Reviews (page 4 of 7)
Another pretty mediocre electronic album but at least the lyrics weren’t that bad
Go West. Neil Tennants comming out album.
3/5 - couple of cool songs, I didn't outright dislike any but consistently alright
Album review 026 Very by Pet Shop Boys (1993) Rating 3/5 Pet Shop Boys made some of the finest pop songs of the 1980’s and Very sees them evolve towards the euro-pop sound of the early-90’s whilst keeping it instantly recognisable as Pet Shop Boys. Very is a fairly good and consistent album but doesn’t come near to matching their earlier work. One high point of note is their cover of the Village People’s Go West, which still sounds great more than 30-years later.
can you forgive her : SO good. I really liked west end girls so I was excited for this album. It feels like a really full song and feels very 80s despite being '93 lol. A different point of view : I like the repeating of the title at the end-ish Yesterday when I was mad : i like the talking but im kind of tired of ALL the synth. maybe like 3/5
I don't understand the PSB hate. Sure it's not the most evocative album, but it's cheesy and a decent listen. Not saying it's a masterpiece or anything, but there are way worse albums on this list. fuck you guys, I'm giving them another 3. Last song was pretty laughable though.
Ok 90s pop
I like west end girls. I didn’t really like any of this album that much. Pretty forgettable
Re-listen
Not their best album but a few absolute crackers on here.
First couple of songs - not a style I'm really in to, but this isn't bad. Middle batch of tunes - still not bad, but I've heard enough now. Last few songs - still can't say they're bad, but I'm just hoping each one is the last at this point. Final verdict - certainly not a bad album, just not for me.
It was good an general, very dancer and somehow eletronical. I dont know what gender this is, but that are my impressions. That said, i didnt make my type, and some songs was just boring. After all, it was mediocre.
Funny 90s sound, a bit repetitive but still fun.
Not so keen on this one. Hi-nrg synth camp beats not quite floating my boat today
3 out of 5. Very melodic album with music videos that are a 90's animated fever dream.
My heart could only take so many key changes, and their increasing dissonance with Neil's voice.
Not really vibin' with it. Some catchy pop hooks. Dreamy synth sounds. It's alright, but largely "not for me". "Dreaming of the Queen" is the stand out so far. "One and One Makes Five" is also alright. I can hear how this album was influential.
bin nöd sooo en pet shop boys fan etz. ich check dass de sound mega populär gsi isch. can you forgive her isch no en guete song. find sini stimm scho eehner nervig. ich checks glaub aber find de sound halt huuere dünn und. my soo cool. the theatre zum bispil isch soo unglaublich cheesy produziert. vlt wenni demit ufgwachse wär hetti saaufreud. aso. guet gschriebne song, aber mit de production chani nüüüt afange. oke go west isch gaaaaaaail HAHA ich ha d blöser nüm im chopf gha die gönd jo blööööödomat. numescho weg dem es 3. FUCKING HIDDEN TRACK MANN. figged eu aber go west banger ok 3.
I mean this in the best possible way. This sounds like Deerbrook Mall, circa 1991. THREE STARS
God s
I don't know what to say, I see that "gay" is one of the most used tag and that sadden me, as we're still playing the clichés game. I mean, this is music. But I can understand it, at least to a certain point. For me this is fun, danceable and at the same time introspective. I didn't know how this band sounded and I have enjoyed it.
A good album, rather than a great one. Some great songs (I love hearing phrygian/locrian type stuff outside of metal, like in Can you Forgive Her, plus a couple of others), some beautifully arch lyrics, and a smattering of rave samples and signifiers. Theres bits of acid house, Moby and early breakbeat in there too. On the downside, it lacks the power of actual rave stuff, the mix feels cluttered conpared to some of their drier, more austere early stuff, and I find myself wanting the instrumentation out of the way quite a bit. Still, interesting to hear as a piece of 80s into 90s pop. A strong 3.
Blind album, know the artist. Was never a huge fan of them to begin with but they make decent music in my opinion. And that includes this album. Catchy, upbeat, unique.
Oh the nostalgic synth that makes me want to put on a cheesy smile and bob my head like Jim Carrey in that SNL sketch. Good for 15mins but becomes uniform after that.
Very obvious what this was going to sound like. Very predictable. So very British. Very much not my wheelhouse. Thats not to say it’s not a solid dance pop record.
Dance pop album. It’s not necessarily my taste, but I think this is a good album for that genre. This is the sort of thing you’d hear in a DDR game. Notable songs include Can You Forgive Her, Liberation, The Theatre, One in a Million.
An okay album, I liked Can You Forgive Her the most.
It's a decent album, the opener is a massive standout and some other tracks here and there are really good, but overall it's a bit generic with that 90s techno sound
I like this considerably more than the other Pet Shop Boys album I've listened to in this project (Actually). That one was a low 3 star, and this is a very high 3 star. Had a great time here, even if it isn't a major genre for me personally.
I wasn’t familiar with the pet shop boys before this, and it certainly evokes a specific feeling. This is most definitely club music for the 90s, good and bad. I enjoyed listening to it overall, but it wouldn’t be the first thing I reach for as a listen. Still, it was nice to have an electronic and synth heavy album that wasn’t all doom and gloom the whole time.
Fun!
Really good sound. Solid album
Like dancy-er, queerer Belle and Sebastian. Got a lot better towards the end.
-synth pop with some explicit early 90s techno influence -never heard any other Pet Shop Boys albums and i’m not sure how representative this one is of their discography, but i’d say it was more or less what i was expecting. not many standouts for me and kind of verged on corny at some points (a staple of synth pop perhaps), but it wasn’t bad. 3 stars -Favorites: A Different Point Of View and One And One Make Five
Good album. Not the most successful and know from PSB. I liked it.
