Various Artists - Sinner’s Day: New Wave Club Classix

Title: Sinner’s Day: New Wave Club Classix
Artist: Various Artists
Genre: Various Genres
Release Date: 8th October 2009
Label: EMI



Album Review

New Wave is a genre of music that arose in the mid-1970s and gained popularity in the 1980s and early 1990s. It absorbed in its structure freedom and directness of punk rock, aloof enigmatic melodies of electronic and experimental music, light synth pop, buoyant disco sounds and even more. So, the compilation ‘New Wave Club Classix’ includes various compositions of bands that are stylistically different but collated within the notion “New Wave”. The material presented on three CDs is really diverse and it allows everyone to find something interesting for themselves. Besides, each piece of the compilation has a kind of sequence in its arrangement, which displays almost all the variations available for this genre of music.

CD1
The first CD starts with the song ‘Is Vic There?’ by DEPARTMENT S. It’s a light, unpretentious, not too serious composition in which one simple question acquires nearly an epic size. Judging by the other three tracks, including the well-known ‘Papa’s Got a Band New Pigbag’ by PIGBAG, which had become an underground dance hit and the signature tune of the band, it’s possible to guess that reckless punk rock sounds with energetic guitar riffs will be prevailing on the album. But after the short, melodic song of MARINE, the vector changes, colours thicken and the music becomes darker with a rich deep sound created by JOY DIVISION and THE CURE. Gradually, the tracks are getting more conceptual and at the same time more electronic. It can be noticed in ANNE CLARK’s ‘Sleeper in Metropolis’, a rather meaningful composition full of industrial elements with a strict rhythm. The other works written approximately in the same key continue that line. THE HUMAN LEAGUE attracts one’s attention with the metamorphosis of sound in ‘Sound of the Crowd’. Despite its deceptive simplicity, the song has an interesting melody and a catchy chorus. The compositions I’d like to single out of the other tracks on the CD are ‘Ein Jahr’ by FEHLFARBEN, a good example of alternative rock, and ‘Mystery and Confusion’ by BLAINE L. REININGER with a beautiful peaceful melody and clear vocals. The last two, rather provocative songs of the bands THE FLYING LIZARDS and THE BOLLOCK BROTHERS bring us back to that punk rock sound mentioned at the beginning.

CD2
The second CD, starting with one of DEPECHE MODE’s early works ‘Never Let Me Down Again’, covers another side of New Wave and if the first piece of the compilation made a kingdom of sounds around you and laying its foundations, this album extends the space and continues filling it with sonic combinations. The short, unusually arranged song ‘Human Fly’ by THE CRAMPS, GARY NUMAN’s ‘Are ‘Friends’ Electric?’ that is rather leisured and calm with a minimalist instrumentation, and ‘No Tears’ by TUXEDOMOON with its quick squeaking guitar riffs and almost hysterical vocals create a strained atmosphere and the tense anxiety becomes stronger with the first chords of ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’ by BAUHAUS. The first single of the gothic rock band is a song that is over nine minutes in length and is combined with other sombre, dramatic and beautiful tracks presented on the album, namely ‘Song without an Ending’ by THE THE and ‘Alice’ by THE SISTERS OF MERCY. But the dramatic pinnacle is skipped and after a short transition, we get presented with a couple powerful, I’d rather say marching compositions intended for the dance floors.

CD3
The quintessence of the electronic elements contained in New Wave falls on the third CD of the compilation. At least in the beginning the songs of such bands as CABARET VOLTAIRE, well-known for the attempts to blend pop and dance music with techno, dub house and experimental electronic artist ALIEN SEX FEIND and P.I.L. create a unique mosaic of sounds in which the melody itself is not as important as is component parts that mesmerize listeners by directly influencing their consciousness. After a short break allowing listeners to enjoy some vivid compositions, we plunge into the ocean of electronic minimalism represented by KRAFTWERK and their hit ‘Das Modell’ as well as FRONT 242, one of the EBM pioneers, and some other interesting formations. The songs of THE MINIMAL COMPACT and THE NEON JUDGEMENT are perfect for dance floors just like ‘Death Disco’ by ARBEIT ADELT! But the latter composition evokes blurry, fleeting images in your head which strangely disappear with the abrupt ending of the track. The CD is crowned by the electronic hits of SHRIEKBACK, NACHT UND NEBEL and EXECUTIVE SLACKS. In general, ‘New Wave Club Classix’ will be a nice gift for the fans of the genre and give them a good reason for nostalgia. Besides, for some people including me it’s an opportunity to broaden the knowledge in the sphere of music and to get to know something new. Of course, we can’t forget about the other purpose of the albums, that is, getting dance floors filled.


Tracklist

CD1
01. Department S - Is Vic There?  3:03
02. Pigbag - Papa’s got a Brand New Pigbag 6:01
03. The B-52’s - Rock Lobster 6:49
04. Marine - Life in Reverse 2:42
05. Joy Division - Isolation 2:52
06. The Cure - Primary 3:35
07. Simple Minds - I Travel 4:00
08. Anne Clark - Sleeper in Metropolis 4:47
09. The Human League - Sound of the Crowd 3:55
10. Fad Gadget - Love Parasite 3:16
11. New Order - Blue Monday 7:28
14. Yello - Bostich 4:33
15. Liaisons Dangereuses - Los Niños Del Parque 5:03
18. The Flying Lizards - Money 2:29
19. The Bollock Brothers - Harley David 4:10

CD2
01. Depeche Mode – Never Let Me Down Again 4:19
02. XTC – Making Plans for Nigel 4:07
03. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Enola Gay 3:28
04. Yazoo – Situation 5:44
05. Love and Rockets – So Alive 4:08
06. The Cramps – Human Fly 2:13
07. Gary Numan – Are ‘Friends’ Electric? 5:17
08. Tuxedomoon – No Tears 5:39
09. Bauhaus – Bela Lugosi’s Dead 9:32
10. The The – Song without an Ending 4:33
11. The Psychedelic Furs – Pretty in Pink 3:58
12. The Sisters of Mercy – Alice 3:31
13. Red Lorry Yellow Lorry – Monkeys on Juice 3:11
14. Soft Cell – Bedsitter 3:38
15. The Fun Boy Three – Faith, Hope and Charity 2:49
16. No More – Suicide Commando 3:20
17. SPK – Metal Dance 6:50
18. Red Zebra – The Art of Conversation 3:12

CD3
01. Jah Wobble, Jaki Liebezeit, Holger Czukay – How Much Are They? 4:49
02. Dave Ball – In Strict Tempo 3:44
03. Cabaret Voltaire – Nag Nag Nag 4:38
04. Alien Sex Fiend – Ignore the Machine 6:42
05. PiL – Public Image 2:56
06. The Stranglers – No More Heroes 3:27
07. The Fall – Mr. Pharmacist 2:19
08. Kraftwerk – Das Modell 3:40
09. John Foxx – Underpass 3:56
10. Virgin Prunes – Baby Turns Blue 3:39
11. Killing Joke – Requiem 3:44
12. Gang of Four – What We All Want 3:27
13. Minimal Compact – Next One is Real 3:46
14. The Neon Judgement – The Fashion Party 5:15
15. Front 242 – Operating Tracks 3:53
16. TC Matic – White Rhythm 4:34
17. Arbeid Adelt! – Death Disco 2:37
18. Shriekback – My Spine is the Bassline 4:00
20. Executive Slacks – The Bus 3:03


Website

http://www.sinnersday.com/


Cover Picture




Rating

Music: 9
Sound: 9
Extras: -
Total: 9 / 10


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