When you stop liking the music as much

[Shopper]

I always remember this NME review of Nightlife, which makes the valid point that everyone who's great goes crap in the end:

https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-nme-1453-337858

Ouch..that was a bitchy review

but isn't this a syndrome that almost every band/solo act has faced, esp for a career spanning 3+ decades!! I think for me personally, Nightlife was the start of the albums being a little underwhelming for me and the only albums since then which I hooked me in its entirety was Disco 3, Yes (I think Xenomania influence worked well) and Electric. The rest of the albums contained a lot more filler than I expected. Hotspot is their weakest album for sure on their catalog.

While I am thrilled and privileged to get so much output from them, it's like they have truly been working nonstop in the past 2 decades (albums, films, ballets, theater etc etc), with some project or the other and I think, there is a over-familiarity about the output in terms of sound/production now. Also it seems like we surrounded by way too much music, entertainment on tap in general, esp through streaming etc, which is sorta overwhelming now. I agree that this year esp with covid, has made things a little bleak and uncertain to really feel happy and upbeat.

[billjermaine]

I've never understood the concept of a Pet Shop Boys fan who also likes Erasure. It's like a coffee lover who's happy to take decaf from time to time.

Are you liking them because you get bored in between PSB albums?

[TallThinMan]

I've never understood the concept of a Pet Shop Boys fan who also likes Erasure. It's like a coffee lover who's happy to take decaf from time to time.

Are you liking them because you get bored in between PSB albums?

That’s ridiculous. Erasure made some great records from the mid eighties to the early nineties.

[hotspotnot]

I've never understood the concept of a Pet Shop Boys fan who also likes Erasure. It's like a coffee lover who's happy to take decaf from time to time.

Are you liking them because you get bored in between PSB albums?

Classic trolling

[telys]

I've never understood the concept of a Pet Shop Boys fan who also likes Erasure. It's like a coffee lover who's happy to take decaf from time to time.

Are you liking them because you get bored in between PSB albums?

Classic trolling

Nope, no trolling. I find it incomprehensible as well this Erasure thing among PSB fans...

[hotspotnot]

I've never understood the concept of a Pet Shop Boys fan who also likes Erasure. It's like a coffee lover who's happy to take decaf from time to time.

Are you liking them because you get bored in between PSB albums?

Classic trolling

Nope, no trolling. I find it incomprehensible as well this Erasure thing among PSB fans...

I find it incomprehensible how anyone thinks there has to be a link between people's favourite bands. I love PSB more than any other music artist, but my other music loves bear very little relation to PSB.

I can't stand Erasure or New Order. Both of whom are often cited as bands that PSB fans might like, but I don't find it incomprehensible that many do.

[StevePSB]

Although to me it doesn't feel as long as it obviously has been, I've clearly been on the rollercoaster a long, long time.

I don't think PSB really put a foot wrong prior to and including 'Behaviour'. 'Behaviour' marked the peak for me. It was grown up electronic music and as I have said before, it's my all time favourite album of any artist.

I was very enthusiastic about 'Very' at release - I had 'super fan' blinkers on at the time, but I've cooled to it over the years. A bit too 'pop' (and possibly in parts 'cheese') for my tastes these days, but it had its moments.

I skip the first half of 'Bilingual' these days, ditto the second half of 'Nightlife', they are a mix of hit & miss for me.

'Release' didn't do much 'Pop' or 'Cheese' but had its moments. It was perhaps a little too far removed from the PSB we knew and loved. I like it, but don't love it.

'Fundamental' was a new high point. I enjoyed it for the greater part, with only two or three songs not quite living up to the rest.

'Yes' arrived at a very bad time in my life, which I suppose didn't help at all. It very nearly did for PSB & me. Far, far too lightweight and cheesy for my tastes, to the point of being embarassing. There's about two songs over the entirety of 'Yes, etc' I can listen to / like. The rest, well, I've listened to the album in full twice and have no desire to listen to it again.

'Elysium' was a bit of a yawn fest, but had a moment or two.

'Electric' - WOW! Loved it. What a great new peak on the rollercoaster! If only that standard could be held.

'Super' - not really. It's OK.

'Hotspot'? I actually have no idea. For the first time ever I had no desire to buy a PSB album. Did I miss much?


