Pet Shop Boys Missteps

[Xakrij]

Allow me a little clarification.

While I listen to Electric and Super, I usually select certain tracks. I don't listen to them as an 'album' start to finish.

AND, I don't know if any of you are ready for this.

FULL DISCLOSE
I've only recently listened to Hotspot, due to the negative reviews here in these forums.
As a whole, I enjoy it as an an album proper more than its Price predecessors.

And as a TOTAL FULL DISCLOSURE, I have yet to listen to Nonetheless, nor any of its related content.
I know, right!
I rather enjoy caching a butt load of PSB tunes for whenever the time is right.

We now continue with our regularly scheduled program.

[DopeFiend]

Dreamworld Blu-ray and Alexei Navalny tribute concert being cancelled.

Tracklisting for Bilingual, Hotspot and Elysium.

By the way can I just say, I find this thread rather amusing.
It's practically Festivus with airing of grevances. Let's all say what PSB did wrong.
I like it though, we're getting some good insight and reflection.

Overall I'm thankful PSB zig then zag.
These missteps often shift the trajectory, the result is variety throughout their catalogue.

Another couple:
MCMLXXXIX excessive saxaphone
Left To My Own Devices mv too dark.

[tottenhammattspurs]

Yeah. The Devices video. An over the top full blown production with opera singers, full orchestra, pulsing bass line and quotable lyrics.


“Yeah just stand on this piece of glass and I’ll film from underneath for five mins.”

[telys]

They haven't done enough of the concepts they drawn up for their albums.
Nightlife isn't enough about nightlife
Fundamental isn't political the whole way through
Elysium has 2-4 tracks that don't belong to the overall sound and concept
Hotspot has Wedding in Berlin which doesn't fit on any PSB album

Fundamental could've been this brilliant album with a statement but then they put Numb and Casanova in Hell on it.
Hotspot is great but Burning Heather and WiB have nothing to do with the sound of the rest of the album.
This is not a professional way of creating albums. Nightlife is the first album where this happened (In Denial, Only one, Happiness is an option) and they have done it since then with the exception of Electric.

[rashomon]

- not releasing Go West one week later (damn you Will Smith!)
- not releasing Nonetheless two weeks earlier (damn you Taylor!)
- not delivering fully on the aesthetic - I'm talking about the awful designs on clothing mostly
- not putting the '"Perfect Attitude Mix" of How can you expect to be taken seriously? on Behaviour
- Absolutely Flabulous

[Gabby]

- not releasing Go West one week later (damn you Will Smith!)
- not releasing Nonetheless two weeks earlier (damn you Taylor!)
- not delivering fully on the aesthetic - I'm talking about the awful designs on clothing mostly
- not putting the '"Perfect Attitude Mix" of How can you expect to be taken seriously? on Behaviour
- Absolutely Flabulous

The earlier comment about the Devices video - my God what a travesty that video is. A song with so much video potential and all we get is looking up at Neil and Chris' groinal areas.

I do agree though there have been a number of "release window" mis-steps over the years, and the not delivering on the aesthetic on merch as you say I agree with 100%. The last time I bought a t-shirt from the store was "Super" until Disco 5. I LOVE the design of that on a shirt.

[Patrick Bateman]

The earlier comment about the Devices video - my God what a travesty that video is. A song with so much video potential and all we get is looking up at Neil and Chris' groinal areas.

I think the video works (didn't they slag it off?) because the song juxtaposes mundane, quotidian events with the over-the-top orchestration. So rather than making a video with lots going on, it's understated and claustrophobic.

[Spittingcat]

MCMLXXXIX excessive saxaphone

Whereas I think Pine's performances at the gigs raised them to a whole other level.

Burn Baba Stiltz remix

Am I the only fan of this remix?

I still think we needed a PSB/Price extended version of this song though.

In fact... perhaps not a misstep but a missed opportunity... if they'd finished the x2/Kobalt period with a six track Disco/Introspective style release with extended versions of tracks off the three Price albums... that would have wrapped that project up very nicely for me. So many tunes there that would warrant an extended mix.

[Spittingcat]

Oh, genuine misstep...? Finishing Hotspot with Wedding rather than Decide. That album would currently be thought of far more fondly by so many listeners by just changing how it ended.

[It can be two things]

Am I the only fan of this remix?

There are at least two of us. Let's form a fan club!

[Spittingcat]

That whole "fan club" CD was a great combination of new and old, poppy and quirky, updated and remodelled, danceable and dubby. It gave us so much using only 3 tracks!

Let's hope they don't leave out a CD with Annually 2026... that would be a misstep.

[telys]

The earlier comment about the Devices video - my God what a travesty that video is. A song with so much video potential and all we get is looking up at Neil and Chris' groinal areas.

I think the video works (didn't they slag it off?) because the song juxtaposes mundane, quotidian events with the over-the-top orchestration. So rather than making a video with lots going on, it's understated and claustrophobic.

Well, they could've made a sequel to West End girls where they just walk around in a city.

[telys]

Oh, genuine misstep...? Finishing Hotspot with Wedding rather than Decide. That album would currently be thought of far more fondly by so many listeners by just changing how it ended.

To me, that album has only 9 tracks.

[Patrick Bateman]

Astonished that no one has mentioned the release of Winner, surely their worst song, to launch Elysium - particularly as it came off the back of Yes, an album that put them back in the public consciousness for the first time in years. I don't know if I'd say it was a misstep, because they've always done what they wanted to do, but it was a terrible idea.

At a pinch maybe I'd add the single choices from Hotspot, which made the album seem far less interesting and exciting than it was.

Yes, and the whole Olympics tie-in seemed tawdry. At least the video made a statement and would trigger Graham Linehan or JK Rowling.

[lalolalo]

Another couple:
MCMLXXXIX excessive saxaphone

THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!
To this day I don't understand the fixation they got with this guy. Maybe they owed him money? Some kind of romance thing? Otherwise I don't get it.