kiwi myself, I often make the mistake that Madness are a Kiwi band. I guess they sound similar to Split Enz and Crowded House at times because of the new wave vibes. It's about what I was expecting from Madness, having only heard their top hits before, but the sound was a bit too close to ska at times for my taste. Of course my top pick is 'Our House'.
Oooh what a good album. This is 80's rock. There's gotta be some vocals and instruments that are just a little off, otherwise this is close to a five. Ok at least half the songs by now just didn't intrique me very much. Bumping down to a 3. The first two songs are 5s then it just kinda loses momentum after that. "Our House" was never very good, it just has a way of absolutely etching itself into your brain for the rest of the day.
Oh Our House sounds very familiar. Probably have heard it somewhere before. Not within my range but do not mind the music either. Sort of like the last track Madness lol
It's bleaker than I expected. Unmistakably Madness, but with bleak subject matter. It's possibly this depth that made them so popular for so long. Rise and Fall is great and wistful, and Tomorrow's Just Another Day is fun but with an undercurrent of sadness. Blue Skinned Beast is the weakest track so far but is pleasingly odd, just a verse too long. Our House is of course an undeniable classic. This album is really good... But it could have done with maybe a slow one or a Nutty Boys stomper - as it is, every song sits around a very similar tempo and it gets very easy to tune out. The variety of subject matter in the songs is sublime though
The overall sound of Madness doesn't actually sound that much like a novelty act when in the context of a full album (for the most part) and actually has a few moments of musical brilliance.
Gives me too many flashbacks of middle aged men jogging around the dance floor at family do's.
I was hoping to find a hidden gem. I like their sound overall and the rest of the album sits nicely with Our House. Just barely a 3.
Catchy, full album not on Spotify, but enjoyed the four tracks that were.
Okay, but HOW did their house get in the middle of the goddamn street? I kinda liked this, kinda didn't. It's plucky in places. Songs are all over the map stylistically and melodically (hi there "New Delhi"), but it all still has that '80s stank on it. Like a lot of pop music from this era, some of it just does not hold up, in my opinion. BUT when it does there's something special about it that makes it feel like it will hold up forever. Like, I genuinely got excited when I heard the opening of "Our House." Something to be said for that.
Always a singles band. If other greatest hits have been included on this list, their greatest hits should have just been included instead. As English as a fish and chips in newspaper wrapping. Best Tracks: Tomorrow's (Just Another Day); Blue Skinned Beast; Our House
-I'e definitely heard "Tomorrow's Just Another Day" and "Our House" before -I like the bit in "Our House" where they sing faster -"Blue Skinned Beast" is quite catchy -Generally solid rock album. Doesn't get too intense, but nice nonetheless. Would be 4 stars, but 1 star penalty for not being on Spotify and making me assemble half the album from Greatest Hits records and single releases and other random stuff. That's rude
Probably actually a 2 but I am giving the benefit of the doubt because I didnt really give the album a chance
Can't really rate. Most of the songs aren't available on spotify. Due to region lock I guess? Our House is a good nostalgia song
This album wasn't bad. Very eclectic mix of songs, but nothing that felt unmissable other than "Our House".
ehhhh, middling dót, nennti líka ekki að hlusta á nánast 2 tíma af þessu, allt of langt (á spotify allavega, veit ekki hvort það sé eitthvað lengra)
I like Madness and Our House is a classic, but the rest of the songs didn't stand out to me.
This is an entertaining album. It's very open and it changes a lot throughout the album. There is not just one style they have stuck to. Not a bad listen, and of course 'our house' is a great track.
Good fun, but very samey. Nicely north London-centric. Madness always have one or two knockout pop gems amongst their Madness generic album tracks - here it's Our House with brilliant Suggs wordplay (\"the kids were playing up downstairs\").
An enjoyable standard Britpop outing, a bit more listenable than its brethren as each track displays individuality while maintaining the core sound of the band. A few songs here and there drag on, but most have catchy enough hooks to sustain interest. Excellent production as well, everything on here is clear as day.
The british response to Men At Work's Business As Usual. Nothing that will make you go home and rethink your life, but quite enjoyable compositions. Our House is definitely the over heard hit of the album, it made me clench my fists, but the other ones were a nice discovery for me.
This is more like a 3.5, it's a fun listen, but not quite a great one.
Around the time this album came out, Madness was my favourite band in the whole world. Some of it was to do with its brand of reggae, some to do with their brilliant (and ground breaking, for the time) music videos. Looking back, I can now tell that The Rise & Fall, as good an album as it is, represented the point when Madness was clearly past its peak. Perhaps the best indicator is the fact that there is only one truly brilliant track in the entire album (Our House)... Nowadays, I find Madness is best experience through compilations.
Have never though of Madness as an album band. Rightly so it turns out. Bit samey, but the homespun Landun lyrics are a treat.
The bad part about this album is you have to listen to it on YouTube as it is not on Apple Music or Spotify, at least I think because I am not a premium member. From looking at the wiki for the album it looks like this album was never released in the US but tracks made it on to best of compilations. The good part is that, well, the album is good. Going into it I didn't think I ever even heard of them, buy the track "Our House" was an 80s classic and I never realized that was Madness! In looking at the comments on the tracks, a lot of people feel this is their best album, but since I have nothing to compare to I am only giving it 3 stars, but I will at some point listen to another album or two.
This was somewhere between ska and new wave? I think? Is that a thing? I wasn't familiar with Madness for anything other than Our House, but I found this album to be a good example of why they're named Madness: every song is a little bit zany and off-the-wall. This album wasn't a favorite, but the intrigue was definitely there and this album kept me interested. Madness is all in the mind!