StevePSB

[Patrick Bateman]

Fans that have been around since the 1980s understandably have a special relationship with the earlier albums - it was their commercial peak, we were young, and yes, they probably were 'better' in a qualitative sense. But I love the fact that I can go on Spotify sometimes and just dip in and out of their catalogue, particularly as the further listening content is on there too. It really does make you appreciate how consistent they have been and that even albums that you consider inferior to their early stuff have classics on them or among the b-sides. A track like Leaving from Elysium is right up there with anything they recorded in the imperial era - it's everything that I love about them and could quite easily reside on Behaviour.

[StevePSB]

I did enjoy making FLAC files from all my albums and singles in the 6 months I had off work from April to September. It wasn't all knock out stuff (indeed, a small proportion is truly terrible), but it was a reminder of some of the brilliant B sides and some great mixes spanning their entire career that just didn't ordinarily get listened to. Now that nearly my entire PSB collection is converted to lossless digital files I have no excuse not to listen more regularly.


StevePSB

[stussyboy]

Obviously there’s no obligation to buy PSB releases but it’s somewhat ironic that even in the age of free music online, one of the few site admins has not even heard the latest album from the artist the site is dedicated to!

Steve - Hotspot is not one of my favourite albums but Willo the wisp, Hoping for a miracle, Decide and An open mind, are at least worth a listen

[Xakrij]

I, too, have yet to give a listen to any of the Hotspot era recordings
I guess I'm Hoping for a miracle after being somewhat disappointed by the first 2 trilogy releases
On a positive note, I'm sitting on a cache of new-to-me music...so if I get bored, curious, or drunk enough I just might press 'play'

[markrobertnolan]

Whereas, the psychological harm created by the utterly embarrassing “Wedding in Berlin” - a cultural scar for life, means I’m not even sure what I want any more..... some quiet? A real summing up of what it’s all about? Like Joan Crawford doing “The Trog” and Bette Davis doing “Wicked Stepmother.” Yes- that analogous. Thank goodness for the previous two albums.

[glennjridge]

you cant rank the albums properly until you've let them breathe for at least a couple years.

I find I am really enjoying their newer music, but.... their albums as of late have been more miss than hit. I used to like at least 5-7 songs on each new album....with each new album that has dropped to about loving 3 tracks, tolerate a couple and HATE the rest.

I find the album I hate the most isnt release....its "YES". like SUPER it just sounds cheap and thin. a couple bright spots ,"way it used to be" and king of rome" but otherwise, not good at all, IMO

[onzio]

Although to me it doesn't feel as long as it obviously has been, I've clearly been on the rollercoaster a long, long time.

I don't think PSB really put a foot wrong prior to and including 'Behaviour'. 'Behaviour' marked the peak for me. It was grown up electronic music and as I have said before, it's my all time favourite album of any artist.

I was very enthusiastic about 'Very' at release - I had 'super fan' blinkers on at the time, but I've cooled to it over the years. A bit too 'pop' (and possibly in parts 'cheese') for my tastes these days, but it had its moments.

I skip the first half of 'Bilingual' these days, ditto the second half of 'Nightlife', they are a mix of hit & miss for me.

'Release' didn't do much 'Pop' or 'Cheese' but had its moments. It was perhaps a little too far removed from the PSB we knew and loved. I like it, but don't love it.

'Fundamental' was a new high point. I enjoyed it for the greater part, with only two or three songs not quite living up to the rest.

'Yes' arrived at a very bad time in my life, which I suppose didn't help at all. It very nearly did for PSB & me. Far, far too lightweight and cheesy for my tastes, to the point of being embarassing. There's about two songs over the entirety of 'Yes, etc' I can listen to / like. The rest, well, I've listened to the album in full twice and have no desire to listen to it again.

'Elysium' was a bit of a yawn fest, but had a moment or two.

'Electric' - WOW! Loved it. What a great new peak on the rollercoaster! If only that standard could be held.

'Super' - not really. It's OK.

'Hotspot'? I actually have no idea. For the first time ever I had no desire to buy a PSB album. Did I miss much?


StevePSB

This is exactly the description of how I feel about my relation with PSB's music.
The only difference is that is Hotspot and not Yes that came in the worst time of my life, and I'm not sure I could listen to it anymore without falling into depression.

[ZiggyPSB]

The couple of years leading up to the release of Elysium was a pretty bad time in my life. Despite the somehwat downer nature of the album compared to Yes before, it played its part in helping me out of my funk.

I can't think of anything that PSB have done themselves that was so bad or came at a bad time of my life that turned me off them for a time.