[Introspective] First listen to Fundamental - My 1/50

[Erik Cedergren]

Hi folks!

        It seems Fundamental is already readily available on the 
Internet, and as a die-hard fan, I couldn't help myself - I downloaded 
it yesterday, just to have a listen. (I have already ordered the two 
album versions, so I don't really consider this piracy.) The version I 
got seems to be more or less complete, although one of the tracks is 
cut short.
        I'd just thought that I'd share my thoughts on the tracks, so 
consider the stuff below as a spoiler if you want to wait for the 
actual release date!

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        Psychological - My first reaction was: "My God, this is 
Depeche Mode" (That is DM in the good old days.) Lyrically, it reminds 
me of "The Sound of the Atom Splitting" as it doesn't quite make 
sense, but then again, I don't think it is supposed to do. The best 
way to listen to this track is loud! :)

        The Sodom and Gomorrah Show - "Sun, sex, sin, death and 
destruction!" The introduction at the start of the song makes me smile 
and think of the "Christmas in Heaven" scene in Monty Python's "The 
Meaning of Life." This will be one of my favourite tracks on the 
album, in the same way as Metamorphosis was on Bilingual. Very 
up-beat, very gay (both meanings!) and with a tendency to give me a 
lead foot (a bit in the same way as NYCB does.) All in all, this 
should be played *louder*! :D

        I Made My Excuses and Left - One of the sad PSB love songs, 
about what happens when love has ended and one party has moved on, and 
the other not quite. Invokes some of the same feelings as "Later 
Tonight" but musically closer to "To Speak is a Sin"

        Minimal - The return of the vocoder! Another up-tempo track, 
with minimal lyrics. :) It sounds a lot like a single B-side. The 
track has a *definite* New Order/Electronic sound to it, especially 
towards the end.

        Numb - The first chord sounds an awful lot like the first 
chord of Kylie Minogue's "Your Disco Needs You," but there ends the 
similarities. Another sad love song, soothing strings and a very sad 
piano, combined with bombastic orchestrations in some movements. This 
grows on you. It definitely doesn't sound like the Pet Shop Boys, but 
I really like it!

        God Willing - An instrumental interlude I wish they had made 
longer. Reminds me of Queen in the 80's. More or less an introduction 
leading up to the next track, like on Marc Almond's "Tenement 
Symphony" album.

        Luna Park - Another slow track, an electric harpsichord 
playing in the background all the time, alluding (probably) to the 
mechanical instruments used in amusement parks, maybe Blackpool. A 
song about escapism, or at least that's my impression. Rhythmically, 
it reminds me of "Boy Strange" 

        I'm with Stupid - I've had this track on repeat for two or 
three weeks now, and I can't get enough of it. I can't help smiling 
when I hear it, I really think it is wonderful. Another track to be 
played loud, and the strongest candidate for a single on the album. 
How wonderfully ironic, combined with a very catchy tune. I really 
hope that this will be one of the big hits of this summer!

        Casanova in Hell - A low-tempo track, that starts out with 
more or less just a piano and moves on to really massive 
orchestrations. Still, as a track it would work just as well in an 
unplugged version. Emotionally, "I Get Along" is a close comparison, 
at least for me. Yes, 'suggestion' rhymes with 'erection' ... though I 
must admit it is the first time I have heard it in use! :)

        Twentieth Century - This is where the PSB start to get really 
political on this album. It could be interpreted as a track about the 
fall of the communist states in eastern Europe, and that along with 
all the bad, all the good was swept away as well. I'll let you be the 
judge of the real meaning, but I can't say that I like it, musically 
or lyrically.

        Indefinite leave to remain - Another beautifully orchestrated 
ballad, but not about love, it is another political track.

        Integral - aka the PSBs assault on New Labour England! Very 
up-tempo, very electronic, vocoders and all. Parts of it are over the 
top á la Army of Lovers. An attack on the introduction of identity 
cards in the UK, comparing it to nazi Germany. "One world, one life, 
one chance, one reason" and the way in which it is sung sounds *a lot* 
like German WWII propaganda.

        So, what about potential singles? Well, I'd like to see "The 
Sodom and Gomorrah Show" as a single, but I don't think that will 
happen. I think that the next single will be "Integral," even though I 
think it is a bit too political, still it is a catchy tune, and in the 
wake of V for Vendetta and the War on Terror, it may be a success. If 
they go for a slower song as a single, I think that "Luna Park" or 
"Casanova in Hell" may be candidates. All in all, I think that it will 
spawn two singles, three at the most, far from the impressive five 
from Very.

        The album as a whole is really quite good! I didn't like all 
tracks, but I haven't done that since Very, and before that only on 
Behaviour and Actually. I would say that it proves that the boys still 
have "it" - they can still make wonderful music, witty lyrics and 
marvellous orchestrations. Good work, lads!

//ecgn (...with or without an ID card, my phone still gives away my 
whereabouts...)