Debut album plutôt cool, puis répétitif et moins intéressant sur la fin
first listen pretty forgettable
Listened Before: Y One of my favorite 80s bands, not one of my favorite albums by them. Still a solid 3 star effort. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Go West
This thing comes out the gate swining with the first track. The tracks are good some are even great, like liberation. Too bad its ruined by what sounds like a fire alarm goung off occasionally in the background. Also enjoyed one and one make five, and to speak is a sin 7/10
A bit of a let-down from the last Pet Shop Boys album that I listened to. The instrumentals here are good, flashes of brilliance are on every track but I think a lot of these songs are bloated, like they're being stretched out to a radio runtime. I have to give an anti-shoutout to A Different Point of View. This sounds like a parody of Pet Shop Boys instrumentals with a parody of New Order lyrics It's a good dance album and I can see some songs on here getting a facelift with a remix. However, overall I just don't find it as listenable as Actually and it lacks big hits like that album had. Besides Go West, which is the reason this doesn't get below a 3, this song fucking BANGS. Genuinely makes up for what is kind of a mid album, I love this song so much. Highlights: One and One Make Five, Go West
Can't think of any singer more british sounding than Neil Tennant. Maybe it's because he's so well articulated, not sure. Found this a bit of a slow starter, but 'Liberation' really caught my attention. Good song. It carried on in a more interesting track after that, with 'The Theatre' neing nice, and in general the latter part being decent or better. I sometimes found their tracks a bit too cheerful? Too much chord changes which overall makes it a bit unfocused and all over the place. The electronic sounds definitely don't feel modern to me, but more toy-like and... well typically 80s I guess - in a bad way. I realize that's just their sound, but on some songs it's more tolerable than others. Generally found this a decent album. Pet Shop Boys have some stellar songs, but I don't think I have found a smash-hit album from them yet. And this wasn't it either, even though it was better than I expected. Strong 3.
The most memorable part of this album was that first few drum hits in the intro of “Can You Forgive Her?”, it peaked my interest and the whole song got my hopes up for at least a 4 star record. I didn’t think the rest of the album delivered though. I felt that most songs sounded like worse versions of the hits from other albums. “Go West” saved the album at the end. Save the first and last song, maybe give the rest a skip. Weak 3.
Pretty good
5/10
I think I liked it?
I know Pet Shop Boys have an important part in the world of new wave music. But this album did not move me very much. Not as good as New Order. And not as good as other albums of theirs. Not sure why this is the one that made the list.
Not sure how to describe this one. Very 90s i guess. Electric pop
Way better than I thought it was going to be.
It was an ok listen. Not outstanding but ok.
I will give it to the Pet Shop Boys. They take an almost unlistenable genre (electronica), commercialize it, and make it endurable.
unoffensive but forgettable
I guess I just don't really vibe with these guys. Recently listened to their previous album and thought it was just OK, if not a little too tidy. Sort of the same sound here, except things are a bit more commercialized. The energy isn't really that high, despite the dance & synth-pop sound of it all.
Honestly not sure what to think of this. It wasn't bad, but it also wasn't good. And yet, the song about the dream has been stuck in my head since I heard it yesterday.
i mean its okay
Not my favorite style of music anymore, but it was fun to hear a familiar band play music I had not heard before. Not the sort of music that really moves me.
Can You Forgive Her - 7.5/10 I Wouldn't Normally Do - 6/10 Liberation - 5.5/10 A Different Point of View - 8/10 Dreaming of the Queen - 6.5/10 Yesterday When I Was Mad - 6.5/10 The Theatre - 7/10 To Speak Is a Sin - 6/10 Young Offender - 5/10
Een 90s pop album. Vind het eigenlijk niet heel denderend. Had wel wat gekke beats verwacht maar het is eigenlijk zeer neutraal tot saai. Het album sluit wel af met een absolute bange (Go West) en daarvoor ben ik dan wel bereid om dit een 3 te geven. Ook zeker omdat het geen slechte, vervelende muziek is. Het raakt mij alleen niet.
I tend to like the Pet Shop Boys generally but this is a little too cheesy too much of the time. Some good bangers on it though like go out west,l wouldn't normally do this kind of thing and yesterday i was mad. Definitely well produced and generally well written I just need to be in the right mood for them
I like the production, but the singer has a really stiff, uptight, nasal way of hitting high notes that began to grate on me after a few songs, especially when this album has none of the PSB songs I've heard of and enjoy
As a callow youth entering my teenage years when this came out, my pop horizons extended mostly to hi-NRG pop like this and Erasure (who probably also should be on this list, albeit more of a singles than album band). The song Can You Forgive Me and it's odd video have stuck with me and is a highlight here, followed up by the second track I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing. The album drifts a bit for me in the middle and becomes somewhat formulaic before a couple more standouts in the second half. The following year, I began to become enthralled with a resurgence of guitar bands with Britpop and alternative rock and with my year zero approach would probably have told you PSB were rubbish. Ah, the follies of youth, as Neil would probably say.
I kept coming away from this humming, "In suburby, in sub-urb-i-aaa" despite the fact that it wasn't on this album. Maybe their songs are a bit same-y?
Some good tracks, a little samey throughout but overall good.
Some hella vibey shit on here, others are wtf bad
It’s fine - I like the hits, but I am not really into this disco pop thing
nice bops!
could you forgive her- 5 i wouldnt normally do this kind of thing- 5 liberation- 5 a different point of view- 5 dreaming of the queen- 5 yesterday when i was mad- 5 the theater- 5 one and one make five- 5 to speak is a sin- 5 young offender- 5 one in a million- 5 go west- 5
'Can You Forgive Her?' is a great tune (maybe some nostalgia tied up with that as I'd forgotten about this one). It stands up against their bigger numbers following the formula of minor key Dr Who-synth verse, synth-horn stabs in a melodic major chorus, and tales of dangerous liaisons. Cracking. There may be a reason I haven't heard any of the others until the closing track - because this is the album peak. That's not to say the rest is bad. What follows is a succession of maximal, upbeat pop, often disposable in the extreme. It's like fast food. It goes in, you like it, then the feeling's gone. 'I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing' is a throwaway foottapper. The 'Go West' cover is quite superlative as the upbeat pop goes, but could be any decent Stock, Aitken and Waterman track. Aside from the first track, the album works best when it recalls previous output. 'Liberation' and 'A Different Point of View' have some nice upbeat-meets-minor moments, evoking some of their great hits without ever matching them. The latter actually sounds a lot like Electronic's 'Getting Away with It', which they co-wrote. 'The Theatre', 'To Speak is a Sin' and 'Young Offender' is when the album works - recalling their past approach of urban anxiety meets synth pop (as per Behaviour and Actually). Not many can match that sharply-observed melancholia - although many can match upbeat synth-pop. Production wise, some of the synth sounds are very 90s and sound dated in ways that their 80s output doesn't. It doesn't hit home in the way those two previous albums do. And yet it remains interweaved with some sad magic. I just wish there were more of it.
