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From the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Very

Pet Shop Boys

1993

Very
Album Summary

Very is the fifth studio album by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released on 27 September 1993 by Parlophone, nearly three years after the duo's previous studio album, Behaviour, and following the compilation album Discography: The Complete Singles Collection. Very exhibits one of many turning points the Pet Shop Boys would make to their music, shifting from the subdued electronic pop of Behaviour to richly instrumented dance arrangements. The content and lyrics led to Very being called their "coming-out" album, since it was during this time that Neil Tennant had publicly discussed his long-rumoured homosexuality.

Wikipedia

Rating

2.93

Votes

12729

Genres

  • Pop
  • New Wave
  • Electronica

Reviews

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Feb 26 2021
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2

“Very” by Pet Shop Boys (1993) Never heard this album or this group. Commercial disco synth-pop. And I mean VERY commercial. What is entertaining about this album is the modestly creative tapestry of synthetic sounds, recorded over mechanically steady rhythms. I found myself ignoring the inelegant drum and bass lines, eager to hear what’s innovative in the melody, ‘orchestration’, and lyrics. I was generally disappointed. Eventually every musical aspect of the sound fell into the background, so that nothing at all stood in the foreground. The compositions are generally repetitive. The third track, “Liberation” seems to be the most ‘produced’ cut on the album, but the orchestral backing is uninspired. The lyrics sometimes try to be profound but the silliness of the sound gets in the way. For example, “Dreaming of the Queen”, a reflection on the plausibility imagined despondency of Princess Diana, could have been quite moving had it been arranged with acoustic guitar with backing vocals and strings, but instead we get canned pop. Diet pop at that. There is one track worth a serious listen. “The Theatre” is a song I actually backed up and played several times with volume turned up. You see, a ‘theatre’ is where fictional second-tier realities are played off one another. And we get to decide which of those realities we will choose to elevate to the top tier. This song compels the listener to do exactly that. It’s in the class of the disco elements in Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall Part 2”. Yes, it’s that good. Anne Dudley’s orchestration is excellent—reminiscent of Hans Zimmer (although I would have boosted the trombones and timpani in the mix). Internal chord and key transitions closely track the development of the lyrics. The first chord of the chorus gave me goosebumps. Then a sob. Then flat out weeping. It shows they have the ability. This song made me stop and consider the obvious, but also whether “Phantom of the Opera” is art. It also made me reassess my admiration of the haut bourgeois (and wannabe) patrons of, say, Luciano Pavarotti. But come on, Pet Shop Boys, I can’t imagine actually dancing to this song. How would I feel as I left the discotheque? (That’s the point, dude.) I had to listen to it several more times. Then I bought the track on iTunes. But overall, “Very” is very—mediocre. On this album, The Bee Gees take Yes out to dinner and a movie, and agree never to date again. 2/5

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Feb 19 2024
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4

Music to an intergalactic masquerade dance party.

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Jul 14 2021
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4

I can't think of a better album if you want to dance and cry at the same time. Recommended season: Spring

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May 27 2021
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5

This is guilty pleasure music but I simply don't care. Queer 80s-90s dance bops with a nostalgic, wistful sadness... love it.

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Apr 22 2021
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1

No idea why anyone would listen to one of these guys albums never mind two

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Oct 10 2021
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5

It was a good thing when the Pet Shop Boys left their imperial phase and were free to experiment with pop. This album takes the techno trends of the early 90s and mixes it up with songs that tell very queer stories. At the time, I remember how the Boys' cover of "Go West" had given it a melancholic twist in the era of HIV - but with modern antivirals, the song now grabs back a bit of the original joyousness. "Can You Forgive" her is an almighty dramatic pop track and a stonking opener.

