I have only heard 'Julia's Song,' which I like. My sister says they're awfully mediocre. Confirm? Deny?
― grammaphone (grammaphone), Monday, 12 May 2003 19:55 (twenty-two years ago)
― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:21 (twenty-two years ago)
I suspect they might be a singles band, but their Dazzle Ships album is meant to be very good.
nyeh, I own nothing by them! this is terrible.
― DV (dirtyvicar), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:23 (twenty-two years ago)
― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:45 (twenty-two years ago)
― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Monday, 12 May 2003 20:54 (twenty-two years ago)
― grammaphone (grammaphone), Wednesday, 14 May 2003 02:20 (twenty-two years ago)
― Pashmina (Pashmina), Wednesday, 14 May 2003 10:56 (twenty-two years ago)
― Student Teacher, Wednesday, 14 May 2003 14:03 (twenty-two years ago)
― Alex in Sheffield (Alex in Doncaster), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 07:39 (nineteen years ago)
what, junk culture? it is fucking honking - literally. OMD go to montserrat, hire a horn section and program some horrible steel-drum noises on a fairlight. there's one paul humphrys-penned nod to "souvenir" in the form of the lost single "never turn away", but beyond that it's wank.
crush isn't great, IMHO, but the pacific age is, as i rediscovered on one of the other OMD threads. (this one, in fact, which seems to have become the official ILM OMD thread. actually ... an idea strikes me, and i'm off to the mod board.)
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 12:06 (nineteen years ago)
― teil nennant, Wednesday, 10 August 2005 12:19 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 12:48 (nineteen years ago)
x-post: woah, hang on, what's "second thought (reconsidered)"? is this different from the song "second thought"? be telling!
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 12:48 (nineteen years ago)
I actually like this record - or at least some of the things on it - very much.
"Best Years Of Our Lives" has one of Andy's best later vocal performances that I can think of.
There's something about the melody and bassline of "Stand Above Me" that gets stuck in my head and is infinitely hummable
Even now when I listen to Love Unlimited's version of "Love's Theme" I find myself singing the vocals from "Dream Of Me" over it - they work really well (shame about the lawsuit and all)
and then the sorta ecstacy-fuelled fun of things like "Agnus Dei" and "Christine" are great, if even a little more lightweight and forgettable than a great pop song should be
overall not their best album - but some good songs and a fun listen. also have great memories of driving around in my first boyfriend's fancy sedan listening to this cd on the expensive car hi-fi system (whole new world for this lower-middle class kid) that sorta makes this stick out in my brain even more than it should. i bought him a copy because he liked mine so much and i think it stayed in his car the entire time until he bought another one
― rentboy (rentboy), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 12:58 (nineteen years ago)
despite the fact i've not heard this song since 1997, it's now stuck in my head. OK, OK ... i'll listen again. soon.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 13:08 (nineteen years ago)
haha! yes.
― Alex in Sheffield (Alex in Doncaster), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 13:36 (nineteen years ago)
― rentboy (rentboy), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 13:53 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 13:59 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 14:07 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 14:08 (nineteen years ago)
i can sort you out with mkI human league stuff if you're interested, though. e-mail me (use the webmail link).
only snag is i'm at work at the moment so can't download easily (i think i got chinned by IT last time i tried) ... i'll do it the second i get home, assuming other OMD fans haven't used up the 20 downloads or whatever first ;)
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 14:13 (nineteen years ago)
― rentboy (rentboy), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 14:14 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 14:36 (nineteen years ago)
hmmm. i can sort-of help you here, but in a really weedy and half-assed way :)
- my copy of OMD is on vinyl and un-MP3d: sorry- i couldn't be arsed MP3ing "organisation" from vinyl so i bought it off iTMS, which - i think? - means the files won't work if i send you them. i can, however, burn you a CD of it. but is it worth the postage?- i have MP3s of "architecture and morality" and "dazzle ships" but they're made from the vinyl. now, while i have grown to love all the pops and crackles over the years, you might think, fuck that, i'd rather have a CD rip (or, in the case of A&M, the remaster).
anyway. like i say: e-mail if you so desire.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 15:10 (nineteen years ago)
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 15:11 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 15:14 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 15:15 (nineteen years ago)
― rentboy (rentboy), Wednesday, 10 August 2005 15:56 (nineteen years ago)
― Ian Riese-Moraine: a casualty of social estrangement. (Eastern Mantra), Thursday, 11 August 2005 18:16 (nineteen years ago)
"I'd much rather be known as they guy who invented Atomic Kitten and wrote their number one, than the bloke who used to be in OMD"
WTF???
― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Tuesday, 29 November 2005 19:46 (nineteen years ago)
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 29 November 2005 20:12 (nineteen years ago)
But he didn't.
He said he'd rather BE KNOWN AS THE MAN WHO INVENTED ATOMIC KITTEN.
Who else would like to be able to say that?
― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Tuesday, 29 November 2005 20:17 (nineteen years ago)
only a few nutters hanging about a dying bulletin board care about OMD.
(nb i obv number myself in the latter)
― Britain's Obtusest Shepherd (Alan), Tuesday, 29 November 2005 22:40 (nineteen years ago)
― Dan (They Should) Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 29 November 2005 22:46 (nineteen years ago)
― Britain's Obtusest Shepherd (Alan), Tuesday, 29 November 2005 22:50 (nineteen years ago)
Possibly. I sometimes forget that I own Universal because it's so bland. "New Head" is the only song on it I have time for, and that song barely sounds like OMD. There's a stretch of like five songs in the middle that are all awful.