This felt like an easy listening album to me. I could fall asleep to it.
ok but pas ouf
Pet Shop Boys have a very distinct sound, blending dance-synth-pop emblematic of the late 80s/early 90s with very distinct airy vocals. I remember as a small innocent child of around 9 or 10 really liking Go West at the time of release but listening back it was not as exciting.
Some nice stuff, not my cup of tea
uuuh pet shop boys?? hacia un siglo que no escuchaba nada pero voy a darles una oportunidad bastante sobre su línea 3.25/5
Great marching music! Synthy pop that's pretty catchy. Nice voice behind the singing. Go West is iconic
Reasonably nice electronic pop. Recognizable. You can't fault the Pet Shop Boys, can you? I mean they're no Led Zeppelin, but that would be apples to oranges now wouldn't it? Anyway, a heavy heavy ABBA influence here, mixed with Depeche Mode (if they were trying to be legitimately endearing and entertaining). The album has a nice, romantic feel throughout, some unique synth sounds and orchestration, and Neil Tennant has a distinctive, rather pleasant voice (if slightly nasally). Also CONGRATULATIONS TO ME for passing the theoretical halfway point in the list!
Shrug. 3? Inoffensive, nothing that struck me particularly good or bad
it's pretty good synthpop i guess, but not really my genre.
Good album but not their best. This spot should have been for another artists
First one I didn't really enjoy. Better tracks but production felt a step down from prior albums
Their first album is a banger and should be on this list in lieu of this one. That being said, I enjoyed this album.
this was fine. some of the songs felt familiar though im fairly certain ive never heard them before.
Summer vibes. I like the weird synths. Go West melody sounds really familiar.
A lot of this album is quite good, but I did not enjoy the dance-electronica vibes of some of the songs. It would be a 4 without them.
i still really dont like 90s pop. I was vibing tho. Low3
Поважаю пет шоп бойз, місцями не дуже класно постарішав сінті-саунд, але в мене є певні ностальгічні відчуття коли я чую їхню музику, тому альбом послухав з задоволенням.
Very lush and clean sounding. Beautiful and dark harmonies with drab meloncholy lyrics. A super fun example in genre blending. Really will never gripe with exciting music. But that being said its slow, hard to groove with and definitely requires some mind altering drugs to dance too. For me its an introspective sit and listen album.
Pompöser Pet Shop Boys Sound Enthält Superhit "Go West"
Every few years when I listen to them again I get surprised at realising how bizarre they are
I am a sucker for 80s new wave so I went into this optimistic but it is the Pet Shop Boys in 1993. Half of the album is reminiscent of their 80s new wave style and the other half sounds like it was remixed for an early 90s dance club.
Apparently my notes didn't save. This will be less detailed than what I wrote while listening. I enjoyed the first couple tracks. I enjoyed the first 5 minutes of the final track. The album would have been better without all the others.
It’s the Pet Shop Boys, so already there will be a lot to like about this album. I just didn’t love it - it was all a bit early 90s, euro-dance for me to really love it. It also suffers the unfortunate fact of having “Go West” as its closing track - a song that I have an abject dislike of. All in all, though, it kept my attention and my interest throughout, and I had largely quite a nice time listening to it.
Serviceable but they have far better
Muy buen disco, me han encantado siendo la primera escucha que hago. Canciones con un bit de electro muy poderoso. "Go West" es un clasicazo.
Fun jams.... but nothing I go back to. After a while they all kinda sound the exact same too, no?
Liked it, although nothing stood out to me.
Not bad, but "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing." Another one of those cases where I enjoy the songwriting, but don't really like the way the songs are rendered. It's cool that they have a distinct style, but I wish there was more variety here.
I’m not at all a fan of new wave, particularly the Pet Shop Boys, but I found nothing off-putting about this album. Not sure if I was in a particularly receptive mood or if was actually good music.
fun little dance pop record but not enough insane bangers
One PSB song (not on this album) is enough to last me my whole life.
A well-crafted record that at times operates more like a machine on autopilot than anything else. Contains a handful of above-average pop songs (but nothing really compelling), a lot of generic PSB stuff and some goofy songs that aren't much more than throwaways.
Really didn't click at any point, but was enjoyable enough.
Some really fun songs with a great energy that unfortunately isn't consistent through the whole album
Not at all what I was expecting. It’s okay dance music
"Very" is both a return to form for The Pet Shop Boys, as well as a celebration of singer Neil Tennant's identity, as he'd recently come out of the closet before its release. And for that, you can definitely see why it's so loved. It's confident, self-assured, and very dancefloor friendly. If you need a soundtrack for your next Pride party, you could do much worse than "Very". Having said this, it's not really for me. It's a little too similar to Casio keyboard sounds that a beginner in the 80s might have played on. That's fine for what it is, and I still see the appeal. But for my money, the Pet Shop Boys have better songs than what's on offer here.
Third pet shop boys...we moved into early 90's dance club music but with a pop twist. I could see a lot of these beats being resurrected and incorporated into dance club dj mixes. There is also some up beat but also sad, really almost bittersweet at times. It makes a lot of sense when you find out this is around the time they came out. My biggest issue is that it still follows their previous albums of becoming really samsie after a while and just sort of there as time goes on.