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Jan 21 2022
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5

Oh this is so awesome. Very special. Wii Music. Just listened to "It's A Sin" and "Always On My Mind" for the first time a week ago or something. This is really nice. For some reason the chords just all speak to me. Guess I'm gay now. I love the vibe, my new guilty pleasure. One and One Make 5

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Jan 05 2022
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5

I am so excited to see this album come up. It has been such a big part of my life. I loved it from the moment I handled that awesome CD case. Lost on me at the time was the backstory… that it followed the downbeat album BEHAVIOR released at the height of the AIDS pandemic. Its release also closely coincided with Neil Tennant’s coming out. All the more special now to know that now. I had no idea then. I love this album through and through… every song. Picking a favorite is very challenging and is highly subject to change. I started listing the best songs but that is basically was copying the track listing for me. So… How about the relentless “Can You Forgive Her?”… the cinematic swells in “Dreaming of the Queen”… the exuberant cover of “Go West”… the dramatic shimmering “The Theatre”… the melancholic “To Speak Is A Sin”… the abandon of “I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind Of Thing”…? Every song on VERY has had a place for me since its release. I love this album from beginning to end. The Pet Shop Boys create incredible electronic dance music with melancholy just below the surface and melancholic music that dances just below the surface… and VERY has some of the best examples of this. An absolutely fabulous album!

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Aug 31 2021
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3

While I can listen to a few songs I don't usually enjoy synth-pop. This album was too repetitive and electronic for my taste but probably someone who likes the genre might enjoy it. At least the voice is chill enough.

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Apr 16 2021
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3

This was my first listen to this album. The music was fine, but I don't see myself listening to it again, a firm 3 for me. I don't see myself listening to any of the individual tracks again either. "Go West" is the only track on this album that I remember hearing before, but it was hard to miss if you were around in he early 90s.

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Mar 23 2022
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2

I sure hope that the PSB's previous four albums appear on this list because they are all superior than this one. My favourite was their debut, Please which spawned 4 killer singles, including the iconic West End Girls. Wiki tells me that this album was their first album to go to No. 1 on the UK charts, so I guess that's telling. I really didn’t enjoy this "new" commercial sound that they adopted for this album. Not a single banger on the entire album.

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May 04 2021
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3

Only listened to a few songs. Not very inspiring but good background sound.

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Oct 08 2021
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1

Really loved the earlier pet shop boys albums but this one just isn't very good. The most known song, go west always annoyed me and the others all sound like Stock A and Waterman even though I know it isn't. Very disappointing and I am a huge fan of this band so it stings.

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Jul 12 2023
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5

A lot of fun to listen to. Upbeat dancey pop with a bit of camp and a dash of melancholy. I liked it a lot.

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May 31 2023
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5

Camper and poppier than before, and getting the hits they deserved. A very very very good album.

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May 21 2023
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5

All killer, no filler. In context, this album being released around the time one member of PSB came out publicly adds heavy weight to the lyrics of many songs. Yet the music remains upbeat and bright throughout. Hard to pick a favorite, but I’ll say “To Speak Is a Sin.” 5/5

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Mar 15 2023
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5

Sounds like someone making tunes on FL Studio quite literally in the closet.

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Jan 30 2023
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5

I wasn’t a huge fan of Behavior, but I really enjoyed this one. Synthy, dancey, and campy. Pet Shop Boys vocals in the past have grated on me a little bit, but I find them much more enjoyable on this record. The hooks are all really sticky, the dance grooves are fun and bouncy, and each song feels like it brings a different vibe to the album without it feeling all over the place. Definitely coming back to this.

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Nov 25 2022
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5

I know that this isn't anything special for a lot of people, but I loved this. I've heard a few Pet Shop Boys songs before and I really like those, so I was excited for this album. Rightly so, apparently, because I'm giving this album a high rating. It may be generic or cheesy to some, but it's very up my alley. I'm not gonna act like it's anything more than what it is. Still, it's getting a 5. I like his voice; it's kind of soft. It can be a little whiny at points, but I don't really mind that here. It's pretty hard to pick favourite songs, but I believe my favourite songs are Liberation, Can You Forgive Her?, and Young Offender.

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Nov 23 2022
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5

Did I love this? Or am I just so used to listening to stuff I don't care for that anything I actually like, I feel very enthusiastic about? Either way, this was a fun listen. I've been ambivalent towards the Pet Shop Boys in the past but I dig them doing 90s pop. If anyone reading this likes this album and wants to hear something similar, this reminded me a lot of Sparks' album Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins. Go for the deluxe 3hr edition as it has all the best songs within the bonus tracks section.

