James Ford

[tottenhammattspurs]

This is a fairly complicated question. I think PSB loom large in the studio, and by midway through their career at least some producers didn’t seem to exert much, if any influence. “Bilingual” comes to mind in this regard, did the producers make any difference on this album? “Bilingual” sounds self-produced all the way through.

I remember reading in “Literally” way back after the release of “Very” their former mixer, Bob Kraushaar, commented that he was constantly pushing them to strip back their mixes and make them less dense.

For “Electric” the choice of Stuart Price seemed to have a noticeable impact, though Price also commented he was extremely assertive with them in the studio and often overruled their preferences. Just listen to the difference between the “Vocal” demo and the finished track. By “Super” the difference Price made was still tangible, but less pronounced. Then by “Hotspot”, at least to my ears, their creative chemistry seemed to have run its course and in my mind this is by far the least of the Price trilogy, similar to the place David Bowie’s “Lodger” occupies in his own Berlin trilogy. By this point it’s almost as if PSB had assimilated Price and have returned to their more-or-less usual sound. “Hotspot” really falls apart with the inclusion of the final three songs, which don’t suit the album at all and we know they had more appropriate material prepared at the time, which Price was fully aware of. “An open mind” and “Decide” would have worked much, much better than “Only the dark”, “Burning the heather”, and “Wedding in Berlin.” Price produced versions of “I will fall” or even “The lost room” would have fit as well.

When they announced James Ford as the producer of “Nonetheless” I was less than thrilled as I wasn’t a fan of Depeche Mode “Spirit”, which he also produced. Having said that, upon hearing the finished “Nonetheless” album it was a revelation. Ford did indeed simplify their sound and “Nonetheless” is a smooth listen. Over the years PSB albums have become increasingly harsh sounding, but in spite of the massive amounts of compression they use in the mastering process, “Nonetheless” is their most pleasant sounding album since perhaps “Behavior.” As Kraushaar suggested all those decades ago, the mixes are much less complicated than usual and the songs mostly benefit from it. It will be interesting to hear the difference between the “Nonetheless” demos and the finished album when they are released next month. I strongly suspect there will be a large contingent of fans who prefer the demos as they will likely sound more like the PSB we’ve grown accustomed to, with more going on sonically within the tracks.

Because PSB have been perfecting their craft for so long and are so expert at it, I think it takes a particularly strong, opinionated, and talented producer to truly have a significant impact on the final product.

I wonder if it was Price who disallowed An open mind” and “Decide” to make Hotspot = it would have made the album one of their absolute finest. All three of Only the dark”, “Burning the heather”, and “Wedding in Berlin.” would have made better b-sides. And open mind is easily strong enough to be a single

Only the dark = The best song on Hotspot,.

And I ADORE Burning The Heather.

[Pinhead44]

I wonder if it was Price who disallowed An open mind” and “Decide” to make Hotspot = it would have made the album one of their absolute finest. All three of Only the dark”, “Burning the heather”, and “Wedding in Berlin.” would have made better b-sides. And open mind is easily strong enough to be a single

Only the dark = The best song on Hotspot,.

And I ADORE Burning The Heather.

Burning the Heather is a stunning track. It just doesn't sit well on Hotspot.

Everthing I love about PSB sits on both sides of the 7" of BTH.

[Straight_Talker]

Only the dark = The best song on Hotspot,.

And I ADORE Burning The Heather.

Burning the Heather is a stunning track. It just doesn't sit well on Hotspot.

Everthing I love about PSB sits on both sides of the 7" of BTH.

I think I agree with this. Burning the Heather and Decide is like a PSB spectrum stretch, and I LOVE both tracks, dearly.

[jules]

Only the dark and Burning the heather are awesome. I like the mood of it, hotspot is a great album.

[leesmapman]

Trevor was last heard producing an album of cover versions.

And he did one before that too.

[offtopic]

Rick Astley covering Owner of a Lonely Heart was my WTF moment of the year. Then I discovered Robert Fripp covering Relax and Iggy Pop Slave to the Rhythm. But somehow it works though.

[/offtopic]

[vincenzosz]

Hey all, I made a few mixes that I thought I’d share. A mix of the album version of Feel and New London boy with the demo vocals on top (and the saxophone from the demo which sounds better than the album version for some reason).

I also made an edit of Nastasio’s remix of New London boy with the demo vocals, because it’s such a great mix of the song.