Another Pet Shop Boys album when realistically there should only be one or two total on this list. Very is more upbeat gay club music than their previous record, Behaviour, which is a welcome change, but as always, their songs are just mid. Occasionally they drop a timeless classic, but they don’t on this album. Nothing wrong here, but nothing mind blowing either.
It’s Pet Shop Boys … enjoyable enough but not the best Pet Shop Boys album.
Huge synth pop fan. This album was fun but got repetitive and I tuned out a few time but overall was fun.
An easy listen with a couple of stand out tracks. I prefer their slightly earlier stuff, to be honest.
Bit too high a dose of the pet shop boys at once for me
It hasn't aged the best. Still contains some bangers though.
Listen, the pet shop boys are iconic of ... something. This was a weird period for music. I do like it, but this isn't even the album with Wild Boys. What gives?
Pretty cool but not super my thing. Could imagine it would be fun in a club, and reminds me of ABBA in some ways
This is quite good, I found the songs nicely textured with lots going on beyond their characteristic synths. The strings on Dreaming of the Queen for example are very nice. Not sure i'd go above 3 as it started to feel a bit samey until Go West woke me up again. But seems fair to go down the middle
Looking at some of the genre tags and reviews beforehand, I didn't think I was going to like this one, but actually wasn't bad at all. Stood out: I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing and Yesterday When I Was Mad. 3.5/5
While I like a lot of song from Pet Shop Boys almost none of the songs I like are from this album. The songs aren't bad but they mostly makes me wish I could switch to their bigger hits.
It was delightful. Go West is such a classic.
🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱
First few songs are catchy, but the dance pop got old fast for me
Good ol synth pop. Interesting but not exciting. Definitely no ‘West End Girls’
pretty good, hate the album art. dancy synth pop which i usually enjoy - the mood has to be right
Enjoyable 80s band that I didn’t follow into the 90s. Unique sound and not a lot of variation in their songs leaves me luke warm today.
6/10 This is the Pet Shop boys. I remember this 40 copies of this album being in the bargain bin at the used CD store. I like the pet shop boys and this was fine. 6-24-2025
Sounds very 80s for a 90s album
Pet Shop Boys are one of my guilty pleasures. I love Go West. The album did sort of blend together, but I didn't have any feelings of wanting it to end. It could keep going, and I could keep listening.
Ei oikein mun juttu. Soundissa ei sinänsä mitään vikaa, mutta siitä puuttuu vaan se iskevyys. Soundi on hyvä, mutta kappaleissa ei ole mitään erikoista. Go West on oikeastaan ainoa hyvä kappale joka näköjään olikin tällä levyllä vika biisi. Siinä on sentäs muistettava kertosäe. Ja melodia neuvostoliiton kansallislaulusta. Parhaat: Young Offender, Go West
YASSS I GOT A GAY ALBUM IN JUNE!!! Happy Pride Month, y'all! I am genuinely so happy to have gotten an album like this in June, because (I know I've said this a number of times for other albums), this is a solid contender for gayest album of this whole list. Why is that? Well, two reasons. Reason 1 is that this album was released around the same time that Pet Shop Boys vocalist Neil Tennant publicly came out as gay! I know it's been like 30 years, but good for him! Secondly, as a result of this, the lyrical themes of this album are much more openly gay-coded. Prior albums did touch on these sorts of themes, but in more subtle ways. For instance, on the Pet Shop Boys' prior album in both the band's chronology and in terms of which albums I've listened to, Behaviour, the opener "Being Boring" was written about a friend who'd died of AIDS, but in a pretty subtle way. As for its followup, Very? Well, not only are these themes more clear here, they're also more frequent. I mean, the penultimate track literally contains the phrase "One in a million men could change the way you feel" repeated a number of times. If that's not gay, I don't know what is. I need to make this very clear that all of the gay comments are fully appreciative. I'm an ally, okay? Honestly, I might be more than that, but that's a whole other thing that I'm not talking about in a Pet Shop Boys album review. Anyways, let's talk about the music now. It's alright! I will say that the sound is kind of dated, even for the time. This was made in 1993? Really? Feels very 80s to me. The style's good, but it feels like an 80s album a bit too much. Neil Tennant's singing is okay. I'm not huge on it, but I don't hate it either. The album's a bit repetitive, but it's still mostly good so I'm not too upset. The writing is nice. Admittedly, this is probably the least essential of the three Pet Shop Boys albums on the list, and I'd probably cut it because I don't think there needs to be three Pet Shop Boys albums on the list, but Very is still a good album. High 3/5.
It's pretty chill, ambient electronic music. Makes me think of Moby, but a lot more vocals. It's also its own thing, kind of pop-y. Young Offender, what video game did they sample for this song??
like a 2.5. Vocals are the best part, the music itself isn't particularly good or bad. Doesn't feel unique
Not a bad album but I preferred their debut and am not convinced you need a lot of them on the list. Lot of good sound and fun. Very easy album to enjoy and I could see this be something that is well loved by the right crowd. Go West is great. I'd likely enjoy this album more if I was more fun.
Maybe I am in a bubble but I feel like the Pet Shop Boys are not in the conversation enough. As I mentioned before, I watched the video for the cover of Go West often when it was on Much Music. A very listenable album, but not sure if I'm sold on the fact that you need more than one of their albums on the list.
SO FWEEAKING GOODDDDDD listened on: 5/30/25 favs: to speak is a sin, one in a million and i recognized go west. beautiful outro. LOVE!
Did not at all sound like what I was expecting. I was expecting it to be either a boyband or chamber pop, but this was pleasantly surprising.
Thought I would like this one better. My mom’s a big fan of them and I enjoy listening to West End Girls, but the production got too repetitive and corny for me. With a different arrangement, I think a lot of these songs could be really great. So the songs themselves were solid, but the execution of the album as a whole was off.
As much as I would like to give more stars to Pet Shop Boys, this album is kind of boring. A couple good tracked. I much prefer other records.
fun themes but overall a bit dreary (too brit?)
