Retro Spins: The Vapors - New Clear Days

 

Would a band be able to release a song called, Turning Japanese, in today's hyper sensitive culture?

The Vapors released two albums in the 80's, with their first being 1980's New Clear Days, and 1981's Magnets. They would then seemingly disappear into thin air. While many would forget about them entirely, the band would come back in 2020 for an all new album entitled, Together, which many critics call a brilliant pop album.

Their 1980's hit, the above noted, Turning Japanese, would be the only hit for the band. This unfortunately earned them the tried and true "One Hit Wonder" label. It's this song which lead me to the album several decades later, and I was not surprised to find out that it had never initially been released on CD during its 1980's heydays.

Though a compilation of tracks from New Clear Days and Magnets was released on CD in 1995 as, The Vapors: Anthology, it wouldn't be until 2000 that both albums would get a true CD release from Captain Mod Records, a sub-label of Captain Oi! Each album contained all the original tracks, as well as several B-sides. However, both albums are currently out of print, and rather pricey.

Had I not received this album as a birthday gift in 2021, I honestly would not own this one just yet. The price always deterred me from picking it up. I knew I'd get around to it eventually, but it was certainly not a priority.

When I sat down to listen to it, I immediately got a sense of "The Police". Somehow, they just seemed to have that certain sound about them. This is probably because both groups have a foothold in the pre-punk era of the late seventies / early eighties. This helped to make it a bit catchy, and enjoyable.

I need to state that it is my intentions to listen to this one again before ultimately making a definitive decision. While I did hear songs that I thought were decent, Turning Japanese was really the only keeper for me during my first play through. As such, I think I need to give this one another chance.

It's because of this that I can't really give a thumbs up or down on New Clear Days just yet. This may turn out to be my first "re-review" post. What I will say is that I didn't hate it. I may even be intrigued enough to track down Magnets.

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