― Vinnie (vprabhu), Wednesday, 30 November 2005 14:41 (nineteen years ago)
er, au contraire. we're so behind the times we don't even seem to have noticed that the classic line-up is re-forming.
this was posted on the official site on, er, january 1.
As previously reported, 2006 could well be the OMD Renaissance year with the reformation of the band now officially announced. To recap, Andy McCluskey, Paul Humphreys, Mal Holmes and Martin Cooper will be returning as OMD with concerts and a new album on the way. Joining them for live shows will be Stuart Kershaw. Here's what's on the schedule: * OMD perform Architecture & Morality live * A brand new OMD album * Extensive European tour * Remastered Dazzle Ships album * OMD DVD * Unreleased material album
* OMD perform Architecture & Morality live * A brand new OMD album * Extensive European tour * Remastered Dazzle Ships album * OMD DVD * Unreleased material album
i'm not entirely sure about the band re-forming and the new album. this could all suck a mammoth amount of dick; although given that i think they started sullying the fine name of OMD the second "junk culture" was released, it's not as if i'm that bothered. that said, i like the idea of them performing A&M in its entirety ... and of course i'll be going to see them live, no matter what ;)
but woah, remastered "dazzle ships" at last. and a DVD. and unreleased stuff. get in.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Sunday, 12 March 2006 13:12 (nineteen years ago)
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 12 March 2006 13:48 (nineteen years ago)
So were they any good live?
― Mitya (mitya), Sunday, 12 March 2006 15:55 (nineteen years ago)
And that the band named after him took a similar powder.
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 12 March 2006 15:57 (nineteen years ago)
i saw the mclusky-and-hired-hands OMD on tour in 1991 - or whenever "sugar tax" came out - and they were, against all odds, quite wonderful. clips i've seen of the "proper" band suggest the same.
but i'm very wary of reformations. very wary.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Sunday, 12 March 2006 17:24 (nineteen years ago)
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Sunday, 12 March 2006 17:25 (nineteen years ago)
I would adore seeing them perform "A&M" from end to end. I had the live 81 video and wore it out because it was so good, and such primitive electronics too. Now, if they were to use all the original instruments too...
― Rob M (Rob M), Monday, 13 March 2006 10:58 (nineteen years ago)
The news was broken on Aja/Dante way back in January when McClusky announced all this. ILM IS THREE MONTHS BEHIND AJA/DANTE!!!
I haven't heard about a remastered version of Dazzle Ships. That excites me in several ways.
― ESTEBAN BUTTEZ~!!! (ESTEBAN BUTTEZ~!!!), Monday, 13 March 2006 11:28 (nineteen years ago)
― Rob M (Rob M), Monday, 13 March 2006 11:45 (nineteen years ago)
http://www.freakytrigger.co.uk/nylpm/2005_05_01_nylpm_archive.html#111576540197656225
kind of
― Britain's Obtusest Shepherd (Alan), Monday, 13 March 2006 14:00 (nineteen years ago)
― alext (alext), Monday, 13 March 2006 14:08 (nineteen years ago)
― Britain's Obtusest Shepherd (Alan), Monday, 13 March 2006 14:12 (nineteen years ago)
ILM IS THREE MONTHS BEHIND AJA/DANTE!!!
... fuck. rats' cocks.
[1] did you get my triptych e-mail? if not, let me know and i'll re-send.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Monday, 13 March 2006 15:13 (nineteen years ago)
― Britain's Obtusest Shepherd (Alan), Monday, 13 March 2006 15:17 (nineteen years ago)
Anyway, this is all good news, no matter the timeliness.
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 13 March 2006 15:18 (nineteen years ago)
[comment deleted on legal advice]
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Monday, 13 March 2006 15:26 (nineteen years ago)
The album, which featured the singles Genetic Engineering and Telegraph, will be digitally remastered and will feature bonus tracks, including the full-length version of 66 & Fading. The reissue will also feature some previously unreleased material in the shape of Swiss Radio International - a track that was dropped from the original release - and also a version of Telegraph recorded at The Manor during the Architecture & Morality sessions in 1981.Meanwhile, OMD will be back in the studio on August 7th for 1 week of rehearsals for the 2007 tour.Andy McCluskey is also to be interviewed for a forthcoming issue of magazine The Word.this is insanely good news. i cannot wait.sadly, the A&M gigs planned for the autumn have been put back to next year too. oh well. gives me more time to anticipate. and maybe see OMD twice in one year. the joy!― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 13 July 2006 08:44 (eighteen years ago)
Meanwhile, OMD will be back in the studio on August 7th for 1 week of rehearsals for the 2007 tour.
Andy McCluskey is also to be interviewed for a forthcoming issue of magazine The Word.
this is insanely good news. i cannot wait.
sadly, the A&M gigs planned for the autumn have been put back to next year too. oh well. gives me more time to anticipate. and maybe see OMD twice in one year. the joy!
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 13 July 2006 08:44 (eighteen years ago)
that's better.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 13 July 2006 08:45 (eighteen years ago)
the DVD re-release of A&M sounds good too. but i still want me that remastered "dazzle ships", yo.
here endeth the newsflash.