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Nov 13 2022
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5

This is one of the better recent ones

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Oct 19 2022
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5

when multiple albums of an artist are on this list, we truly get a chance to hear the artist's musical progression. i previously listened to and adored their earlier album actually, and i was subsequently nervous that i wouldn't enjoy very on the same level. well, i shouldn't have been concerned! i absolutely love their music, end of sentence. the pet shop boys' usual synth pop sound is present here, but they've expanded. there's a techno-like sound on "a different point of view"--there's even a smidge of a smooth jazz in "to speak is a sin". and multiple songs here keep them on the disco train. this album is a great balance of pet shop boys staying synth but exploring other genres. i get some of the same vibes from actually, but very is able to stand on its own and be appreciated for itself. they've kept their heart on this album, too. the hidden track "postscript" is so tender despite its length. a good way to describe pet shop boys, i think, is beautifully melancholy. "dreaming of the queen" and "the theatre" follow that description. somehow, psb manage to use synth and disco to make music with such feeling. i definitely want to mention neil tennant's sexuality. i have always admired pet shop boys' gender neutral love songs; most artists just do not go that route. i believe it allows any gender, any sexuality to enjoy any song. i do think tennant's sexuality encourages him and chris lowe to write their songs in such a way. but really, only a queer person could write "liberation": "take my hand/don't think of obligations/now, right now/your love is liberation."

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Apr 07 2022
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5

Was very excited to buy this when it came out - did not disappoint, ribbed plastic box, secret bonus track and all! Still sounds fabulous today, all killer no filler. Great to hear it again

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Jan 05 2022
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5

I wasn’t a big enough fan of Pet Shop Boys to invest time or money in an album way back when. I now know that I really missed out. This is a great album. So bright sounding and 90’s dance-y. It was a blast to listen to today!!! Also, I love the orange cover!

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May 04 2021
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5

Just listened to another Pet Shop Boys album from this list yesterday. The same holds true: I like the Pet Shop Boys a lot, but I'm not sure why this album was chosen specifically since it doesn't contain my favorite songs by them (top two: It's A Sin and Heart). But compared to the other album which was a 4 for me, this one seems to have a bolder, fuller sound. I enjoyed listening to it a lot and if there happens to be a third Pet Shop Boys album on this list, I surely won't mind.

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Jul 23 2021
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4

Really digging the vibes on this album. Romantic and a bit cheesy but relatable and catchy af. Lots of great synth work.

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Nov 07 2023
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3

Very gay for sure. And very cheesy. Yet very memorable lyrics. And very witty one-liners. Also, very sophisticated chord progressions. Yet very unnecessary inclusion in the original list when there's already *actually* in it (and also, I think, *Behaviour*). Very bummed to say so. 3/5 for the purposes of this very list. Which translates to a 8/10 grade for more very general puuposes (5 + 3). Number of albums left to review: 384 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 280 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 146 Albums from the list I won't include in mine (many others are more essential to me): 196 (including this one)

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Feb 24 2023
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1

'Knowing' pop is the worst kind of pop. Spend the time on better tunes rather than tipping the wink to irony and worrying about not seeming 'cool'. Probably a different audience, but St Etienne do this kind of thing SO much better. The start of the second (and third) track sounds like daytime tv show intro music. I have never 'got' Pet Shop Boys and this very much reinforced that feeling.

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Feb 18 2022
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1

It's like they took everything good from something like Depeche Mode and corrupted it, twisted and soiled it until it became a soulless shell of bubblegum synth pop that was all style and no substance. It is like an uncanny valley of musical nightmares, so close to good ideas but so debased.

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Dec 29 2021
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1

Entirely forgettable, and best forgotten.

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May 18 2021
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1

Very begins with a passable song then dives deep in the pop style that will be overly used a decade later by all the boys-bands. Every songs sound the same as the previous with the same musical backs and poor-written lyrics. It has no memorable aspect and even in background, while doing something else, Very is boring. Its presence in this list is incomprehensible and absolutely not deserved.

