A few geat contributions above.
Firstly, the release of Pop40 (and it's sales, or lack thereof) definatly bombed big time. Probably much more than Mute expected. Of course it was released because of PSB's deserved accolade. That's a no brainer. Skyhigh said
skyhigh wrote:they were trying to cash in on PSB's success but failed miserably
I totally agreed with that but then thought that maybe that's only half true. They definatly tried cashing in (it was a great opportunity, i suppose) but maybe they were successful in a way. If this Pop40 was released later in the year, it might not have made the top 75, they are struggling that much.
This isn't a dig but it's obvious Erasure are in a rut and it seems they can't get out of it. Apart from the die hards who cherish everything they do (nothing really wrong with that) most of their stuff gets worse with every release. Sales figures amongst the fanbase prove this. They have dwindled to a slow trickle and while these albums continue to perform poorly, their budget will obviously stay low (you just need to look at DM to see that success breeds success) and due to poor chart positions, no one realises they are still out there.
It's ok coming on here and ranting and raving about sales and charts don't matter. The thing is, they do matter. Otherwise you are sent into oblivion pretty quickly. Only Erasure loyal fanbase has kept their heads above water but even they are dissapearing fast (see the dreadful performance of Pop Deluxe)
I also don't buy this crap about people saying charts and sales don't matter. It would be a bigger banker than Kauto Star to suggest that if Erasure had another top ten album or single, they would obsess over it like flies around shit and why not?
Finally, you only need to look at Andy Bell's desperation for a bit of success. In a way, you have to feel for the guy because he's doing everything on his own, where it seems Vince couldn't care less. Vince is a family man, living thousands of miles away afterall, with a career that matches most, whereas Bell is just a singer, like thousands of other people. Bell is saying all the wrong things in the press, desperatly trying to get some sort of publicity and there is nothing wrong with that but he needs some help. Either they need a much better manager (but they have no budget) or he needs to get a grip and stop saying stupid things because he's coming across as jealous and bitter and i'm sure he's not that kind of person. He didn't seeem it anyway, when on t.v recently.
Erasure desperatly need a slice of luck from somewhere. They wont do reality t.v, so they probably need someone massive to cover one of their songs, probably for charity. Or a huge injection of cash from Mute to help them promote and also produce something worthwhile. Xenomania, maybe? However, can they afford that sort of gamble? It would be like playing Russian Roulette with both barrells loaded.
I know there is a lot of piss taking on here and i can only speak for myself but i do hope they can produce something like Wild! again.
Speaking of sales, do you think PSB will sell the same units as fellow Xeno-product Girls Aloud? Don't forget, the brunt of production costs comes from studio rental, not producer.