I am not anywhere close to a professional mixer and have little to no musical talent.

Anyways, I’ve posted on the Pet Shop Boys Community telegram thread.

[vincenzosz]

Neil’s vocals in these demos aren’t his best, but there is a more natural delivery, where as in the final song on Loneliness, Feel, Why am I dancing, Dancing star and A New Bohemia he is either singing in a higher register or the songs are being mixed to enhance this higher register. Either way it’s not working as well for me.

I’m very much hoping for a new producer next album.

Yes i agree and i think that the next time they should produce themselves or choose Pete Gleadall

I'd go for two producers for the same song. First production by Stuart Price and then a second one by Trevor Horn and his team.

Fantastic idea! That would be a dream!

[y3potential]

Hey all, I made a few mixes that I thought I’d share. A mix of the album version of Feel and New London boy with the demo vocals on top (and the saxophone from the demo which sounds better than the album version for some reason).

I also made an edit of Nastasio’s remix of New London boy with the demo vocals, because it’s such a great mix of the song.

I am not anywhere close to a professional mixer and have little to no musical talent.

Anyways, I’ve posted on the Pet Shop Boys Community telegram thread.

Where do I find that..??

[vincenzosz]

Hey all, I made a few mixes that I thought I’d share. A mix of the album version of Feel and New London boy with the demo vocals on top (and the saxophone from the demo which sounds better than the album version for some reason).

I also made an edit of Nastasio’s remix of New London boy with the demo vocals, because it’s such a great mix of the song.

I am not anywhere close to a professional mixer and have little to no musical talent.

Anyways, I’ve posted on the Pet Shop Boys Community telegram thread.

Where do I find that..??

Here is the invite link to the Pet Shop Boys Community Telegram: https://t.me/+g8OivRuowtdjOTg0

[dylanww73]

From James' insta the other day, wishing him all the best and a full and speedy recover:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DE68jYqNtyk ... dGxtdWY%3D

"I have some personal news to share.

I was feeling pretty rough in the run up to Christmas suspecting burnout but on Xmas eve things took a turn for the worse. 

I had a scary few weeks where I was very ill and they didn’t know what was wrong with me, but finally I got a diagnosis.

I have AML (Acute Leukemia) 
It’s a huge shock and while it’s very clear in my mind how serious this is, it is curable, and as of today I’m starting pretty aggressive chemo to treat it. 

I’m in Barts Hospital, who are world leaders in leukaemia treatments, and I’ve had excellent care from our wonderful NHS, both initially in Canterbury Hospital before being moved here to Barts just last week 

I’m very aware that it’s gonna be a bumpy road ahead but I’m confident, upbeat, and ready to fight and I hope to be out the other side of the initial treatment in 6-8 months time. 

Needless to say, I’ve had to clear my work diary which has meant putting on hold a lot of very exciting musical projects I was eager to get stuck into. Whilst this is a massive shame, I know they will go on to deliver great records with whoever takes the reins, and I wish them all the best. 

I am really looking forward to getting back into the studio in my own time so that I can once again work on the music that is dear to me.

I want to express the deepest possible gratitude to my family, friends and colleagues who have been so supportive at this difficult time, particularly my wife Sereen and all the NHS staff who’ve looked me so brilliantly.

Love to all,

James"

[le petit corbusier]

Damn. I hope he gets a full recovery soon.

[Tom Angel]

The craziest thing is that An open mind sounds not only album material, but as SINGLE material. It's contemporary to the current music scene in the same way Very was back in 1993. It could have been the lead single, instead it's packed away on a b-side while the excruciating wedding in Berlin is busy destroying what might have been a varied and warm album.

Chris is apparently shit at selecting songs for albums and should be disallowed from doing so! He's far better at writing them than choosing. Decide is a late career corker - like An open mind - and would have boosted Hotspot into the top 5 of their albums in my opinion.

[telys]

The craziest thing is that An open mind sounds not only album material, but as SINGLE material. It's contemporary to the current music scene in the same way Very was back in 1993. It could have been the lead single, instead it's packed away on a b-side while the excruciating wedding in Berlin is busy destroying what might have been a varied and warm album.

Chris is apparently shit at selecting songs for albums and should be disallowed from doing so! He's far better at writing them than choosing. Decide is a late career corker - like An open mind - and would have boosted Hotspot into the top 5 of their albums in my opinion.

I agree completely but I think this posting ended up in the wrong thread.