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Oct 31 2024
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5

Absolutely incredible. Perfection even

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Oct 06 2024
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5

This is #day58 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge and, finally, here's something truly enjoyable. My journey with PSB started in childhood when I first heard "Go West"—it must have been a football chant in the early '00s (I was very much into football then). Later, tracks like "Flamboyant", "Minimal", and "Numb" were staples on TV in 2005-2006, marking a significant part of my teenage years. It's safe to say Fundamental is my first conscious PSB album. Around 2009-2010, my interest rekindled with Yes (I still consider "The Way It Used to Be" of their classic tracks). There’s something timeless about Neil Tennant’s voice no matter what album you're listening to. Now, Very... Despite my preference for the more sentimental side of PSB (my favorite album is Behaviour), even here, there are more subdued moments, such as Liberation, The Theatre, To Speak Is A Sin... Very is (pun un/intended) very versatile, encapsulating everything 90s—synthpop, disco, and house underpinned by signature orchestral arrangements. It’s been a while since I’ve rated an album a perfect score, so here it is. Looking forward to #day59.

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Sep 27 2024
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5

Another superb offering by the brilliant Pet Shop boys. Thought this one was a little more ballardy than some of their others and certainly more jazzy with the use of various upbeat string sounds in other tracks. Also thought the album was more heavily produced but this didn't detract from the quality. What a way to end with the camp Go West. A joy from beginning to end 👍

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Aug 29 2024
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5

I loved this album. From start to end it was full of so many interesting sounds and textures, and the music itself was so vibrant. Each song was destinct and creative. Honestly there were really no low spots for me, and I'm glad I discovered this through here. 5/5

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Aug 27 2024
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5

Danm i love this album and spin it for over 30 years

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Jul 31 2024
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5

Damn what's with the fairly low rating on here, this thing is synth-pop bangers front to back. Always knew they had some killer singles in them but this is a full album of great material. That classic synth sound just works so well for pop music, every song on here made me want to groove.

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Jun 07 2024
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5

Ein tolles, melodisches, top arrangiertes und produziertes Album. Es hat mich begeistert.

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May 20 2024
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5

Very by Pet Shop Boys is an easy five stars because not only is it an album that brought me near to tears upon my first listen but did so while sounding like the unreleased soundtrack to a Sonic the Hedgehog game.

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May 02 2024
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5

The very definition of cryin at the club Full of heart and history, I’m so glad I got this album today! As a fan of 90’s techno, dance, and house music, it’s a nice trip down memory lane to study what laid the foundation of so many genre developments to come. Almost instantly you can taste the historical context this album was created in, the sadness, weariness, the hope and perseverance. This will be added to my regular listening rotation for sure

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Mar 28 2024
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5

I love this album, and I have absolutely no reason why this should be. I still remember buying the CD in it's orange case with the lego look and feel. I know this album is a big thing in the queer community, and I can see why, but my love of this album is really not affected by that. I guess I just grew up with this album, and heard it at the right time to have it leave a lasting mark on me. I absolutely hate the impact "go west" had on media for years, but at the same time I absolutely love the track. To me this the absolute picture of early european EDM. It is the sound of thousands and thousands of poor people dancing their issues away on any given weekend. The upbeat sadness propably didn't start with this album, but it provided a blueprint for how it would build for the next 20 years.

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Jan 07 2024
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5

Great - supegreat piece of pop art.

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Jan 05 2024
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5

I had never really listened to them before despite their popularity. Very much enjoyed it. A continuation of the 80s new wave and dance that rivals the best of New Order.

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Dec 22 2023
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5

An album I hadn´t listned to in full in many years and I had forgotten how much I love it. There is not one bad track on this. It´s probably the most solid album Pet Shop Boys have made.

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Nov 24 2023
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5

i put off listening to this because i thought it was the beastie boys lol but this is delicious

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Nov 13 2023
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5

Prefer their older stuff, still banging

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Nov 09 2023
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5

Awesome synth pop!! Maintains a consistent feel while changing tone and progression to make it engaging and interesting throughout.

