While I appreciate the impact this album may have on the singer-songwriters who came after it, ultimately I felt like the band didn't have enough space to breathe, and Costello's singing consumed too much of each song. Great drumming though!
By 1983, we had already heard what heavy synth and electronic beats could do, but Lennox and Stewart excel at putting a degree of humanity into synthetic music to make it accessible, enjoyable, and lasting. The lyrical elements of the album are nothing to write home about, but mostly I was surprised how great the 'deep tracks' on this album were from their catchy hooks, primarily "Wrap It Up," "The Walk," "This is the House" (surprisingly, the star of this track is Andy Brown's slap bass, a welcome surprise on an otherwise electronic album), and "This City Never Sleeps."
The title track is a masterpiece, and as of today (9/21/2023), over 1.1 billion plays on Spotify. There's a reason for that: it's one of those iconic songs of its era, one that transcends the time period it came from. I suspect it won't ever "die," and that's a good thing. Everything from the melody, the electronics, the lyrics, and Annie's voice are unmatched.
The production quality is excellent. Knowing that digital production tools were in their infancy at the time, putting something like this together was a labor of love, and the mix comes out pure, lush, and clean. Songs like "Jennifer" remind me of some of the work Vangelis has done around the same time. I absolutely love how this album sounds from a sonic perspective. Not sure if this is the case, but I can hear some inspiration for later acts like Jamiroquai or maybe Daft Punk in some of this.
I can definitely see why this album is on the list, and I'm happy to have taken time to listen to it beyond its radio hits.
Great "coffee shop vibe" style pop. Lush, bright, not too self-indulgent, and not over-produced. Only gripe with the production is the (tired) use of vinyl scratches in various parts to give the record a quasi-vintage ambiance, which doesn't really work for me. Overall, a very solid record. Recommended for chilling out.
Pretty good.
Brilliant album. Every single song is a masterpiece; very rare for me. Great recommendation!
Horrid. I couldn't get past ten seconds of Dylan's voice before turning it off. He might be the voice of a certain generation, but I need an element of musicality in my listening, not just lyrical prowess. Dylan might be a great lyricist, but he's an awful singer. Sorry.
Great classic rock. The mixture of overdriven guitar and Hammond organ was a stroke of genius. Not a bad song on the whole album. Highly recommended!
I don't get it.
Great bluesy pop rock. Favorite track was "Time Between"
Punk isn't my thing, so bleh.
I did like "Gimme Danger" as it sort of fell on folk-bluesy motifs.
There are so many folk-rock albums out there which supersede this one, that I am wholly vexed why this album is in the list. At times I hear poor imitations of Fairport Convention from an instrumental viewpoint, and at other times the singing and lyrical content does that "joke rock" thing that became prevalent in the 1990s (among acts such as The Presidents of the United States, etc.). While I appreciate the musicality, I feel like there are much stronger albums in this genre that could have been included in this list. Underwhelmed.
Near perfection.
Aw hell yeah
