Erasure: Tomorrow's World

[Patrick Bateman]

Good to see that the vigilantes are dealing with internet filth.

[Undertaker]

[james23_uk]

They should have titled this album "Holy Shìt"

[Patrick Bateman]

This makes Union Street seem like Pet Sounds.

[JSDOUVRES]

Sounds good enough to me. I don't get all this slagging off even if it is the norm for some nowadays.

[Syncratic]

Oh dear.

[james23_uk]

Sounds good enough to me. I don't get all this slagging off even if it is the norm for some nowadays.

You're mad. I love Erasure and although they've lost their way in recent years there's always been something decent on their albums. This is absolute and total guff.

[Syncratic]

It's not good enough. Plain and simple. And I can do better. If this is good enough for anyone then I'm sorry but they are sheltered. It sounds awful. Maybe there's one or two passable tracks when we hear the full length album in better quality but again Erasure have made the mistake of thinking that whimsy is still interesting. It never was. Who is this for? This is a serious question.

[Patrick Bateman]

I can see the point of Crackers International. They were imperial at the time and Stop! is a fantastic single; Christmas singles are the preserve of chart acts chasing that elusive Christmas number one (or at least they tended to be in the epoch before X-Factor). I still adore the joyous Christmas bells which come in on Stop! at 1:38.



Christmas albums on the other hand tend to be associated with kitsch. There are exceptions - Bob Dylan (see below) - but on the whole Andy singing Silent Night is the inevitable conclusion (and nadir) of Erasure's once-proud career. I mean, they were the second best 80s synthpop chart act and that's quite an accolade, but as with so much of their output after their prime, it's just plain embarrassing. When they did Abba-esque they got away with it simply because they were imperial (that's what you can do when you're having top ten hits for fun!) Now they just seem lost in a world of rubber-clad irrelevance. At least when PSB went kitsch (Nightlife/Closer to Heaven) they acknowledged their downfall in phantasmagoria and fright wigs. Erasure are actually taking Snow Globe, cover and all, seriously and that's the greatest tragedy.

[Syncratic]

Totally agree with that but I was referring to after Abba-esque. They coasted on goodwill with the likes of Man on the Moon and Because You're So Sweet and fairytale whimsy because of fantastic singles like Always, Breath of Life and Chorus. Their self-titled LP was fab overall but had a few whimsical moments. Then the fab moments became few and far between from Cowboy onwards. The rot set with Loveboat.

Crackers International was and still is fantastic. THAT Erasure wouldn't have made this LP. I would like to think they'd have been aware that the goodwill had deserted them years ago. THAT Erasure wouldn't have made Loveboat, OPS, Union Street or LATEOTW. Maybe the goodwill didn't extend to Mute. In those days, despite their imperial phase quality control would have kicked in from someone, somewhere to say, 'look lads, this crap won't sell anything'. Abba-esque was novelty, ever since Loveboat it's been frivolity. I was hoping that this album wouldn't be a kind of soundtrack to the bizarre Camp Christmas that aired in 1993. It seems that it is. Why?

[retrofuturist]

I like 80s Erasure, 90s Erasure and Nightbird.

Aside from that their output rates from sketchy to embarrassing...

My expectation of new Erasure material is low, and I just wait for the inevitable moment it reaches the bargain bin before forking over any cash.

Retro.

[Patrick Bateman]

The album will of course be available in standard CD and download versions (and both are available to preorder now) but there will also be a special limited-edition EIS box-set which will consist of three CDs packaged in a presentation box alongside a Christmas card (signed by both Vince and Andy!), a festive tree bauble, a desktop calendar, a set of 'Snow Globe' postcards and hopefully more items that we're working on at the moment, and which I will announce as soon as I am able! Here's the box-set tracklisting…

CD1 - Bells Of Love (Isabelle’s of Love) / Gaudete / Make It Wonderful / Sleep Quietly / Silent Night / Loving Man / The Christmas Song / Bleak Midwinter / Blood On The Snow / There’ll Be No Tomorrow / Midnight Clear / White Christmas / Silver Bells

CD2 - Gaudete (A Cappella Version) / Stop The Cavalry (Acoustic Version) / Silent Night (Instrumental Version) / She Won't Be Home (2013 Redux) / Make It Wonderful (Acoustic Version) / God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (2013 Redux) / White Christmas (Instrumental Version) / Yes Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus (spoken word piece)

CD3 - The Erasure Christmas Radio Show (Recorded Live Inside The Snow Globe)

The limited-edition Snow Globe Box Set will cost £39.50 and is only available by pre-order exclusively through Lexer Music's Official Erasure Shop, who have set up a special microsite for the release which you can see here. Happy ordering!

http://erasure4rum.com/forum/Blah.pl?m- ... 169/s-180/

http://www.erasuresnowglobe.com/

[Pet Shop Girl]

I am looking forward to the new album Snow Globe! And I have already preordered it. Patrick are you still going on that site that pughie created? I can't believe it!

[Disco.]

Preordered !

[Disco.]

The special limited edition box is selling like hot cakes, more than half of the 3,000 copies being made are already sold !