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 24 August 2006 21:07 (eighteen years ago)
"Organisation" and "Architecture And Morality" were ace though, and the more straight pop oriented stuff they did later in the 80s is better than its reputation.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 24 August 2006 21:16 (eighteen years ago)
That's for damn sure.
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 24 August 2006 21:21 (eighteen years ago)
now, geir. we've done this. at length. you're wrong and i'm right, remember?
and the more straight pop oriented stuff they did later in the 80s is better than its reputation
yes, absolutely. in fact, at some point i might even go back and re-investigate "junk culture".
then again ...
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 24 August 2006 21:25 (eighteen years ago)
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 24 August 2006 21:27 (eighteen years ago)
― grimly fiendish (grimlord), Thursday, 24 August 2006 21:49 (eighteen years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 24 August 2006 22:37 (eighteen years ago)
Has this already been covered?
"Work on the forthcoming OMD album The History Of Modern continues and a provisional release date is under consideration.
Paul Humphreys has been working on the new OMD album recently and mixing work is also on the schedule. Meanwhile, Andy McCluskey is meeting with Peter Saville this week to discuss sleeve design concepts. The band are also receiving a lot of requests for licensing offers from around the world and it looks likely that a lot of deals are going to be made over the next few months.
The record label that will be issuing the album is 100% Records, who have previously worked with Moby, Placebo and The Temper Trap.
The provisional release date for The History Of Modern is scheduled for late August/early September."
― keythhtyek, Sunday, 4 April 2010 18:28 (fifteen years ago)
Heard a track on some podcast recently and it sounded a little like Souvenir. Looking forward to this.
― You Weaked It! (MaresNest), Sunday, 4 April 2010 19:32 (fifteen years ago)
Souvenir = my favorite OMD track, no contest. Cautiously optimistic...
― Olivier Messiaen Control (Paul in Santa Cruz), Sunday, 4 April 2010 21:43 (fifteen years ago)
The Peter Saville thing is interesting, because it sounds like they might do something that sounds like their earlier stuff again. Also, good to hear Humphreys being back again, he didn't participate on those mostly below par 90s albums McCluskey made all alone.
― Tied Up In Geir (Geir Hongro), Sunday, 4 April 2010 21:51 (fifteen years ago)
New album forthcoming, new interview in the Quietus, GREAT quote from McCluskey that Tom Ewing flagged on Tumblr:
We looked at how we had constructed some of our more unusual songs, and a lot of them were made from concrete music, found sounds, and we looked at what we had explored in the past and we were trying not to repeat ourselves, and, well, we’ve done trains; we’ve done machinery. And then I actually said to myself “I realise now that everything that we’ve sampled from the real world – trains, machines, computers, guns, typewriters – they were actually accidental”. The audio that we had sampled was a waste product from the specific design function of whatever it was that we had recorded. Let me clarify that: a typewriter is designed to type things onto a page, not make a clicking noise when you hit the key. A steam engine is not designed to go ‘chuff chuff’. That’s an audio waste product of the inefficiency of its engine. And as the world has modernised, the accidental audio by-products, waste products, of the things that have become concrete music are going to be less and less because the designers have designed out the waste so that the machinery of the modern world has actually become more silent.
― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 5 February 2013 15:30 (twelve years ago)
Read this earlier on this morning... having heard two (and a half!) snippets from the album now, I'm getting very very excited for this one!
― The Jupiter 8 (Turrican), Tuesday, 5 February 2013 15:41 (twelve years ago)
This is closer to the "Dazzle Ships" end of town, right?
― Mark G, Tuesday, 5 February 2013 16:38 (twelve years ago)
I think we should start another OMD S&D thread.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 5 February 2013 16:39 (twelve years ago)
BLimey, it's all happening in music-world, innit?
mbv,OMD,ILX do Bowie...
― Mark G, Tuesday, 5 February 2013 16:41 (twelve years ago)
― Mark G, Tuesday, February 5, 2013 4:38 PM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
The two and a half tracks they've previewed so far would suggest so, yeah.
― The Jupiter 8 (Turrican), Tuesday, 5 February 2013 16:43 (twelve years ago)
New album soon! First track from same:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PO_RkGju6M
Meantime they're playing LA and SF at the end of July -- and nowhere else (at least, so far). But that's lucky for me! Already got my ticket for SF. This'll be the first time I've ever seen them, so I'm quite glad.
― Ned Raggett, Monday, 15 May 2017 20:14 (eight years ago)
Predictably, I really love this... sounds like they're moving even further in the direction they went with English Electric, which of course I wholeheartedly welcome.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Monday, 15 May 2017 22:19 (eight years ago)
Heard a clip from another track on BBC radio, it sounded pretty good to me!
― MaresNest, Tuesday, 16 May 2017 10:31 (eight years ago)
So Malcolm Holmes ultimately retired?
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 16 May 2017 11:32 (eight years ago)
Word has it is he is still making contributions to the new record, but Stuart Kershaw has taken over the drum stool for live performances.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Tuesday, 16 May 2017 19:03 (eight years ago)
looking forward to this, I've never seen them and I really like the last two records
― akm, Wednesday, 17 May 2017 02:01 (eight years ago)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUDQeREbJgc
― Foghat digs holes in space (MaresNest), Monday, 29 May 2017 14:14 (eight years ago)
Not really feeling this as much as "Metroland". All of this modern OMD stuff feels a bit cynical to me even if I still enjoy some of it. "You guys like 'Dazzle Ships'? HERE YOU GO!"
