James Ford

[jasonjohn]

I like Decide, but it was specific to the Brexit moment. I know it's pure Kitsch, but Wedding sits ok with me as an airy flourish at the end of a mostly sombre album.

[MikeyC]

Decide is, indeed, very special!!

And I enjoy Wedding in Berlin!

[jules]

James ford made a great work on the album. However i was a bit disappointed with the electronic parts, they never sounded so simple. Fortunately the strings are glorious.

I hope the next album will be a little bit more electro.

[Lleonard Pler]

I like Decide, but it was specific to the Brexit moment. I know it's pure Kitsch, but Wedding sits ok with me as an airy flourish at the end of a mostly sombre album.

So what? I'm with stupid, I get along and Integral were also political songs linked to very specific events or politicians, and yet they were included in the main albums and even released as singles. And I'd say Decide lyrics are more subtle than any of the other three.

Not including Decide in Hotspot was not a wise decision that made the album worse than it could have been. With Nonetheless they chose right, as no bside is as good as the album songs or they don't fit the sound at all.

[Danimal]

I think the song choice is 100% Neil and Chris. It’s their albums their songs, so it’s their choice. Personally I think they lean too far towards trying to make each album have a theme and songs about the same things.
This means some corkers (An open mind, Hit and Miss etc) and some stinkers (Electricity, Wedding in Berlin etc) get excluded or included.

The producer absolutely has a say in terms of the songs that make it onto the final tracklist and here’s a few examples:
-"Requiem in Denim and Leopardskin” was written for “Yes” but Brian Higgins didn’t like it so they didn’t record it for that album.
-PSB wanted to record “Call me old fashioned” for “Nightlife” but Rollo was horrified by it.
-It was Stuart Price who insisted “Wedding in Berlin” go on “Hotspot.” Though Chris wanted “Decide” specifically as a b-side imagine how much better “Hotspot” would have been if Price insisted it go on the album rather than “Wedding in Berlin.”

I wholeheartedly agree with your second point, PSB worries too much about having a through line, single vibe, or loose concept for their albums which has caused them over the years to exclude some of their strongest material: “Shameless”, “Miserablism”, “I didn’t get where I am today”, and “An open mind” to name a few.

[Spittingcat]

Strong material not being on albums is one of the reasons we love them. Secret huge tracks as bsides… gifts for the fans.

[Spittingcat]

Decide needs to be on CD at some point though.

Back to Ford… everyone has been asking for an album with lush strings for years… and he delivered. I’d like to hear a few of the songs stripped back to just strings and vocals actually.

Following Price was always going to mean the synths don’t hit as hard. And he was never going to match what Dawson gave us when it comes to vocals (both Neil’s and backing singers).

[TallThinMan]

I wholeheartedly agree with your second point, PSB worries too much about having a through line, single vibe, or loose concept for their albums which has caused them over the years to exclude some of their strongest material…

I disagree. By making an album they are making an artistic statement. There should be some kind of overarching theme that ties the songs or at least the majority of songs together. ‘Nonetheless’ is possibly their most cohesive album.

I suppose that’s quite an old-fashioned viewpoint in the age of Spotify.

[MikeyC]

I like Decide, but it was specific to the Brexit moment. I know it's pure Kitsch, but Wedding sits ok with me as an airy flourish at the end of a mostly sombre album.

So what? I'm with stupid, I get along and Integral were also political songs linked to very specific events or politicians, and yet they were included in the main albums and even released as singles. And I'd say Decide lyrics are more subtle than any of the other three.

Not including Decide in Hotspot was not a wise decision that made the album worse than it could have been. With Nonetheless they chose right, as no bside is as good as the album songs or they don't fit the sound at all.

Through you is absolutely as good as the album songs! x

[Ghost within this house]

On the Nonetheless B-Sides - I can definitely do without the 1984 rejects. The Dancing Star EP is, for me, streets ahead of the others, and If Jesus had a sister is one of my favourite songs of the era.

[jasonjohn]

So what? I'm with stupid, I get along and Integral were also political songs linked to very specific events or politicians, and yet they were included in the main albums and even released as singles. And I'd say Decide lyrics are more subtle than any of the other three.

