Hypnotised

Hypnotised is dumb pop-punk fun from a band that seems smart enough to see the value in such a thing. The melodies and riffs are catchy, and while it's far from a unique sound (even the vocalist's almost-bleating style reminded me of Roxy Music on occasion), I figured it was from further on in the 80s than it was. I feel like I'm getting an incomplete picture going into it blind given that there appears to be a theme of avoiding a sophomore slump for this second album, but the band feels genuine in their insecurities, making the irony of a track like "More Songs About Chocolate and Girls" come off less smug than it may be coming from another group. Cutting a track or two would probably make for a more enjoyable complete listen, but if I was thumbing through the soundtrack menu of a late-era Tony Hawk game, where this music sounds like it belongs, I wouldn't toggle any of them off. Key Tracks: Here Comes Norman, Under the Boardwalk, Hard Luck

And this is exactly why I wanted to join this group. Why have I never heard of these guys? And I'm from Canada where we love everything from the UK (apparently). UK music gets plenty of airtime. I've been going through 90's rock recently discovering some of the pioneering UK bands from that era (that are excellent) and I'd put these guys in that mix for 70's-80's punk. Just as good as any Ramones album. Loved it all - and now I've got a band to go listen to more of.

I was underwhelmed by the undertones.

Genre: Pop Punk 2/5 Man, this thing turned into absolute mush towards the end for me. The whiny vocals want to sound like Jello Biafra so bad, the playing is fast but totally boring and uninspired, and this is another example of an album that just shouldn't be in this book. It was 15 songs, and nearly 40 mins worth, of the exact same material over and over again. A few songs slowed it down, and there were a few covers that kept it interesting, but this album faded into the background like a ghost. Really boring, really stale, and really annoying. Will not listen to this one again.

This one didn’t do much for me. That little vibrating thing he was trying to do with his voice was dumb and stupid. Undertones? More like Underwhelming.

The vocal tone is killer. I'm digging the bass work. There Goes Norman is a bop! Man, I am having a lot of fun listening to this album.

Love it! Even moreso than their last album we received. Simple pop punk with dumb (but aware) lyrics. Great fun! Top Tracks : “Hypnotised” “Whats With Terry?” “There Goes Norman”

“Hypnosis is a human condition involving focused attention …, reduced peripheral awareness, and an enhanced capacity to respond to suggestion.“ -Wikipedia In response to this sophomore album from The Undertones, I had focused attention on the album and reduced peripheral awareness. I’m not sure I had enhanced capacity to respond to suggestion, unless that suggestion was that Hypnotised is a kick ass album. A great find. Thank you 1001!

Fun; sounds just like the album cover

I wish I had known about this kind of music when I was in high school and it was brand new. Who knows, maybe I would have rejected it because it wasn't the classic rock that I was passionate about, but man I really like it now. I guess I was vaguely aware of bands like the Clash and the Sex Pistols, but punk and post-punk largely escaped my attention. It would have been great to see some of these bands live. In any case, I liked this a lot. I've heard a couple songs by the Undertones, but most of this was new to me. 4 stars.

Maybe it’s the crappy music I’ve gotten all week making me biased, but this album IS GREAT. Just some northern Irish blokes having a laugh

I like even the weird cover

Just a solid punk album. I really enjoyed it. There wasn't much that stood out but it was fun. The lyrics didn't take themselves seriously, the tracks were full of energy, and the production was solid but not polished (which is proper for punk). I liked it.

Not a fan of the album art. Not a great cover of Under the Boardwalk. I like the rhythm on The Way Girls Talk What's with Terry, a solid track to go out on. This is fine.

decent punk sound - okay to me, didn't blow me away.

Somewhat dull album. Felt like the songs were very beach boys Esque but without a lot of the pop flair. Felt that they were more of an 80s rebrand of the 60s pop that wasn’t as good. Did not find that interesting. 4.9/10

One-hit wonders and their one hit isn't even on this album. Seriously why are there 2 Undertone albums on this list? You don't even need 2 songs. A few good songs but in general mediocre, uninspired indie punk.

Ah, more UK punk/new wave crap, this time with a Jello Biafra impression as well. Whatever. Boring amateur shit. 2/5.

Oh piss off and grow up

Die 2. Platte der Undertones in dieser Liste. Leute: die Undertones sind gar nicht mal so gut! 0 Platten der Undertones wäre angebrachter. Kann ich nicht durchhören.

Banger

Sweet and thoroughly enjoyed it.

I did not expect to like this album as much as I did. I'm surprised I haven't heard of them before. I'm a sucker for happy punk.

Love this one.

I love The Undertones' self titled, but I don't return to this one as much. Still, it's a great album. Maybe closer to 4.5, but I always round up and I've had so many bad albums recently.

Big DEVO energy. Good album.