― yesca, Monday, 29 May 2017 16:30 (eight years ago)
maybe but I'm perfectly happy a band is aping itself at it's best work.
― akm, Monday, 29 May 2017 16:41 (eight years ago)
Yeah this song is pretty fantastic, if Wire can revisit earlier albums why shouldn't OMD? If the results are this good.
― erry red flag (f. hazel), Monday, 29 May 2017 18:11 (eight years ago)
I don't think this track sounds anything like Dazzle Ships, to me it sounds very much a continuation of the last couple of LP's rather than OMD circa 1983. I think the recent stuff (History of Modern onwards) has a sonic quality which distinguishes it from the earlier albums. Sure, there's a Kraftwerk influence there but that shouldn't be very surprising.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Monday, 29 May 2017 23:33 (eight years ago)
As for the track - I like it, but it sounds to me like it'll work best in the context of the album.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Monday, 29 May 2017 23:36 (eight years ago)
The themes, instrumentation, emphasis on isolated samples and vocoders - this is all the pure spirit of Dazzle Ships even if the production is updated for 2017. At best the last couple of albums are a genuine return to the spirit of early 80's OMD vs. say, "If You Leave".
― yesca, Tuesday, 30 May 2017 03:24 (eight years ago)
The first half of that track is really just straight-up Kraftwerk, circa Autobahn/Radioactivity. If you stripped down the production a bit, it could practically pass for an outtake from one of those albums.
― Zelda Zonk, Tuesday, 30 May 2017 04:20 (eight years ago)
I don't hear any detuned guitars, toy pianos, shortwave radios or acoustic instruments treated in unusual ways on this. Dazzle Ships is a record that couldn't possibly be made again. Thematically, it just strikes me as being business-as-usual OMD. 'If You Leave' was never one of their defining tracks.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Tuesday, 30 May 2017 08:38 (eight years ago)
Isotope is great, sounds like OMD. The military one ... that sounded like something from Dazzle Ships.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 30 May 2017 11:30 (eight years ago)
Military themes have been part of OMD's music since 'Bunker Soldiers', the first track off the first LP.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Tuesday, 30 May 2017 20:18 (eight years ago)
probably an unpopular opinion but "Save Me" (bonus track on History of Modern) is amazing. probably my whole track on the entire disc. idk man I'm just a sucker for a great intro
― frogbs, Friday, 1 September 2017 13:41 (seven years ago)
oh, and they've got a new album out today
And it's good!
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 1 September 2017 15:26 (seven years ago)
Incredibly, I haven't had the opportunity to hear it yet but from what I've heard it's going to be as good as the last one, which was great.
― more Allegro-like (Turrican), Friday, 1 September 2017 15:35 (seven years ago)
New Numan in a fortnight too!
― more Allegro-like (Turrican), Friday, 1 September 2017 15:52 (seven years ago)
So yeah, I'm on my third listen to The Punishment of Luxury now, and my general feeling is like it's essentially a sort of English Electric part II but with a few surprises thrown in there ('As We Open, So We Close' in particular... fuck!) ... however, it's also a much less immediate record than English Electric. Still, I don't get any feeling that they sleepwalked their way through the making of this record - I can hear a band very much still trying to do something different (for them, at least) and a couple of the tracks here suggest that there's still new territory for them to mine and new directions for them to follow should they want to follow them.
One thing is for sure, they're not going to be able to get away with releasing another album in this mould for their next one - that's if there is a next one. If they continue, though, I'd personally like to see them make a different kind of record - start incorporating more acoustic percussion back into their sound or instruments not commonly heard on an OMD record.
Oh, and 'Robot Man' really has no place on this LP.
― more Allegro-like (Turrican), Saturday, 2 September 2017 07:18 (seven years ago)
The last two tracks on the album - 'Ghost Star' and 'The View From Here' - are my two big favourites from this one.
― more Allegro-like (Turrican), Saturday, 2 September 2017 07:28 (seven years ago)
It seems to have divided the fanbase straight down the middle, this one - which delights me a lot!
― more Allegro-like (Turrican), Saturday, 2 September 2017 08:02 (seven years ago)
A couple of weeks down the line and, if I'm to be honest with myself, this latest album hasn't connected with me anywhere near as much as the previous two - it still very much has its highlights, and I applaud them for trying to branch out here and there, but the end result comes across to me as English Electric part two, but the material is mostly nowhere near as good. If there is a next album, I'd like them to open up their sound palette a little more, get rid of the computerised voices, dial down the heavy Kraftwerk worship (which sounds less refreshing on this album) and focus a little more on the songwriting before they get stuck in some sort of creative rut.
English Electric was far more refreshing to my ears than Delta Machine, but this year with so many "classic" synth acts coming back with new albums, I think Depeche Mode's Spirit and Alison Moyet's Other are superior.
I'd rank The Punishment of Luxury far ahead of Erasure's rather morose and tune-free effort this year (World be Gone) - I haven't spend enough time with the new Numan yet, or the Fader album, and haven't yet heard the new Blancmange.