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Sep 18 2023
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5

"Very" is the fifth studio album by Pet Shop Boys. It was a shift from the subdued electronic pop of their previous album "Behaviour" to richly instrumented dance arrangements. Pet Shop Boys are Neil Tennant (vocals) and Chris Lowe (keyboards. Vocals). This is known as Tennant "coming out" album as he publicly discussed his homosexuality. The Pet Shop Boys produced the album and, commercially, it became their most successful album reaching #1 in the UK. A loud synth open begins "Can You Forgive Her?" Horn sounds, a pop beat, a synth catchy melody. Tennant with forceful lyrics. It's a about a young man's humiliation when a girlfriend accuses him of being in love with someone from his childhood. "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing" has a piano and more of a dance beat. Another catchy melody. An event in a person's life opens him up. "Liberation" is lush with horn sounds. It's a dreamy dance ballad. A Carribean beat of sorts. This album is off to a great start..three for three with great songs. Piano keys and a spacey synth begin "Yesterday When I Was Mad." It then changes with a faster, busier pace and electronic beats. This is different. The stresses of touring and being away from loved ones. A nice job of the music capturing the lyrical theme. "The Theatre" starts out in a majestic way with string sounds. Just beautiful and lush. About snobdom. Maybe my favorite song on the album. The album closes with a Village People cover "Go West." Electronic beat. Smooth. Creative background vocals mimicking the Village People. This reinterpretation is like a theatrical production and a lot of fun. This is an excellent album. It's extremely well-constructed and crafted....great production and pop of the highest order. No bad songs or filler. There's a variety of beats with mutliple sounding instruments including horns, piano, strings and synths. Lush is a apt description. An album that apparently got lost in the US with all the grunge at the time. One worth going back for.

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Aug 09 2023
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5

Oh yes, this is absolutely what I want out of a Pet Shop Boys album. Lyrically as serious as Behaviour, Very goes back to the Pet Shop Boys synth heavy sounds, but with a more dance-heavy sound. Each song here is a winner, bookended by the strong "Can You Forgive Her?" and the gentle "Go West." The Pet Shop Boys are masters of synth pop, and this album shows that they were far from being done with their musical ingenuity, even as the world of music changed at rapid fire pace around them. I absolutely loved listening to this, and I can't wait to the third and final Pet Shop Boys album on this list.

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Jul 06 2023
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5

Neil Tennant explained that they chose title of this album because it's *very* Pet Shop Boys: "it's very up, it's very hi-energy, it's very romantic, it's very sad, it's very pop". That is the perfect summary of the record. It's everything that is great about the Pet Shop Boys, but bolder and more confident than on previous records. It is *very* excellent indeed. Rating: 4.5/5 Playlist track: Go West Date listened: 05/07/23

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May 26 2023
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5

An entire album of hits. From the first to the last song. One of the best Pet Shop Boys albums. And it's also worth knowing the album Relentless that came out with Very in a special edition.

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Mar 30 2023
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5

I loved this album it feels like a predecessor to all of the 90s and early 2000s techno music that I grew up on and it has a lot of elements that very much lead me to believe that it influenced them heavily.

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Oct 12 2022
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5

It's the perfect PSB album. Where the with and the music match up - if I Wouldn't Normally Do This Lind of Thing isn't the perfect evocation of that giddy feeling at the start of a relationship then love is a myth and we should all give up. Go West is iconic. It's all ace

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Jan 20 2022
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5

I wouldn’t normally do this kind of thing Ask me when I’ll say it started when I met you

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Nov 11 2021
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5

very cool album, mostly due to cutting edge for its time production.

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Dec 02 2024
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4

They have a huge lush sound, pop vocals backed with dance music. Every song had a hook that draws you in, enjoyed the album a lot

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Nov 17 2024
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4

Definitely the sound of the 80s fun to listen to but starts to drone on after a while

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Nov 15 2024
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4

Lush musically and compelling lyrically, my big complaint is that the songs are all just a bit too long, most hovering about the 4-5 minute mark, even the shorter songs feel like they could have been cut down. But that’s a minor complaint, and one that I have about most albums from this genre and era. This is really good

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Nov 01 2024
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4

Si hablamos de electropop, los Pet Shop Boys destacan no solo por su creatividad y colorida paleta de sonidos, si no por la tremenda influencia que tuvieron sobre la escena y la comunidad LGBT musical. Este disco no es la excepción. Lleno de canciones tristes, pero a la vez bailables, "Very" es fácil de escuchar, sin dejar de tener tintes nostálgicos. Recomendable, y me arriesgaría a decir, imprescindible y una buena entrada para esta lista. Escúchelo.