"Hypnotised" is the second album by Northern Irish punk rock band the Undertones. Lyrically, the songs focus on teenage angst, boisterousness and heartbreak. Critics found this album more sophisticated than their debut. I'd agree with that. Commercially, the album hit #6 in the UK. The album starts with "More Songs About Chocolate and Girls," an obvious poke at the Talking Heads' album with a similar name. A guitar start which carries the melody. There's layered guitars and a poppy beat. The lyrics are funny and meaningless from what I can make out. "Hypnotised" has a more driving guitar sound. It actually sounded very similar to the guitar sound in today's emo and pop alternative songs. He's in a trance when she dances. They do a decent cover of "Under the Boardwalk." I think this might been some sort of tribute to the 50's/60's pop songs which you can hear in their music. The albums' second side has their two singles. "My Perfect Cousin" has slashing guitar notes, a poppy, bouncey beat and is very, very catchy. People are comparing him to his perfect cousin Kevin and he's not too pleased about it. "Wednesday Week" is lighter with a Spanish sounding acoustic guitar and melodic electric guitar. Lead singer Feargal Sharkey is singing in a higher tone. This is a pleasant song. This album has music that is catchy, melodic, poppy, punk, garage and drving. At times, I really got a 60's pop vibe, particularly the Kinks and Zombies. Sharkey really stretches and strains his vocals. I actually went back and listen to their debut album again. This second album is similar but is more complex with better musicianship, layered guitars and better hooks. Both albums are worth a listen and are highly recommended.

Brilliant - I bought it and I still love it.

It's funny that thing people do where they believe that the order they have discovered music is the order that it was released and that because they've heard two thing with some similarities they believe one is automatically ripping off the other. Look at a couple of the other reviews. The idea that Feargal Sharkey was in any way influenced by Jello Biafra. Hahaha. Listen to the lyrics, read some Wikipedia, ask yourself if Dead Kennedy's records were available in Derry a year earlier than anywhere else in the world, if at all.

10/10 album art Feargal Sharkey's voice somehow conveys the desperation of a lovesick teenager more than even Buddy Holly.

Album itself was probably four stars, but the corner of Spotify that I got into after the album was over, was absolutely amazing!

Absolute classic

Excellent record! Great songs, flows nicely.

😁cool

Loved it

A great album that reminds me of a better time in music when things were not afraid to be original

This was great! There wasn't any track on her that I didn't enjoy. I would definitely listen to more by the Undertones. This is a 4.5 star album, but I'm in a good mood, so I'm rounding up.

This is what punk should be. Fun, breezy, and DGAF.

Really ended up liking this one and then YouTube took me to more bands of the genre and I really enjoy it :)

Really liked this. Funny songs with good instrumentals.

I really liked this album! The warble in the voice was grating on a couple songs but made it more unique. Also likes how they didn’t take themselves to seriously and had fun lyrics/subjects. Nice hooks as well. 4.5/5

Juvenile (teen love) lyrics aside, this is a fun album. Basically '60s bubblegum teen rock meets punk/new wave, with a splash of Beatles and Clash/Buzzcocks here and there. A very easy and enjoyable listen.

5/5

SECOND NORTHERN IRISH ALBUM As a Northern Irish person, I was going to give this 5 anyway (😳) because I want to increase my country’s ratings on this site. However, the melodies are interesting, the songs are catchy and the lyricism is great! I recommend this for anyone of any nationality 😉 I need to listen to lots more punk and post-punk. 10/10.

Didn’t know this band outside of Teenage Kicks, this album was glorious. How to do churn out this many catchy songs?

Super fun! Would listen to again. Great beats.

Fantastic stuff, jaunty, fun and very easy to listen to

Classic punk, without the legacy of the two biggest bands perhaps. A few all time tracks, but even the surprising covers and less famous songs are great.

Another banger today. I loved this! It's been fun rediscovering my taste for punk thanks to this list. New wave punk? Hell yeah.

9/10 lots of fun, and certainly holds up from their previous album

I’ve enjoyed poppy-punk since the 90’s… so it is pretty fun to go back to the late 70’s and early 80’s to hear some older takes on that genre. I loved The Undertones’ debut album and I love this album. Fun!

Really good. Unmistakably The Undertones. Not as snarky as Sharkey often is. Wednesday Week is the clear stand out track from this album.

I love punk, by which I mean the 70s' variant, not Green Day and their ilk. In fact, the music I was weaned on was punk; my brother is 15 years older than me, so I got all his old punk LPs in the 90s. Anyway, depite that, I have never liked the song Teenage Kicks; I found it mawkish and overplayed. It still never really appealed even after I realised it was about wanking. Nevertheless, I lsitened to listen without prejudice and I loved it! The Undertones were really a great adolescent band, and this album showed a slight addition of postpunk jerkiness. Above all, this album is fun, unalloyed joy. What else do you want?

Sure why not, 5stars

Loved this

How have I've only just discovered the Undertones' Hypnotised album? I can't remember having this much fun listening to an album in a long time. And only 40 years too late! Is this the best album ever made? Absolutely not. But this proto poppunk makes me want to move and makes an bop my head. 4,5*

chuli, chulito

So happy to get this. Absolutely love it. Played it a million times at the time. It really reminds me of being a geeky teen (still am geeky!) Listening back it has an authenticity that can't be bought. This is New Wave at it's best. Guitars, drums, bass and Feargal Sharkey. And I did have that Perfect Cousin that is now a millionaire.....it's enough to make you cry.

