Fundamentally brilliant !

[rashomon]

Just heard the album in full for the first time and it is absolutely blinding! Well done boys!.... this is high quality stuff and I'm looking forward to hearing it again in a few mins

Just came across yet another review online - this time from err Bloomberg of all places :

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid= ... er=culture

and another one here:

http://www.megastar.co.uk/essentialmusi ... M5Njc.html

[Pani]

Good ones, especially the first one, thx. for posting!

[stew]

cool!

[adampsb]

Just heard the album in full for the first time and it is absolutely blinding! Well done boys!.... this is high quality stuff and I'm looking forward to hearing it again in a few mins

Just came across yet another review online - this time from err Bloomberg of all places :

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid= ... er=culture

and another one here:

http://www.megastar.co.uk/essentialmusi ... M5Njc.html

Came across this one on a mate's blog

The Pet Shop Boys have been in abit of a career wilderness since their 80’s heyday. Wrong footed by the nineties and early noughties they turned first to DJ’s like David Morales and Rolo to re-energise them (Bilingual and Nightlife) then went all acoustic and dug out the guitars (Release). Neither were utterly convincing, though each album had its gems. PSB have always been known by critics as “The Smiths with synths” and their lyrical content has darkened somewhat over the years.

Now Messrs Tennant and Lowe have hooked up once again with Trevor Horn for Fundamental, their best album since Very. It’s not what I was expecting mind you. I had in mind an entire album of “Left To My Own Devices” (Che Guevara and Debussy to a disco beat). Fundamental has elements of this (on “The Sodom And Gomorrah Show” for example), though it’s closer in spirit to the Behaviour album.

Neil Tennant obviously has major problems with New Labour as the album is a catalogue of rants against the current regime – “I’m With Stupid” being a hilarious account of the Bush/Blair relationship. There are also swipes at the Iraq War, ID Cards and the twin demons of sleaze and spin.

Horn has polished the backing to perfection, many of the tracks orchestrated with a shimmering beauty.

But ultimately it leaves me cold. There is a lot of style, not so much substance. There are too many slower tracks and not all of them work. The disco stompers work best and an entire album of these would have been most welcome. But I suppose two blokes in their 40’s performing oompah oompah disco numbers would look abit sad.

But that’s why we fell in love with them in the first place.

Close, but no cigar.

[adampsb]

You see I would see this as a bit more re-invention. In terms of style it is closer to Nightlife - disco with stirring strings.

They have always done politics with Opportunities & Shopping capturing the Thatcherite era and Up Against It critical in thought of John Major's 1992 election campaign.

I Get Along was an early dig at Tony Blair's over reliance on Peter Mandelson and In Private & Nothing Has Been Proved cast our minds back to the hypocrisy of the Profumo affair where a minister was ousted for doing what the general populace were embracing.

Indefinite Leave to remain is an update take on London (Release 2002) which dealt with Eastern European Immigration

They have always done this kind of song although with a bit more ambiguity in the lyrics the difference being that they are being very blunt about it.

The Sodom & Gomorrah show follows slightly from Delusions of Grandeur but again the media and the cult of celebrity is an area they have tackled with tracks like Shameless (Alternative) which sees a reappearance with Luna Park.

Numb doesn't really work and would have been better reworked with Liza Minelli whose version of Rent was magnificently reworked by Anne Dudley for the Results LP and this month's BBC Radio 2 show at the Mermaid.

I Made My Excuses is similar in feeling to The Survivors, To Face the Truth, Jealousy, To Speak is a Sin or more fittingly So Sorry, I Said

Fundamental is an album that definitely sounds better as a live show but it is brimming with sarcasm, injustice and distaste for the way that fundamentalism is foisted on us. Integral brings us to George Orwell's 1984 and there is distaste for the way that talentless moron's like Chantelle are thrust upon us as "celebrities"

It is different from the Eighties material and if you are expecting actually/Very in disguise then you may be disappointed as the sound is quite different. If you liked Nightlife you'll like this. In terms of losing their way I don't think that they have been wrong-footed but it being more a case of they have continued to experiment and as their social commentary have hit home people have struggled to accept it.

Interestingly enough people will deride the Pet Shop Boys and yet think Madonna's Confessions album is fantastic yet where did Stewart Price get his ideas.. you guessed it Mr Lowe's keyboard.

The Pet Shop Boys are well and truly back with a satire that Spitting Image and Private Eye would be jealous of. Sure there are a couple of weaker moments but remember A New Life and The Only One. This is a good return to form attacking a wide range of subjects. Tennant is no-longer detached and observing he is angry and involved and has damn well had enough so get out of the way and watch him go.

[cannibal]

A lot of interesting points there. 'Fundamental' is great, but obviously not perfect (albums rarely are). To be honest, it's just great that they're back on song, so to speak.