Good morning all. Before we start, I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge the day, praising Jesus for his resurrection. If you don't belong to a church, but are looking for a good message for the day, I recommend Tony Evan's sermon, "HERE". Happy Easter to all, and I hope regardless of whether or not you follow Christ that you have a good day.
It's time to dive into another one of those artists that I've obtained all their 80's albums, but to date have not heard any of. Much live my venture into Hall & Oates, I'm starting with the album that Google states is considered the best. So here we go, 1981's Architecture & Morality, from Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark.
The duo group was formed in 1978 by Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboards, vocals), along with Martin Cooper (keyboards, saxophone) and Stuart Kershaw (drums). As a whole, OMD are considered pioneers of the electronic music scene, and key to the emergence of synth-pop.
They released their debut self-titled album in 1980, and followed this up almost immediately with Organization, before the year ended. While both would ultimately go on to reach gold status in the UK, and the latter in France as well, the group didn't fare well anywhere else. This trend of continued popularity in the UK would continue throughout the decade, with the group not really making an impact worldwide until 1986 with the release of If You Leave, which was featured on the Pretty In Pink soundtrack.
However, before we reach that era, we first stop off in 1981 for the Retro Spin titled album. As I played through the album, the electronic sound was definitely the forefront of each track. Each song weaved in various sound waves that either led into, or took over each one as it started or ended. As a whole, it didn't necessarily blow me away. Albeit, it also didn't leave me hating it.
I suppose I should pause for a moment and say that when I started picking up their 80's discography, it wasn't necessarily out of a high priority want. Rather, it was more so curiosity. Specifically, the curiosity of why the group kept coming up in searches of influential bands of the era. While I can certainly understand their contribution after hearing Architecture & Morality, it doesn't necessarily make me a fan. That unto itself is a little disappointing, and mainly because their albums aren't necessarily on the cheaper end, and frankly, there were a lot of them, which contributed to the increased cost.
When it was all said and done, I ended up adding only one track to my shuffle list. However, even in doing that, it wasn't that the song, Joan Of Arc necessarily blew my mind. Rather, it was one of those moments where I simply said, "It's okay, and I own it, so I'll put it on the list."
So, with that said, this one is kind of disappointing, and compounded all the more by the sheer volume of additional albums I have from the duo. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark is definitely going to get shelved for a while on my end before I circle back to them.
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Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS April 20, 1985 |
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