6/10 I remember this at the time - especially Go West - and sadly it hadn’t aged brilliantly. The songwriting, vocals, and pop sensibility are the normal PSB standard. But albums of this era have a tendency to sound dated in terms of drums & synth, and this sounds painfully early 90s. Fun still. Best: Go West
Very good album
Interesting and unique sound but songs are all similar. Later songs by the pet shop boys are better.
This was kinda cool
I'm not a big fan of this genre, but PSB is probably the best at it. It's weird that this album came out in 1993 and still sounds like it was released in 1983. I'm not sure if that's good or bad.
Overall it's decent. A few songs are forgettable and a few have really good hooks or subjects that make them stick in my brain. 5/10
Consider me intrigued, Pet Shop Boys. Maybe even a little curious. Definitely flattered.
Only managed to listen to half of this because it was a busy day. I like the Pet Shop Boys as a singles band but I found the album a bit of a drag and all a bit too samey.
Didn't really enjoy this album. Despite the big hits, the other tracks left me a bit cold. Although it may be a case of going back to this and reading/listening to the lyrics more. I was quite intrigued by the track about Princess Di for instance.
Very positive overall. And a lot of albums over thier history. I personally would not have chosen this one as the example album, but it does capture their sound.
Not a bad synth-pop album from expert purveyors of the genre. 3 stars
★★★¾
I enjoy this music, but not as much as I wish I did. I find it a bit much for some songs. That said, I would LOVE to dance to this on a night out.
Their 5th album, and also their 5th best album. It seems quite garish compared to the graceful sigh of Behaviour (perhaps a conscious reaction to it), but contains some of their best known (if not best) tracks. Can You Forgive Her? and The Theatre are outstanding.
Boring. Everything felt like one long big bright techno-ish track, up until "Go West", which sounded like a rehash of "YMCA". I can't do it.
Enjoyed a lot of these more than I expected but some of them brought it back down. Least favourite: yesterday when I was mad
Eh. Pretty good, but wouldn't listen to it beyond as background music. Also don't know wtf happened in the middle, but I did not like Yesterday When I Was Mad. The postscript was fun tho- nice little surprise
Strange but kinda good strange? fav: a different point of view, dreaming of the queen least fav: yesterday when i was mad rating: 3.5
Ihan mukavaa menoa
A bit too long and not really an album for me, but I’ve heard worse on this list. Liberation and Dreaming of the Queen were a bop. Go West was fun as well.
Very (good)
It's a fun sound, but gets tiresome after a while. Probably best heard as the occasional single on the radio.
Very safe, radio-friendly pop music. I wasn't particularly vibing with this, but for a certain crowd, I can see how some of the singles on this record can bring on a sense of nostalgia.
The Pet Shop Boys are like fine wine. They get better with age. They're still out there in 2025 cranking out music, gotta love it. "Very" was album I was skeptical because I really, really liked Behaviour and thought on the whole it was their best work. So, going into this one back in 93, I was tepid with it at first. Over time, however, I've grown to like this album. Maybe not as much as their 80's work or even Behaviour, but it's not bad. 3.45/5 (just not quite there)
Ehhh. Overproduced and sanitized, too pop. Somehow, despite the correlation with Neil Tennant coming out of the closet shortly after this album was released, it feels... bland and inauthentic? Probably the production giving me that vibe.
A few tracks were of interest while the most part of the album was relaxating kind of light music which may deliver if you enter the mood but is overall by no means outstanding. 2.7/10.
Pop and discotheque: middle school dances must have loved them.
This is highly-polished, dance-oriented pop music. It's pleasant enough to listen to, but it doesn't grab me in any way.
I love the Pet Shop Boys but this is not their best album. It's pleasant to listen to but not terribly interesting. Their newer albums are their best.
I am baffled. The Pet Shop Boys released 15 albums? And three of them are on this list? And Neil Tennant didn't come out until 1993? This album is a fine example of their output but nothing stands out for me.
Unique and synthy sound. They created something original.
very ok, not their best, still enjoyed
3.5 mostly meh w a couple good songs
3.3 1x
I just had a different Pet Shop Boys album within the last two weeks and thought it was fine, pretty boring, felt like elevator/lounge muzak to me. This feels a lot more like Eurotrash dancy music, and I'm more in to it. Not great by any means, and am surprised that this band has any albums on this list.
My big take away from this is that once i scratch the surface of PSBs and go deeper than the hits, i'm not a huge fan of what i hear. This is more fun than the last album i heard though, so there's that
Pet Shop Boys can be quite hit or miss for me, even on what is arguably their best album. While there are a few songs that stand out as both lyrically and musically impressive—such as "The Theater," "Liberation," and "Can You Forgive Her?"—there are also several tracks that feel flat and overproduced, lacking the clever or cheeky lyrics that I can so appreciate from the Pet Shop Boys.
Listenable.
I think Pet Shop Boys are brilliant, but at the same time an album is a bit too much for me. Better as part of a playlist.
That intro really sounded like a remix of Vegas slot machines 3
Picture this it’s 1993. You’re gay British. Uncle is doing aerobics with teal colored ankle weights. Now I don’t know if this is a thing, I’m American. But still can’t shake the division. Three out of five for effect
⭐⭐⭐ 5/10 It's alright
Итс окэй. Go West конечно мега-хит, но. Лучшая песня - Dreaming of the Queen.
Very mid.
This would be a great 80’s pop album if it wasn’t a 90’s album. And the start of the 90’s, especially pop music, was struggling to find its own identity and this album is a staple example of that. It’s an album that is very reminiscent of the 80’s with that early 90’s pop influence that was trying very hard not to be Depeche Mode. I love 80’s campy pop and I wish the album had leaned a little further into that. The songs that did try to capture that sound sounded a little too campy for me. I mean, up the LGBT obviously; this is the album I believe coincided with the singer coming out, which is great. The highs were high but the lows were ultimately “meh”. There were some forgettable tracks on the album but it had a good finishing track. Overall, it was alright but I’m not sure I’d listen to it again as a whole.
Average, beats are kinda groovy at points but all sound the same. singing all sounds the same. Favourite songs: I wouldn't normally do this kind of thing, yesterday when I was mad, the theatre, to speak is a sin, last one. Overall around 6/10
None of the big hits on this record, but that doesn't matter. I can still dance to this.