― more Allegro-like (Turrican), Sunday, 24 September 2017 16:16 (seven years ago)
just gave it a spin. lol @ me for getting all excited about a new OMD album and then forgetting about it. I think it's pretty good - kind of had the same feeling as listening to English Electric for the first time. I like that they're trying new things - "Robot Man" and "Art Eats Art" both made me smile. First two & last two tracks are great.
― frogbs, Friday, 23 February 2018 17:51 (seven years ago)
i'm obsessed with Architecture & Morality at the moment. "She's Leaving" has one of those classic chord progressions that is made vital and eternal here. Outro drumming on "Joan of Arc" is massive, tho I'm always a sucker for military style beats. The record comes out of the gate with the fraught paranoia of "The New Stone Age" but the uncertainty continues throughout the arrangements on the rest of the record. Finely balanced between experimental soundscapes and perfect pop songs, this is one of the finest records I've heard.
Surely this album must have influenced a lot of acts, I can hear its DNA in MGMT's new one and Kuedo's first LP.
― kolakube (Ross), Thursday, 15 March 2018 14:43 (seven years ago)
Seeing them tomorrow, been a few years.
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 15 March 2018 19:37 (seven years ago)
enjoy the show Josh, and report back if ya feel like it
― kolakube (Ross), Friday, 16 March 2018 02:01 (seven years ago)
Seeing them Sunday, first time!
― geoffreyess, Friday, 16 March 2018 02:05 (seven years ago)
I know I'm late to the party, but I've always wanted to big them up for "Messages". Specifically the verse that (referring to the titular messages) contains "... I'd write and tell you that I burned them all. But you never sent me your address." (beat) "And I kept them anyway."Love that. And the way the single version comes in with a rush, establishes the synth arpeg. and that runs all the way through. Great stuff that seems to get overshadowed by "Electricity" from their early tracks.
― Maltrsnapper, Friday, 16 March 2018 11:17 (seven years ago)
Love Messages, especially the two manual basslines, one of which is pretty dissonant and curious at times.
― MaresNest, Friday, 16 March 2018 11:40 (seven years ago)
any recommendations on a good album to go with after hearing architecture? i tried dazzle, but that ABC 123 song threw me off
― kolakube (Ross), Friday, 16 March 2018 14:05 (seven years ago)
robot man robot man robot man
doing math just as fast as he can
― frogbs, Friday, 16 March 2018 14:06 (seven years ago)
XP - Organisation then the debut, then try Dazzle Ships again.
― MaresNest, Friday, 16 March 2018 14:11 (seven years ago)
Thanks!
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Saturday, 17 March 2018 00:36 (seven years ago)
exactly my recommendation as well.
organisation and architecture are natural companion albums and i can't imagine liking one without liking the other. debut has some absolute gems, and then after that dazzle ships is like a bonus wonderful LP that makes much more sense once you understand what they were departing from
― Karl Malone, Saturday, 17 March 2018 00:41 (seven years ago)
otm. "electricity" is a catchy as hell but whenever i listen to "messages" it's just as thrilling as the first time i heard it
― Karl Malone, Saturday, 17 March 2018 00:59 (seven years ago)
This is good timing because I was wondering if I should give Junk Culture a try. I hated Locomotion bitd but I don't know any other songs from that album. I'm a huge fan of their first 4 albums. I saw them live in LA a few years ago and it was awesome.
― Colonel Poo, Saturday, 17 March 2018 01:05 (seven years ago)
Junk Culture is decent. Still a huge step down after the first four albums.
― he doesn't need to be racist about it though. (Austin), Saturday, 17 March 2018 04:18 (seven years ago)
They were great tonight. Can't believe that last show I saw was 5 years ago. Andy is such a fun frontman, and everyone was having such a great time, band and audience alike. What a strong catalog this group has.
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 17 March 2018 04:20 (seven years ago)
Organisation is the one that I've been listening to the most recently.
Junk Culture isn't a step down from the work before it - it's just different. Partly because technology had moved on.
(This idea that they lost their "experimental" side completely after Dazzle Ships is a bit of a myth, really)
I've decided that I don't actually like their most recent album all that much.
― Full of bile and Blue Nile denial (Turrican), Saturday, 17 March 2018 10:05 (seven years ago)
Also, Dazzle Ships wasn't really that much of a departure for those who were listening closely, anyway. If anything, it was a return to the type of material they were doing very early on in '78.
― Full of bile and Blue Nile denial (Turrican), Saturday, 17 March 2018 10:10 (seven years ago)
Junk Culture isn't a step down from the work before it - it's just different.
"Different" in the sense that it's not as good.
― he doesn't need to be racist about it though. (Austin), Saturday, 17 March 2018 18:36 (seven years ago)
It has some clangers, 'Apollo' is terrrrrible, I listened to it again recently and was thinking that they intersect with Lowlife/Brotherhood-era New Order here and there 'Hard Day' for instance, then I realised that they got there a year or so earlier.