The first four Undertones albums are all great (same goes for Skids - not sure if their albums are also on the list but they should). I probably have listened to Hypnotized the most, nonstop catchy pop punk songs.

Excellent punk album.

Leuke dansbare poppunk. Ik kende het niet, maar ben positief verrast

Enjoyable! Some good beats!

Simple and energetic pop punk from 1980. Very cool! I have only one issue with such albums - there's like 50 songs on it and they all sound very much alike. Hard to really pick something out of it as a result. Still, the album is very consistent throughout its entire duration (pretty short) and is packed with cool hooks. The instrumentals, production, lyrics - all of that is simple and just stands out of the way of pure fun coming from listening to this record. Plus, this is a great album to listen to while driving! Favorites: There Goes Norman, See That Girl (with a bit of a 60s parapapa in the background), Under The Boardwalk, Wednesday Week (totally sounds like a Beatles song) 4/5

This was more fun that I was expecting!

false

notes - cool delivery and style from the singer - most songs are under 3 mins, get in and get out - i like the cover art - i had head “my perfect cousin” at a store and it made me laugh, didnt know who it was until now fav song - hypnotised - cool guitar part, catchy chorus, lots of energy in the vocals least fav - whizz kids - felt like a bit of a by-the-numbers punk song album won me over more as it went on 4/5

Some fun pop punk! Doesn't take itself too seriously which is nice

This was a nice surprise and quite suitable for me as it was not too raw Post-Punk. Still melodic music, singing was also actual singing so this deserves a 4

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Hypnotised, Under the boardwalk

Not too sure about the lyrics/subject matter of the songs, as I was doing dishes and making dinner while listening, but it was pretty darn catchy.

Great album! Everything I love: punk guitar riffs, simple song structures, catchy choruses, and an overall fun experience.

Pretty good! Kind of weird

Good garage rock. Not really punk, none of the anti-establishment content that marks punk out from the rest, and technically too smooth. Feargal Sharkey had a unique voice, that makes them unmistakable.

bangers from beginning to end

Yet again, I am my parents child. I really enjoyed this album and have been singing My Perfect Cousin ever since. Very much seems like an influence of T-Rextasy who I would kill to watch at the Empty Bottle again.

Enjoyed this v much

Nice

Auper

Heerlijk klassieke punk. Hier word ik wel blij van.

punk rock - quite enjoyable

Really had a fun time listening, but need to revisit to distinguish more songs since the sound was so cohesive it all blended together.

Great album, but albums were not primarily where the Undertones were at imo. Peerless with the 3 minute 45rpm, with Teenage Kicks being in my all time top ten singles. On this album we have two absolute classics - My Perfect Cousin and Wednesday Week

Wednesday Week is incredible

nice upbeat punk album that has lyrically a lot of content to add that might be lacking in other albums in the genre

nice surprise, many cool and familiar tracks

Fun album. The music was good but the songs all sounded the same. I liked it overall.

Punk

pretty fun!

Good solid punk album. The vocals started to grate on me after a while, though. Standout tracks for me: “There Goes Norman” and “Under The Boardwalk.”

Super fun. Like a punkier and less mature Squeeze. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Has to be one of the daftest album covers of all time, but I can't help but like that too.

Nice

Just good clean fun, with a smart dash of self awareness that isn’t allowed to rise to such a level as to overshadow the intent. A little lightweight, but when it’s so clearly and deteriminedly by design, is that really a minus?

Really fun album. Enjoyed the energy and that is was punk that’s only significant quality musically was being loud. Favorite Tracks: “More Songs About Chocolate and Girls” and “See That Girl”

Have never heard anything from them before but loved it! A fun easy listen in the early days of the Pop Punk sound. 1) More Songs About Chocolate And Girls 4* 2) Thee Goes Norman 4* 3) Hypnotised 4* 4) See That Girl 3* 5) Whizz Kids 3* 6) Under The Boardwalk 4* 7) The Way Girls Talk 3* 8) Hard Luck 3* 9) My Perfect Cousin 4* 10) Boys Will Be Boys 4* 11) Tearproof 3* 12) Wednesday Week 4* 13) Nine Times Out Of Ten 4* 14) Girls That Don't Talk 4* 15) What's With Terry 4*

Hugely enjoyable- Feargal has got some voice!

Had not heard all of these songs. Awesome and fun

The Undertones are more of a singles band than an album band, imo. But this album does have one of the classic singles on it. Not just by them, but of all time. My Perfect Cousin and Wednesday Week are excellent examples of punk pop perfection, both in the lyrics and the melody. Great version of ‘Boardwalk’, too. Some of the album is a bit filler, but I love this band, and album, for proving that punk didn’t always have to take itself too seriously.

Great voice and a very enjoyable album!

Most enjoyable!

Pretty stinkin' great.