Dance pop is not a genre of music I naturally gravitate towards but there were a couple winners on this album that I’d like to explore again.
I love some PSBs songs but I wasn’t familiar with this one. Still enjoyed it!
For an album from the 1993, this felt very 80's. Which is very accurate for PSB I think. Nothing stood out for me while at the same time it was perfectly nice. 3.5
I’ve enjoyed the Pet Shop Boys projects I’ve listened to over the years, but at some point they do start to sound the same.
Interesting but not my favorite. His voice reminded me of Ben Gabbard at some points strangely enough.
Very groovy 🕺 but I grew tired with the poppyness n loveyness
3.5/5
I’m very impressed with Very. I was hoping for something special, and I wasn’t disappointed. https://open.substack.com/pub/richcain/p/project-1001-very-by-pet-shop-boys?r=4ztyq&selection=075b2b10-0749-489f-85b3-0b57a3e77e27&utm_campaign=post-share-selection&utm_medium=web&aspectRatio=instagram&textColor=%23ffffff
An old boss of mine is *really* into Pet Shop Boys, and constantly tried to get me into them. Yet, after 4 years, I just never got around to it while I worked with him. (I should have, though, because we do have very similar (read: queer) music tastes, despite being 25 years apart.) Now that I’m forced to listen to them, though, I’m not exactly sure if Very is a good entry point, because this album is really…hard to judge. I hate to use to the word “dated” as a critique, but even great synth-pop albums can suffer from the outdated technology used to create it. Very suffers a lot from age. The Midi stabs, the now-cliché trance 303 bass line, the stiff drum programming. All these things bring to mind an N64 game from 1997– the graphics looks a lot better in your memory than they do on revisit. Combine that with Tennannt’s nasally vocals, and there’s a very specific time and place for Pet Shop Boys. That time has long passed, though, and that place no longer exists, and revisiting it is like revisiting an empty, liminal space at times. And yet, I can’t deny the fact that there’s some amazing songwriting on here. “A Different Point of View,” “One and One Make Five,” and “Go West” are stellar songs, and while it took me a bit to warm up to “Can You Forgive Her?” or “One in a Million,” once those tracks clicked, they really clicked. Even songs I’m less keen on have some incredible moments, particularly in their hooks and choruses, like “Liberation” and “Yesterday, When I Was Mad.” While there’s other songs that I find too dated to latch onto, I can generally see the appeal, even in the rearview mirror. The fact that there are songs here that have grown on me after only two listens suggests that Very is very much a grower, and I could imagine myself coming around on it eventually. But I also can’t shake how dated this album sounds, and I think that will hold me back from loving it for a long time. Sorry, John 😭😭😭
It's easy to hear who these guys are on their light voice and electronic beats. None of them really stood out to me on this disc, but nice to listen to nonetheless to keep the eyes open.
So so
A Very average collection Pet Shop Boys songs. No need to really listen again.
Clearly a PSB album and whilst not containing the same high level bangers as their 80’s work as an album this wasn’t terrible. But can’t help but wonder why it was included as surely those albums containing said 80’s bangers would have been better. I guess we’ll have to wait and see if they come up later. So in all I guess this gives you everything you’d want in a PSB album if that’s what you want to listen to.
I liked this a lot better than I’d expected. The first two tracks and track 6 and 7 are all excellent! I still hate Go West, though
Tää lienee viiminen sellainen ns. kulta-ajan psb-levy ainakin mun mielessä. Hyvä jorauspoppipläjäys mielestäni! 3/5
This entire album only served to get "Suburbia" stuck in my head. 3.5
I'm not sure that this holds up as a situation where an artist has multiple albums. I enjoyed it well enough, and I really like Go West, but overall - if it has special historical significance to the genre, I'm unaware of it, and I prefer other albums from them more.
A couple of good songs but mostly repetitive electronic music
Very synthpoppy, a bit too much
Pretty meh until the last song.
Good vibes and atmosphere but nothing grabbed me outside of that. 3/5
Decent
Started out just okay, but then really started to grow on me
Although synth-pop is not my favorite genre, I liked many songs on this album. Sticking with a 3 because even though I like it, I don't think it's particularly great.
Super fun and poppy. But too over-produced for my liking
Meh
6.5/10
I liked this more than I expected to, late stage 80s (really early 90s) synth-pop.
Very of its time, and the gorgeous cover of "Go West" launched a hundred football chants (mostly along the lines of "you're shit, and you know you are"), and its probably the most accessible PSB, almost anthemic in comparison to earlier releases.
I don't understand all the hate this album gets. Yeah it's corny. Yeah they people remind me of those dorky drama kids from your high school who continually get shoved into lockers, but god damnit do they have some passion. I think it's creative, I think they innovate, but the album does seem to lag by the end and I don't know if it really needed to be all that long. Not a great album but definitely better than its reputation.
Seemed flatter than other PSB albums I recall from back in the day.
MTav flashbacks
Can You Forgive Her? I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing Go West
this was pretty underwhelming overall i can’t lie, it was okay but wasn’t the most interesting
interesting dance sound, overall enjoyed it, but probably won't come back to it much.
El synth pop bailable de Pet Shop Boy alcanzó la excelencia en 1993 con este, su quinto disco. Me gusta, por supuesto, su gran éxito y primer tema "Can You Forgive Her?", así como la irónica siguiente canción "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing". Pero me sigo quedando con la conmovedora versión del tema de Village People con el que cierran el álbum, la icónica "Go West".
Very unapologetically annoying and cheesy and gay, but it's still a vibe
not as good as behavior but still pretty decent
Strong album, but no real banger... And I can't stand the last track!
Favorite Tracks: The Theatre Go West
I actually had this ages ago. I bought it at a whim just because I had heard of them before and the packaging of the CD was very interesting. It was 5 bucks...spent. I only liked the opening song "Can You Forgive Her?" And found the second song to be okay nothing after that made an impact. 20-ish years later, I mostly stand by that assessment. There's a lot of decent to pretty good stuff here but not a lot to write home about. A generous 3 just because I really do like that opener.