― MaresNest, Saturday, 17 March 2018 18:47 (seven years ago)
What is so good about Dazzle Ships imo isn't the musique concrete stuff-- which is fine-- but the unhingedness of the performances? imo? I'm thrilled every time Andy just goes for it on "International", and the sound of the tom + out-of-tune guitar being mangled on "Of All The Things We've Made", those moments convey the-frustration-with-the-very-nature-of-the-process-and-a-lack-of-care-as-to-what-people-think better than any moment on, say, Big Star's Third
― nevertheless, he stopped (flamboyant goon tie included), Saturday, 17 March 2018 19:37 (seven years ago)
For me, Andy's voice is key to the whole first four album's deal, seems obvious to say, but there is so much warmth and humanity in it, quite different to bleepy, purposefully robotic Gary Numan/John Foxx, the slate grey crooning of Ian Curtis or nagging post-punkers like Howard Devoto.
Not technically the greatest singer and a bit mannered and honky in places perhaps, but his vocal melodies really elevate the rest of the music even in it's weaker moments.
it's that and Humphries ability to write a memorable top line that enabled them to have one foot in Smash Hits and another indulging their Radioactivity era Kraftwerk studio fantasies.
― MaresNest, Saturday, 17 March 2018 20:31 (seven years ago)
What I love about Junk Culture is that they never made an album quite like it again - it's this strange mix of music which, yes, brings to mind New Order (in the sense that they were pretty much using similar equipment) but far more polished than anything New Order did prior to 1989. This is then blended with horn sections and steel drums inspired by their surroundings during recording in Montserrat, and their own experimental impluses which can not only be still heard on the album itself but on the free single that came with the original album on the B-sides - most notably 'The Avenue' ...
... anyway, Austin is wrong.
― Full of bile and Blue Nile denial (Turrican), Sunday, 18 March 2018 00:55 (seven years ago)
Andy's voice is key to OMD full stop, not just the first four albums.
― Full of bile and Blue Nile denial (Turrican), Sunday, 18 March 2018 00:56 (seven years ago)
What a coincidence -- I just wrote about them!
― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 18 March 2018 01:01 (seven years ago)
come around to dazzle ships in a big way, my current fav. the 2008 remaster of architecture and morality sounds great too, beefed up drums and bass
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 19:58 (seven years ago)
Great! Did you go back and try out the first two?
― MaresNest, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 20:51 (seven years ago)
I've heard organisation which is great bhr not familiar with self titled yet. Junk culture hasn't fully grown on me yet tho
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 20:55 (seven years ago)
I would hit up Crush before Junk Culture perhaps.
― MaresNest, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 20:59 (seven years ago)
okay thanks MaresNest, how do their later albums fare?
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:07 (seven years ago)
I love 'Dazzle Ships' a lot (though 'A&M' will always be my #1), but does anyone else find it slightly weird that its two best tracks--"Romance of the Telescope" and "Of All The Things We've Made"--were repurposed b-sides? I mean kudos to them not letting them languish as raritied, but it kind of cuts down the sense of 'DS' as some kind of coherent visionary statement album.
― Soundslike, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:13 (seven years ago)
Silent running tho !
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:17 (seven years ago)
Well lets say two *of* its best, then : )
― Soundslike, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:21 (seven years ago)
Good point tho sounds like :) those are fantastic songs
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:28 (seven years ago)
I've read that DS was started before they were really quite ready to make a record, hence the greater leaning toward experimentation and the repurposing of B-Sides, Radio Waves was an older, pre-OMD track iirc.
― MaresNest, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:36 (seven years ago)
Junk Culture is great! Sometimes I dig it more than the first four. "White Trash" is such a cool track.
Crush is good, a bit of a step down IMO but it has some excellent tunes - "Bloc Bloc Bloc", "88 Seconds in Greensboro", and "Women III" are all real catchy and just gimmicky enough, if you know what I mean. Loses some steam on Side 2 but overall pretty decent.
Pacific Age on the other hand kinda shows them slipping. I like "Forever Live and Die" and I recall "Goddess of Love" being good but I can't recall how that one goes anymore. I believe this one was made in the wake of the success of "If You Leave" which is not a good thing. It also isn't really recognizable as an OMD record.
Sugar Tax though is a highlight. I think most people would agree it's their best from 1985 until, I dunno, English Electric perhaps. I've heard this was more or less a McClusky solo effort but it's definitely got the OMD sound to it.
The next two, Liberator and Universal, get maligned an awful lot. Liberator because it jumps full on into its 90s dance rhythms, sounding often like a garbage "OMD...In The Mix!" style album. Universal because it's just blah, boring cover, unmemorable tunes, though some of it is very very good, for example "Very Close to Far Away". I'd skip both of these.
As for their comeback albums - this era from 2010 on where they hop on the vintage synths and try to sound like their old selves, is very much a hit for me, since they really do nail that old sound. History of Modern is a pretty cool record, a bit of a grab bag perhaps (featuring a couple songs clearly intended for other artists), but it's mostly good. The "Europe Endless" aping closer "The Right Side?" is one of my very favorite OMD tracks. English Electric is even better, a very modern-sounding take on the Kraftwerk sound, I think if you dig classic OMD then you'll like this one very much. It sounds like what the follow-up to Dazzle Ships ought to have been. As for their latest (Punishment of Luxury), I actually think it's more fun overall, though it doesn't quite have the replay value of EE. But it's very good.
Anyway, those are all my opinions on OMD at the moment
― frogbs, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:43 (seven years ago)
Good post frogbs!!
― nevertheless, he stopped (flamboyant goon tie included), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 21:55 (seven years ago)
Nice one frogbs, I love the second side of Crush though, man 'Native Daughters...', OMD does Kashmir!