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Oct 21 2024
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4

It's not "Behaviour", but still somehow brilliantly captures the era. Post "second summer of love", grunge is about to go mainstream but Neil & Chris continue with their synth based rueful observations of life.

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Oct 03 2024
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4

Oh my God, someone take the orchestra hit away from these guys. They abuse it to such an astonishing degree I almost want to report them to the ICJ for war crimes. Egregious overuse of keyboard effects aside, I enjoyed this album a lot more than the last Pet Shop Boys album this list gave me. It’s fun synth-pop dance music that also has a lot of heart. It’s a little cheesy and a lot melodramatic, but it’s also damn catchy. There’s something about this album that’s very 80s (even though it came out in 1993) but also somehow timeless. It has similarities to New Order’s poppier songs (NO was apparently influenced by PSB) but also ‘90s dance music and even ‘00s techno. I guess that’s to the band’s credit — they’ve clearly had a huge influence on pop and dance music, and a lot of their sound can still be heard today. I definitely hear their influence on my favorite band, Savage Garden (and Darren Hayes’ subsequent solo work). Their influence on other queer artists (or non-queer artists who’ve become queer icons) is apparent too — Madonna, Scissor Sisters, SOPHIE, Lady Gaga, etc. On the techno side, you can hear their influence on artists like Cascada, for example. It’s not a perfect album for me. It gets a little repetitive sounding, and some of the sound effects are quite annoying — that obnoxious high-pitched beep on “A Different Point of View” makes me actually appreciate the orchestra hit softening it a bit. But it’s pretty good, and I can see myself listening to this again. 4/5

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Oct 03 2024
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4

Great shit, not their best album but still rocks

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Sep 27 2024
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4

Third album I've gotten of theirs. Def one of my favorite 80s synth pop kinda bands

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Aug 26 2024
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4

Oye, digan lo que digan, este es muy buen pop de los 90

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Aug 23 2024
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4

I always liked their singles, but never listened to their albums. A pleasant surprise

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Aug 22 2024
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4

Only familiar with the earlier career hits, I liked listening to this album. Usually can tell it’s the Pet Shop Boys by Tennant’s Voice. Always liked the band name.

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Aug 19 2024
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4

This is the Pet Shop Boys at their most disco and danceable. It's also, apparently, their coming out album. This. Their fifth record. If you hadn't figured it out by then, you probably just wouldn't care at all.

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Aug 19 2024
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4

Pet Shop Boys at their most danceable. It’s simply a thrill. They could have probably cut a song or two to make it more streamlined and tight - but I don’t really care that much.

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Aug 09 2024
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4

One of the earliest songs that left a deep mark on me was "West End Girls" by The Pet Shop Boys. I was just nine years old when I first encountered it, and the profound emotional reaction it elicited from me was nothing short of transformative. To this day, the lush synth pads that open the track hit me with the same intensity, striking a chord in my gut. The blend of Chris Lowe's evolving dance production and Neil Tennant’s distinct vocals creates a synergy that seems almost magical. They are, without a doubt, a perfect duo. Their music feels like a celebration of melancholy, almost as if they pioneered the genre of epic cry dancing. This particular album embodies the essence of ‘90s house music. It might take me a couple of tracks to fully immerse myself in its vibe, but once I do, I'm invariably hooked. The Pet Shop Boys' unique blend of melancholy and dance beats remains a testament to their unparalleled artistry.