A great pop record Doesn’t linger long after consuming but a very enjoyable listen nonetheless
I liked this better than I expected. It’s fun and kind of clever and very well produced. Some of the songs, “Wouldn’t Normally Do…” and “Go West” are very catchy. When I see “electronic duo” in the band description I now immediately brace for the worst, but these guys are good musicians.
it seems so much like they're trying to be modern for some reason
I actually really liked this!
I do not like the voice of the Pet Shop Boys, but it was an uplifiting album with alternative 90s music.
De eerste track met die lelijke orchestral stab (die later op het album meerdere keren terugkomt) is een beetje een valse start van een verder prima album. Het album is enorm kitcherig, maar het is wel upbeat en het heeft een wat gedateerd maar misschien mede daarom melancholisch geluid. Het nasale hoge gepiep van de zanger is eigenlijk super kut, maar omdat het er op de één of andere manier wel bij past stoort het me niet zo. Het is totaal niet mijn muziek maar toch kan ik het album vreemd genoeg wel waarderen. Ondanks dat het ook een droevige component heeft, straalt er toch een soort plezier van uit. Ik vind dit om één keer helemaal te luisteren best leuk. Verder ga ik dit nooit meer aanzetten natuurlijk.
I've often been guilty of looking down on Pet Shop Boys because they carry this perception of being quite cheesy and cliched, and some of that's true, but I enjoyed Very to be fair to them. The whole thing exists mostly in a minor key so you have this melancholy, downbeat vibe running through it and that works pretty perfectly with their synth-heavy production, but for 1993 this lays quite a bit of groundwork for some of the pop and trance that came along a few years later, almost every song has a fragment or section that you can identify another song through. The best example of that is how similar To Speak Is A Sin sounds to Robbie Williams' No Regrets, so of course it's no surprise to learn Neil Tennant was involved in both songs, and there's also a lot that sounds like prime era Lightning Seeds, especially on vocals. It's not outstanding, don't get me wrong, but it's worthy of a solid 3, it creates a compelling atmosphere and sound.
I listened to this earlier in the week, and didn't much care for it. But, listened again this morning and enjoyed it a lot more. Pet Shop Boys, for me, are good when they're over the top and just short of pantomime or when they're thoughtful, and they're great when they manage to combine both in the same song. I don't think they quite manage great here, but it's definitely good, comfortably a 3/5.
I enjoy a good pet shop boys song, but as this album went on they all started sounding the same. I feel like I’ve heard Can You Forgive Her before but not sure where.
This is ok but haven't heard anything better than West End Girls from them since its release.
8am: ‘ho hum, just another day.’ 8:05: starts album. 9am: *dancing in circles, covered in glitter* ‘yes, I WILL go west!’ *spins spins spins*
Dated 80’s early 90’s - no great shakes
Fun, light synth-pop
I saw Pet Shop boys at Brighton Pride 2017 and it was bloody fantastic! Such a fun performance. Listening to the album, I'm not quite so moved. But I still appreciate what it's about. And I need to look up what some of these songs are about. Was the actually once about Diana?!
Kinda cool, 3.5
Go West is a banger but the rest is pretty bland 3.2
Another good one by the pet shop boys. I like Behaviour a lot more now but it’s still not gonna get higher then a 3. I like all the songs tho and the increase in energy.
Fun, catchy, danceable pop that didn’t dip too far into annoying territory. I didn’t love it, but I liked it. I wouldn’t mind listening again, though I wouldn’t seek it out. Favorite tracks: Can You Forgive Her?, Dreaming of the Queen
I could only find this album on YouTube. I listened while working out. I got really excited about halfway through when an energetic electronic dance track came on only to realize that is was a between song add.
I saw “Pet Shop Boys” and for some reason expected the worst, which is weird as I had no prior experience with the band. This album turned out to be a lot of fun - I really enjoyed the sound as a contrast to my other recent listens. Favourite track: Go West.
This album is ok. The singing isn't my favorite and it is a little repetitive, but it has some good moments.
Bombastic synth-pop. Not exactly my thing. I found it a bit overproduced and busy, but it provided fun vibes for an afternoon walk.
Not my sound. Pet Shop Boys' West End Girls is noteworthy however.
Not familiar with this album but they always had an accessible 80's sound.
Takes great references of music to make good music. This album has variety, experiments, and I'd bet it influenced indirectly some music I like from Jack Stauber. I wouldn't say there were any memorable tracks to me though.
i loved PSB when I was 10.
I'm into the opening track. The bloops and blats are intricately wound into these lush layers, even if the core samples are pretty canned. This is probably the highest form that these bullshit samples can aspire to. its like trying to make a gourmet meal out of exclusively velveeta.
Den var en kende svær at komme igennem, men fuck den sluttede godt af med Go West en mega klassiker.
Camp and cheese all over this one, but strangely enough I didn't mind that at all. Would have enjoyed it more if it was a tad shorter.
Not bad. Good background music for work. But even then it starts to drag on towards the end.
Definitely was not my favourite Pet Shop Boys album at the time, just couldn't get into it. Very different world in 1993. At the time I read so many great reviews for it though - just didn't click with me. But years later I would hear songs on compilations that I liked and many came from here. Can You Forgive Her, Wouldn't Normally Do, Liberation, Yesterday, Speak is a Sin, and the "hidden" Go West. But no Absolutely Fabulous!! Disco 2 - released the year after - was a great version of Very.
Fun tunes, good sense of humour in the lyrics, this did keep veering into 2 star territory at times, sounding like Carter USM produced by Stock, Aitken, and Waterman, but my previous album was Simply Red so this one gets an extra point just for not being that.
Fun songs, upbeat. Such a unique voice. I enjoyed listening to this.
Different point of view and dreaming of the queen were soundtrack to me accidentally blowing Cajun spices into my eyes while trying to smell them while cooking.... Something about this music that intrigues me, even though I'm not sure that I like it...