― MaresNest, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 22:06 (seven years ago)
Nice post frogbs _ very thorough
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 23:12 (seven years ago)
I listen to Crush as much as the formative albums. I never listen to Pacific Age or Sugar Tax. B Sides collection, whatever they call it, is excellent as well.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 27 March 2018 23:32 (seven years ago)
I first heard OMD in a synthpop band I was in as a teen (Enola gay). No idea why it took me to 34 years old to get into this amazing band
― tinnitus the night (Ross), Tuesday, 27 March 2018 23:33 (seven years ago)
Sugar Tax is def. the best album to be put out under the OMD name between Junk Culture and English Electric. Although I love the highlights of Crush and The Pacific Age. History of Modern is good, but a couple of tracks too long. I never listen to Liberator or Universal beyond a couple of tracks fron each.
― Full of bile and Blue Nile denial (Turrican), Wednesday, 28 March 2018 06:13 (seven years ago)
good lord they were great tonight in L.A.
McCluskey is a great frontman, he reminds me of Karl Hyde a bit in terms of ageless and endless energy. And it's insane how his voice remains virtually unchanged as far as I can tell. I didn't catch any compensating for lost range or taking it easy in certain sections of early era songs. I had suspected as much from his vocals on the recent albums but the live show confirms it. Brilliant.
― omar little, Friday, 30 March 2018 06:54 (seven years ago)
yeah I saw them for the first time on the English Electric tour and ^that's totally otm
― willem, Friday, 30 March 2018 09:13 (seven years ago)
saw them again last night as part of a bill w/the B-52s and Berlin and while the other two were respectively great and good, these guys are absolutely incredible. On another level live. They are also one of the few legacy bands who can drop in a new song or two mixed in with the old hits and have it sound on par. I do think due to the relatively shorter set vs the last time i saw them, the only newish one they played was History of Modern Pt 1, which is superb and one of the better "everything you know will be gone someday" songs. i.e. "mono no aware-core"?
i guess from their albums i always thought maybe they'd be a bit more low-key performers, maybe even more serious, but they're just good-humored, fun rock stars. The crowd was i think mostly there for the B-52s but you could tell they were completely won over by OMD.
― omar little, Monday, 5 August 2019 18:44 (five years ago)
A new/old thing, with unreleased bits.
OMD - Souvenir - (5xCD/2xDVD Super Deluxe Boxset)
Please note this boxset does not include the Electricity 7" Single - that will be back on pre-order soon.Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (OMD) continue their 40th anniversary celebrations with the launch of a career boxset and brand new greatest hits collection. The special box set will comprise 5xCDs and 2xDVDs housed in a 10” box set, together with a hardback book, poster and a series of 10” prints.The audio discs include all the band’s singles from ‘Electricity’ to ‘What Have We Done’, as well as a brand new single ‘Don’t Go’, exclusive to this release. The box set also includes a previously unreleased live show from the Hammersmith Odeon in 1983, 22 previously unreleased demos from the archive which have been selected and mixed by Paul Humphreys, rare and unreleased live material from the BBC and an entire live show from the Mermaid Theatre in 2011.One of the DVDs contains BBC TV performances from Top Of The Pops, Old Grey Whistle Test, Later With Jools Holland and more. The other contains a live show from Sheffield City Hall in 1985, another live show from the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1981, as well as Crush – The Movie.The book contains unseen photos, single sleeve artwork, an introduction by Paul Morley and sleeve notes to accompany the archive material by Andy McCluskey.This announcement comes as part of another exciting installment of the band’s anniversary celebrations which first saw the reissue of their first four classic albums on 180g vinyl, mastered at half speed by Miles Showell at Abbey Road and housed in their original iconic die cut sleeves designed by the legendary Peter Saville, followed by the huge world tour. The band, Andy McCluskey, Paul Humphreys, Martin Cooper and Stuart Kershaw will be starting in October in Portugal, stretching through to February 2020 finishing in Paris. To coincide with the band’s Liverpool show, there will be upcoming exhibitions happening at the British Music Experience and Museum Of Liverpool to celebrate the band’s impressive legacy."OMD - Souvenir", is out Friday, 4th October 2019 on UMC/Virgin and available for pre-order now.NB: All products ordered with a pre-order will be dispatched together close to the latest pre-order release date. If you want earlier dispatched for another product then please place separate order(s).Disc 1 - The Singles 1979 - 1987ElectricityRed Frame/White LightMessagesEnola GaySouvenirJoan of ArcMaid of OrleansGenetic