I agree with you that singles exist to promote albums - but that's also why I think Numb was the right choice as the third single. Although the likes of Integral and The Sodom and Gomorrah Show were more 'obvious' choices, neither song would appeal to anyone outside of the PSB fanbase. And bearing in mind fans would surely already own Fundamental, this would render releasing the aforementioned songs pointless.jamie1978 wrote: And when I found out that they wasted the opportunity of a third single by releasing THE WORST SONG POSSIBLE, I immediately said it was a mistake. I said it would utterly flop, and fail to sell more copies of Fundamental.
I was proved right.
Singles exists to promote albums. Not to satisfy the desires of strange fans who want a 'slow' single for the sake of 'balance'.
To be honest, anyone who defends Numbs release is totally detached from reality. It had 'failure' written all over it.
Numb, on the other hand, had already generated some interest following its use in the BBC's World Cup montage and brought Fundamental back into the top 200 three days later. Not spectacular, granted, but there was interest there. Sky Sports also used Numb for a similar montage not long afterwards and the BBC used it again for snooker coverage last week, so it's clear people in broadcasting circles consider Numb as a moving piece of music.
Bearing this in mind, you can't blame PSB/EMI for thinking that Numb represented an outside - if not realistic - chance of resurrecting Fundamental's fortunes. After fans' favourite Minimal performed disappointingly, a different approach was needed. It didn't work but it's not the end of the world - and there's no evidence to suggest that Integral or S&G would have done any better.