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Aug 09 2024
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4

The Pet Shop Boys were pushing electronic music in the 80's at a time when the genre was relatively new and the technology pretty limited to sequencers. The tech has since come a long way, and it's refreshing to hear how Pet Shop Boys have adapted. Opening with James Bond theme music orchestral hits, "Can You Forgive Her?" packs the initial punch while the remainder of the album features lush synth strings more often, all over a continual 16th-note beat, and light-hearted melodies. Vocals are as clean and airy as Ben Gibbard with an occasional pronounced accent. I hear glimpses of the great "West End Girls" at times in some of the synth horn sounds and rhythmic talking. "Dreaming of the Queen" feels very similar to the laid back bubbly beat of Duran Duran's "Come Undone." Is that a Phil Collins sample on "The Theatre"? I can't say for sure, but it's fun to throw in some of these samples to change things up halfway through the album. "One and One Make Five" shares a pre-chorus with Madonna's "Borderline." (Why can't musicians add to five? Pet Shop Boys say "One and One Make Five" but it makes two, Ben Folds 5 is made up of 3 musicians, Radiohead sings "2+2=5" but that's 4, and Lou Bega sings "Mambo No. 5" having never written mambos 1-4.) So many good melodies, but "One in a Million" is my favorite, with it's spacey falsetto lines and wide atmospheric synths. It feels pure as childhood and can easily fit on the Neverending Story soundtrack. Happy to see they continued chasing their muse beyond the 80's.

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Aug 09 2024
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4

One day, when my daughter was probably 5 years old, she declared the Pet Shop Boys her favorite musical performers. Cue a single tear shed by me. She's quite a lady-ist, always expressing a strong inclination toward anything feminine, and she said, "I'm really surprised that the Pet Shop Boys is my favorite band because I usually like girl singers!" Now I have certainly been a fan of Pet Shop Boys since I was a little kid in the '80s. Their music caught me in its web and, I never outgrew it. But I never explored it as much as when my daughter began liking them. When she and I were out alone together she would always request listening to it in the car, and through her I explored a lot more from them than I'd ever heard before. I think what she found appealing was its danceability paired with its emotionality. But whereas some of their earlier stuff is emotional songs with a hint of danciness, this is dance music first and foremost, but emotional dance music, for those times when you might need to shed a tear it two on the dancefloor. This album really embraces the whole '90s club vibe, but they bring their own twist to it. I love these guys. Neil's unique boyish, expressive, yet wry voice is used effectively. And I love Chris's production; they complement each other well. I'm glad they have stayed together for decades, and I hope there are other albums from them on this list. P.S. Last year, ahead of me seeing the Cure live, I was playing some music from them, and my daughter proclaimed that the Pet Shop Boys' number one position in her heart had been usurped by the Cure! Cue another single tear shed by me. Faves are Liberation and Go West.

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Aug 09 2024
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4

Well....the site deleted my notes on this one before I was done and I don't feel like rewriting it. Great vocals, Neal Tennant has a distinct voice. I first listened to this one in my teens. Good electronic sounds, nice orchestral strings throughout and some killer rhythms. Hopefully my favorite Pet Shop Boys album makes it on here.

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Jul 29 2024
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4

What an interesting album and sound on this album. It's not what I really would've expected from Pet Shop Boys but it was 1993 so maybe that's on brand. The last "hidden" track reminded me so much of a Scatman John song progression - I think it was the vocals but still. Very enjoyable overall

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Jul 28 2024
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4

Didn't think I liked the Pet Shop Boys but turns out this is lit

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Jul 22 2024
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4

I have to admit that this is very catchy. Not something I'm usually into, but I admire the songwriting and approach.

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Jul 19 2024
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4

I really enjoyed this. I don't really like Go West but I thought the first half of this album was great

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Jul 17 2024
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4

Jeg hyggede mig overraskende meget med den her... Jeg er åbenbart en Pet shop fan.. Ærligt, så er det ikke hitsne som jeg bedst kan lide, men jeg kan godt lide hele stemningen. Den er bare "Very" alt muligt på samme tid. Jeg ender nok med at skulle høre alt Petshop boys igen...

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Jul 15 2024
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4

There is something extremely british in the way Neil Tennant expresses feelings in a subdued nuanced way, instead of belching them out like a white man version of Mary J Blige. God forbid. Somehow this resonates in my cold Scandinavian heart, and makes Pet Shop Boys a sort of camp, guilty, left wing pleasure to me.

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