It's bland generic dancey music. Nothing special. Inoffensive and commercial.
I am a Pet Shop Boys fan, or "Them Pet Boys" as no one calls them. I mostly dig their singles, and a smattering of lesser known tracks. This album always haunted me at HMV for its eye-catching cover, and the outrageous re-releases the Boys did of their entire catalogue in the 2000s. I had never crushed this entire album before. I enjoyed it, but not immensely. One & One Make Five is a new treat, otherwise just Go West.
Alright I guess. Kind of boring.
Fun high tempo dancy album that i will never revisit again because it’s just not my style
олдовая музыка, не затянула но и не напрягла
OK 80's pop album. A couple of good songs
good enough, nothing memorable
Enjoyable
Another group thst has a very obvious formula but also one thst is quite good
This was just ok. Might grow on me if I gave it a chance. But I won’t.
Loistava avaus - jopa avartava. Esteettisesti LP on minulle välillä liikaa, välillä ei. Joka tapauksessa levy on tunnistettava saavutus. 3,5
Album 408 of 1001 Pet Shop Boys - Very Rating : 3 / 5 There hasn't been a time when I thought, "I want to listen to some Pet Shop Boys", but I've never heard them and wanted to turn them off. This was released in the early 90s but it still gives me that mid to late 80s feel of a John Hughes film. Good listen. Won't be putting it on my favorites list but it will pop up again someday and bring that feeling of the time once again.
OK album. This isn't quite a great album for me as it's entirely synth-pop, electronica dance music. It has both 80s/90s vibe and would be something anthemic at a dance hall in the UK in the early 90s. It's got good energy and the synths are grooving. The lyrics aren't bad, but the vocals kind of drone on song-to-song and the tracks all start to sound the same. I'm curious to hear some more 80s Pet Shop Boys. ***
Hmm...*another* Pet Shop Boys album??? This seems a bit unfair to all the worthy bands that didn't make it into this collection, which makes it a bit hard to rate this album entirely fairly. It does sound a bit different than the other album (so far) we've been subjected to ("Behavior")--more bouncy, less drab--but I remain decidedly not a big fan of their music. (But I do appreciate that their lyrics are more interesting than many pop bands'.) It's interesting to see the videos of their singles from this album ("Can you forgive her?", "Liberation", and "Go West"), and see how much they were a product of when this album was released. All 3D-modeling and poor CGI animations, although the mixed-live-action aspects of "Can you forgive her?" and "Go West" are a bit more interesting and mesmerizing, in a very throwback sort of way. And it's always fun to have a decent (but not great) cover song in an album ("Go West"). I also feel like Chumbawumba totally based a large amount of their sound off the Pet Shop Boys' "Yesterday when I was mad", so a nice tribute to them.
first few songs soared by but Yesterday When I was Mad caught my ear, as well as Theatre, the next song. After that, the other songs continued bopping along, maybe One in a Million stood out too. In general, not to my taste, and I do wish they would make better use of the backing vocals (Go West felt a little Village People-ish and elsewhere the backing felt a little like a sports chant).
diskó en stutt í harm og heimsósóma. alveg skemmtilegt, 3,5.
Not my preferred style of dance music. Would be 3.5
It was good.👍
Honestly this wasn’t a bad listen. It was great background music. Very tears for fears in my opinion but very unique at the same time. I’m only giving a 3 because I can’t give decimal point scores.
Wasn’t excited for this, in fact I rolled my eyes and sighed. There’s no reason for it other than an unattached dislike for The Pet Shop Boys… Pleased to say though that this was rather enjoyable to be fair! I’m never going to WANT to listen to it again, and will NEVER seek out this album in any way but it was ok for what it is!
much needed change of pace. not all the hits but a nice listen.
I love some pet shop boys songs and this probably felt really fresh when it came out, but now it sort of sounds like a theme song to a weather channel...
very chill
Enjoyed this more than I expected but generally not my cup of tea
Good
There are definitely better albums. Just a bit slow for me
"Very" by Pet Shop Boys is a vibrant and eclectic album that showcases the duo's flair for catchy synth-pop melodies and intelligent lyrics. Released in 1993, the album features some of the Pet Shop Boys' most iconic songs, including "Can You Forgive Her?" and "Go West." The album's production is slick and polished, with layers of synthesizers and electronic beats creating a lush and immersive sonic landscape. Neil Tennant's distinctive vocals are as captivating as ever, delivering the album's introspective and often witty lyrics with aplomb. While some may find the album's production dated, "Very" remains a standout in the Pet Shop Boys' discography, showcasing their ability to craft infectious pop songs with substance and style.
Very mid
Synth pop
Day70. - i don’t know how many pet shop boys albums are on this list but this isn’t the one i would pick
Synth pop is a fun genre, but it all sounds the same.
A dreamy dance/synth pop album. There are moments that feel almost cinematic, the band paints the picture well with instrumentation and vocals. I was surprised this came out in 1993 though, it sounds way more 80s than 90s, in a bad way. The first 4 tracks are very good, Can You Forgive Her? is probably the best track on the album. Then there’s the random melancholy Dreaming of the Queen, which is very British and very odd. Yesterday When I Was Mad and To Speak is a Sin are decent tracks that carry the second half, but god Go West is awful and a horrible campy end to a Very dated album.
Yknow I do enjoy this band, but only in moderation I think I liked a few songs, especially liberation
Not my vibe...but they have a place in history.
Although synth-electronic-dance (admittedly, best I can do with a label for this kind of music) is not one of the styles I listen to at all, and at times some of these tracks get a bit too frenetic for me, I like the composition and performances. It has more depth to it than other music in this genre, at least to my ears.
Strong start
My friend had this CD in high school, the case was orange plastic with the grooves raised up. It looked so cool! But I still made fun of him for having it, I was a jerk. It’s not the worst album, but not my cup of tea though.
Pretty good. New wave pop.
Enjoyable.
Bouncy and fun, but nothing exciting.
Not great, not bad.
This is a direct ancestor to the 90’s, and DDR too.
Ça a commencé par du dégout et fini par des hochements de tête