I loved them then, and still feel great affection for the first three albums, but Raven did signpost the roads they were going to take, and I just wasn’t interested in following them there.
I'd say that's a pretty fair review! But then I never really took to them. I've only ever walked out on two bands, and this was one of them. The other was Queen. OK, so I did actually have to walk out of the venue where The Groundhogs were playing, but only because I thought my ears were going to bleed (Mike).
I'm a little biased here. Bowie was God. But I regret to say, I'm with you. The only Bowie album I've only listened to once (as opposed to several hundred times) was Tin Machine.
I think it's a pretty fair review. You were entirely wrong... but I understand where you were coming from 😁
I have always loved the album. And loved it for many of the reasons you highlight as faults. It's eclectic. It has moments where it's cold. It very definitely has moments where it drops the psychedelic for progressive rock influences. It's mostly gold... Meninblack being it's low point (go listen to Two Sunspots on the following album... It's the same track but played at 'normal' speed... and far more exciting).
I've no surprise about Stranglers fans taking issue with it, today. I love the band with all my heart but have run into enough 'unusual' fans to mostly stay clear on social media...
At a party about 15 years ago, I honestly thought I may be assaulted by a fellow fan for having differing views about the band's best tracks/finest moments. The guy was totally unhinged... and off his tits on coke.
What a blast from the past, Penny, to get a complaint for something you wrote in 1979! That's hilarious.
What you said about the lyrics of Peaches reminds me that we had it on a mix tape in the car when my daughters were tots, it was one of their favourites and they used to sing along. Fortunately, they mis-heard the lyrics anyway. They thought it was a song about fruit and sang, "Walking on the bridges looking at the peaches." And they never picked up on the word clitoris, luckily.
Great stuff and some very fair points. It will always be my favourite Stranglers album even though I know it's not their best, at least partly because it was my introduction to the band - something I'm going to explore in an article soon 👍
A fair review, I think.
I loved them then, and still feel great affection for the first three albums, but Raven did signpost the roads they were going to take, and I just wasn’t interested in following them there.
The complaint? “Nevermore!”
I'd say that's a pretty fair review! But then I never really took to them. I've only ever walked out on two bands, and this was one of them. The other was Queen. OK, so I did actually have to walk out of the venue where The Groundhogs were playing, but only because I thought my ears were going to bleed (Mike).
The only band I've walked out of was Tin Machine. Bowie's misconceived attempt at "Rock".
I'm a little biased here. Bowie was God. But I regret to say, I'm with you. The only Bowie album I've only listened to once (as opposed to several hundred times) was Tin Machine.
God on an off-day
I think it's a pretty fair review. You were entirely wrong... but I understand where you were coming from 😁
I have always loved the album. And loved it for many of the reasons you highlight as faults. It's eclectic. It has moments where it's cold. It very definitely has moments where it drops the psychedelic for progressive rock influences. It's mostly gold... Meninblack being it's low point (go listen to Two Sunspots on the following album... It's the same track but played at 'normal' speed... and far more exciting).
I've no surprise about Stranglers fans taking issue with it, today. I love the band with all my heart but have run into enough 'unusual' fans to mostly stay clear on social media...
At a party about 15 years ago, I honestly thought I may be assaulted by a fellow fan for having differing views about the band's best tracks/finest moments. The guy was totally unhinged... and off his tits on coke.
Thanks for sharing. Great post.
Fair but wrong - I can live with that! Thank you.
What a blast from the past, Penny, to get a complaint for something you wrote in 1979! That's hilarious.
What you said about the lyrics of Peaches reminds me that we had it on a mix tape in the car when my daughters were tots, it was one of their favourites and they used to sing along. Fortunately, they mis-heard the lyrics anyway. They thought it was a song about fruit and sang, "Walking on the bridges looking at the peaches." And they never picked up on the word clitoris, luckily.
Great stuff and some very fair points. It will always be my favourite Stranglers album even though I know it's not their best, at least partly because it was my introduction to the band - something I'm going to explore in an article soon 👍