EngineeringTelegraphLocomotionTalking Loud and ClearTesla GirlsNever Turn AwaySo in LoveSecretLa Femme AccidentIf You Leave(Forever) Live and DieWe Love YouShameDisc 2 - The Singles 1988 - 2019DreamingSailing on the Seven SeasPandora's Box (It's a Long, Long Way)Then You Turn AwayCall My NameStand Above MeDream of MeEverydayWalking on the Milky WayUniversalIf You Want ItSister Marie SaysHistory of Modern (part 1)MetrolandDresdenNight CaféIsotypeThe Punishment Of LuxuryWhat Have We DoneDon't GoDisc 3 - Unreleased Archive Vol I.Brand New Science (06.1981)Dumbomb (01.1986)Violin Piece (09.1982)Untitled 2 (06.1981)Cut Me Down (03.1986)Radio Swiss International (09.1982)Untitled 3 (09.1982)Weekend (04.1985)Organ Ditty (05.1980)Unreleased Idea (06.1981)Cajun Moon (05.1986)Guitar Thrash (09.1982)SMPTE (12.1982)American Venus (04.1990)Liberator (02.1985)Ambient 1 (04.1980)Unused 1 (12.1980)Flamenco (04.1990)Andy’s Song (04.1985)Dynamo Children (01.1985)Flutey (03.1984)Nice Ending (06.1981)Disc 4 - Live at the Mermaid Theatre, London (03/02/2011)MessagesTesla GirlsNew Babies New ToysHistory of Modern (Part 1)(Forever) Live and DieSouvenirJoan of ArcMaid of OrleansNew Holy GroundGreenWalking on the Milky WaySister Marie SaysLocomotionSailing on the Seven SeasEnola GayElectricityDisc 5 - Live at the Hammersmith Odeon (10/05/1983)Dazzle Ships - Parts II,III & VIIABC Auto IndustryMessagesShe’s LeavingGeorgiaAlmostJulia’s SongJoan of ArcMaid of OrleansStatuesThe Romance of the TelescopeSouvenirTelegraphRadio WavesBunker SoldiersEnola GaySilent RunningElectricityPretending to See the FutureStanlowDVD1 - BBC TV PerformancesMessages (The Old Grey Whistle Test 15/04/1980)Messages (Top Of The Pops 08/05/1980)Messages (Top Of The Pops 29/05/1980)Enola Gay (Top Of The Pops 09/10/1980)Souvenir (Top Of The Pops 03/09/1981)Joan of Arc (Top Of The Pops 29/10/1981)Maid Of Orleans (Top Of The Pops 14/01/1982)Genetic Engineering (Top Of The Pops 03/03/1983)Locomotion (Top Of The Pops 19/04/1984)Locomotion (Top Of The Pops 03/05/1984)Talking Loud and Clear (Top Of The Pops 05/07/1984)Tesla Girls (Top Of The Pops 13/09/1984)So in Love (Top Of The Pops 30/05/1985)La Femme Accident (The Old Grey Whistle Test 22/10/1985)(Forever) Live and Die (Top Of The Pops 18/09/1986)Dreaming (Wogan 27/06/1988)Sailing on the Seven Seas (Top Of The Pops 02/05/1991)Pandora's Box (It's a Long, Long Way) (Top Of The Pops 11/07/1991)Pandora's Box (It's a Long, Long Way) (Top Of The Pops 25/07/1991)Call My Name (Pebble Mill 11/12/1991)Stand Above Me (Top Of The Pops 13/05/1993)Walking on the Milky Way (Top Of The Pops 16/08/1996)Enola Gay (Later With Jools Holland 31/05/2013)DVD2 - Live at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane (04/12/1981), Live at Sheffield City Hall (14/06/1985) and Crush - The MovieLive at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane (04/12/1981)AlmostMysterealityJoan Of ArcMotion and HeartMaid Of OrleansStatuesSouvenirNew Stone AgeEnola GayBunker SoldiersElectricityShe's LeavingJulia's SongStanlowLive at Sheffield City Hall (14/06/1985)The Romance Of The Telescope (intro)CrushMessagesSecretTesla GirlsWhite TrashTalking Loud and ClearMaid Of OrleansTelegraphEnola GayElectricityThe Romance Of The TelescopeCrush - The MovieBloc Bloc BlocThe Native Daughters Of The Golden WestSo In Love88 Seconds In GreensboroHold YouWomen IIICrushLa Femme AccidentSecretThe Lights Are Going OutFormat: 5xCD/2xDVD Super Deluxe BoxsetCatalog Number: 7732451Bar Code 0602577324512Label: UMC/VirginRelease Date: Friday, 4th October 2019
― MaresNest, Monday, 26 August 2019 13:09 (five years ago)
I like OMD but that is too much OMD for me.
― akm, Tuesday, 27 August 2019 12:48 (five years ago)
Maybe in list form, but listened to? I bet it's just right!
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 27 August 2019 13:20 (five years ago)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDDxpKJv8Qc
― Maresn3st, Thursday, 22 April 2021 18:27 (four years ago)
This is an odd beast, but kinda interesting - https://store.omd.uk.com/products/architecture-morality-singles-40th-anniversary-cd
I wonder why nothing from it ended up on the box set?
There's a very weird, faster, almost disco-y version of Souvenier and the demo of Georgia is really sweet, missing the radio clips and the sample from 'I Wish You Love' but really poppy and simple.
― Maresn3st, Friday, 15 October 2021 23:08 (three years ago)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5NDXBf1zGY
― MaresNest, Wednesday, 1 February 2023 18:32 (two years ago)
New album out today?
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 27 October 2023 18:44 (one year ago)
listening to it now and I'm surprised there's been no discussion of it on ILX so far. it's really good! reminds me of Electric by the Pet Shop Boys - sounds surprisingly youthful (has McClusky's voice changed at all the last 40+ years?) and modern, in fact most of these probably could be modern PSB tunes
― frogbs, Friday, 1 December 2023 14:31 (one year ago)
New Alex Ball
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgP-Qvxmhy4
― Maresn3st, Thursday, 19 June 2025 18:06 (one week ago)