They don't often release singles that a so instrumental-oriented? Axis maybe the closest? Sure Decide has some lyrics, but it's not a traditional pop track with a singer and lyrics at the forefront.

I guess my main point would be they timed the release of Decide to match Brexit. It was a pointed release. It was important to them, which is fine because I'm not the one writing or releasing this stuff - they are. But you're right, the lyrics are multi-purpose.

[vincenzosz]

Electric is the greatest PSB statement of the 21st century. It’s not even close.

I have been vocal since day one on how utterly disappointed in James Ford’s production.

The strings compared to Fundamental are meh.
The electronics compared to Electric are meh.

Even though it’s a different genre, compared to a similarly “warm”, “lush” and “fresh” album like Leon Bridge’s most recent album you can hear what minimalist production can be while still feeling warm, full and subtle. Add in some electronics and it’s much closer to the style of production those words evoke.

To sum up I agree wholeheartedly with Drico’s succinct statement.

[vincenzosz]

This is a very interesting subject and I’m glad it’s been brought up. I didn’t really know anything about James Ford’s production work prior to this. Being a synth/dance head I had no interest in Arctic Monkeys, Jessie Ware etc and I knew him mainly from Simian Mobile Disco and producing Depeche Mode’s Memento Mori which made me excited for Nonetheless, as MM was DM’s best album in years.

As jasonjohn has said – ‘it’s in the song’ and this is evident with DM as Ford produced Spirit which wasn’t one of their best… I guess the old phrase ‘you can’t polish a turd’ comes to mind.

Anyway, back to PSB. For me personally, I find Nonetheless way too over-produced - from the music to the vocals to the artwork. It’s all very polished and luxurious. I get they wanted a warm sounding album but parts of Nonetheless are verging on easy-listening – New London Boy, New Bohemia, The Secret Of Happiness – and after following PSB religiously for knocking on 37 years that is something I thought I’d never ever say.

For PSB to use the term 'fresh' is a bit of a puzzle as that is one word I wouldn't use to describe this album. 'Fresh' is Actually to Introspective to Behaviour. It's hard to believe the progression going on there in the space of just three years!

I was very underwhelmed when I first listened to the album but after hearing the instrumentals I think I realised what my problem with it is – the vocals. Whether or not I don’t get on with the production I’ve no idea but I appreciate the album more just for the music. Again, something I thought I’d never say when it comes to PSB.

A couple of examples - the spoken word intro to Dancing Star makes me want to skip the entire track before it’s even got going, which is a shame as it’s a great song. The “booooy” in New London Boy at 3:25. Oh my word. But that might be the key change as well. Either way, bang, skip.

Like people have said, the demos that are out in a few weeks will be very interesting. After Dog highlighted Neil’s comment about their initial concerns over James Ford’s production, you kind of feel that although they say they’re happy with it, maybe they’re not 100% and they want their originals to be out there. Could this be PSB’s ‘Let It Be’?

Also worth pointing out that I do agree the vocals on this album don’t help. Usually Neil has more a range of styles he sings in, and generally I prefer his mid to lower range. Or his “throaty” or “gravely” style. Birthday boy and Happy people come to mind.

On this album he mostly sings in very high pitch or shouty style, my two least favourite of his singing styles.

I apologize for my lack of knowledge of the proper terms.

All I know is it’s the producers job to be the third person to guide the boys in the best direction to get the most out of the songs they’ve written, and I strongly feel that - though it’s not a bust - these songs weren’t done the proper justice and could have done with a better creative direction.

[vincenzosz]

The demos are intriguing - as is the thought-process behind releasing them now at all. Are they trying to make some kind of oblique statement or simply fill product?

One thing I will say is I prefer the demo of A new bohemia to the album version. I find the Nonetheless version ponderous, but the demo has more vivacity, particularly in the celestial chorus which seems flat on the album.

Drico.

I agree. I have made an edit that combines both versions to add subtle strings to the background of the demo, and add in the nice flourish on the outro from the James Ford version.

[Lleonard Pler]

So now that we've heard the demos it's safe to say that James Ford enhanced and polished the final songs, but sacrificing the more electronic elements from the demos. Was it worth it?