Taking Sides: Gary Numan vs. Klaus Nomi

I nominate Nomi.
Nothing in particular aginst Numan, tho. Then again, I've done an hour-length radio special about Klaus, but haven't even considered doing one on Gary.

Apples and oranges to me, although they are both painted and obfuscated so much that they look similar.

numan looked rather nomi-esque on the berserker cover, that is true. but then again, nomi looked rather numan-esque in his famous SNL appearance w/ david bowie. so a tie?!?

But Numan's peak period ended right when Nomi's started... Granted, Nomi was very much doing great stuff with his NYC entourage in the underground while Numan was belting out his best stuff between 78 and 80...

It's really too bad there isn't (yet that have surfaced) any studio recordings of Nomi's live band circa the late 70s... THEN we can talk about some comparisons here.. but the stuff I heard and saw in Nomi Song was quite a different thing than Numan. Nomi was closer to the Residents than he was to "new wave" or "no wave" for that matter.. and he wasn't even THAT close to the Residents at all, even then.

I like Klaus Nomi and Simple Man, but they are both spotty at best.. although the hits on those albums are GRAND.. ("After The Fall" is just amazing amazing amazing) Whereas I think Numan had a pretty damn solid stride on Tubeway Army, Replica, The Pleasure Principle, and Telekon, and I can't begin the list all the great tracks on those four releases.

So, with all grand respect due to Nomi, I have to side with Numan here.

Again, it's not really a fair TS, given that Nomi died just three years after he finally started releasing records. Would Nomi have outdone Numan's post Telekon output i.e. lesser output? (sorry, Eisbär and Moley)

Also, if the late 70s NYC Nomi band had gotten together to release an album, this might have changed things.

(ok, pedantry, there's a song that was culled from their Madison, WI show that was put on the first album.. but it's a more ambient piece, and not really representative of the entire show at all.)

Nomi need to apologise, donut. I haven't heard his stuff. Where should I start?

well, there are just two albums.. just get them both. they're worth it, despite spottiness comment above.

Definitely Numan. I love Replicas through Warriors. The only Nomi song I can even think of that's great is "Total Eclipse." Didn't he do mostly covers anyway (though I realise they're greatly tansformed)?

Nomi is electro-futuristic covers then?

Well, Nomi only released two albums, both of which are good.

Numan released about two dozen albums, of which four are GRAND, and a few afterwards that are probably decent but I haven't heard, and the rest being a whole bunch of SUCK!, which I have heard in bits and recoiled from immediately (To be conservative, I'll allow Warriors to be the last non-sucky album in this case)

Would Nomi follow the same pattern eventually? Who knows?

ditto to what moley said, DB -- you like what you like, no need to apologize!

anyway, i liked klaus nomi's version of "the cold song."

Nomi, if only because his "Total Eclipse" kicks the living hell out anything Numan wrote (and I even actually like DOwn in Park, but no way).
Different species. Numan *tried* to be bizarre. Nomi WAS bizarre.

nomi for sure... and i am even a rather large numan fan, used to dress up like him when i was 8 in my mothers heels and make-up and my sunday suit... miming to "metal" but i digress, nomi is far more authentic in the bizarre zone than numan. plus that voice, you could never miss that voice! nomi didn't have as long to do material as numan and had a lot more barriers to overcome just to get a record out. i think the "cold song", even though it was not written by nomi, far surpasses anything numan ever did. no hate to numan, just for the record as he has a special place in my heart regardless. :)