Interesting post-punk / new age album with a hit like "Our house". I liked it.
You know, from the handful of songs I'd heard from Madness over the years, I never would have expected that they had this type of album in them. But this was a really surprising and interesting album. Musically and lyrically, the album is smart, charming, catchy and well crafted. It has a certain quaintness and North London-ness about it that definitely calls to mind something like the Kinks' Village Green Preservation Society, in the best way. "Our House" stands as one the best pop songs of its era, one that holds up nicely all these years later. "New Delhi" has not held up quite so well, for obvious reasons (that album cover doesn't help). That's a shame, because it's one of the band's more musically creative songs. Album was not available on Spotify, but can be found on YouTube. Fave Songs: Our House, Primrose Hill, Tomorrow's (Just Another Day), Rise and Fall, Blue Skinned Beast
I love the song “our house” it gets played very regularly at work and it’s catchy. I have to listen to the whole album on YouTube because it’s available for streaming on Spotify
"Our House" is mini-masterpiece, and I enjoy the sheer Englishness of it all, but the rest of the album is just okay. And perhaps it's simply because "Our House" outshines everything else by so much that it comes across this way?
Madness somehow remind me of the Kinks in terms of scope and theme, while at the same time defining the British ska sound of the 80s alongside The Specials. Apart from the hit 'Our House', most of the songs are good, albeit not immediately memorable. Great band, ok album, good songs.
I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that "Our House" was the only song by Madness that I was familiar with before listening to this album. Given that small sample size, I wasn't sure what to expect, but it certainly wasn't a concept album. Artistically speaking, it's an interesting album. I love the horns, the piano has an old-timey saloon feel to it that I appreciate, and the influence of reggae and ska is readily apparent (especially in "Tiptoes"). What's striking me as I listen to it is the change in tone that begins with "Our House." Before it, the album has a kind of "Sgt. Pepper's" meets "The Wall" weirdness to it, and it's got an almost dystopian vibe. The "Our House" pops in and blows that up. There's still a dark undercurrent to the album after that, but the sound is noticeably lighter. As far as listenability is concerned, it's obvious why "Our House" was the song that got everyone's attention. It's the best song on the album, and the only one that makes sense outside of the context of the album, with the possible exception of the jazzy "Madness (Is All in the Mind)." Unsurprisingly, those are the only two singles released from the album. "The Rise & Fall" was an interesting journey, and I'm glad I got a chance to listen to it, but I won't be adding any of these songs into my regular rotation. "Our House" will suffice for my Madness needs.
Our house in the middle of our street, great song. Everything else was alright. Lots of horns, strings, interesting overall
Don't know whether The Rise & Fall is here for the blend of British ska and pop, music that's an 80s timecapsule, or if its solely because the author wanted Our House in the book. Aside from those three things, this album is pretty quirky, which isn't a bad thing. It has plenty of personality and zaininess, but it's not well rounded. 4 of the songs could be chucked in a dumpster fire. I could also imagine the brass could be quite annoying if you're not in the right mood. Still, songs like Our House, the title track, Tomorrow and House of Fun (a bonus track) make it worth a listen.
Awesome cover art. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Quirky british new wave 80s music; reminds me of XTC.
Entiendo la influencia, pero en momentos no entendí por qué está en esta lista. :(
Somehow not as good or fresh or original-seeming as it once was, without being in any way bad.
I didn't think I knew the band Madness until I heard the song Our House. There is some serious experimentation and mashups of instruments throughout, including a constant baseline of ska, with piano/synth/horn overtones, and constant tempo changes. Overall, not a terrible listen. Favourite songs: Our House, Sunday Morning, Mr. Speaker (Gets The Word), Tomorrow's (Just Another Day), Blue Skinned Beast, Madness (Is All In The Mind) Least favourite songs: New Delhi (used sitar music to set the scene of India, but it just ended up being annoying), That Face 3/5
This album isn't available on Spotify so I listened to it on YouTube. This is such fun era of English ska and the musicianship is excellent. Lively, fun, and upbeat. I'm not likely to be drawn back to it again bc that era of my music obsession has passed but I would have loved this in the 90s!
Weird, experimental, had some good vibes, not at all what I expected. STILL BETTER THAN Arcade Fire.
I'm a bigger fan of the group's earlier ska-focused material but this is an interesting, fun album. Almost like a 2-Tone Sgt Peppers. Our House is still a classic.
I’ve never heard this album before, but, being a big Costello fan, I picked up the 12” single of Tomorrow’s Just Another Day at the time, because it included a version with Elvis on lead vocals. Great track, as were the other tracks on that record - Blue Beast and Madness(Is All In The Mind). As was the single Our House. But having now listened to the other nine tracks, I have to say they sound a bit samey. They were a good band but they weren’t The Specials.
Didn’t get much time with this one, which is a pity as I like Madness (greatest hits anyway) but was surprised by how “different” many of these tracks were. Hard to say whether I’d warm more to the less poppy songs if I gave them more time.
Honestly I was playing video games while listening to this and I barely remember anything about it. Our House is a good song though. Album Cover: Not terrible not great 3/5
I'm a fan of the hits, haven't listened to their full albums much. There is some filler I think
Favourite track(s): Tomorrow's (Just Another Day); Our House I do like the creativity in the instrumentals, in particular the use of piano and brass instruments. I don't really like the "exotic" style in some songs, but that seems to be what the genre is about. Cannot recall most of the lyrics with the vocals being kind of forgettable in general. Not my favourite album but also not my least favourite, for sure.