I thought I would throw my hat into the ring as well.<br><br>It
strikes me that a Pet Shop Boys record is such a rare and wonderful
thing and we've only got 10 of them. I try to stop in my life and make
room to enjoy this moment. Every record that comes out I end up
thinking - How did I live without this? And it seemed to be the
perfect soundtrack to my life at that time - and I guess that's what
pop music is. The album you defend I think often depends on when your
entry point was - mine was Very. So with that...<br>
<br>I think in addition to comparing the albums against each other like
people are doing, you have to ask how well does the album relate to
it's time, to the music landscape around it. Does it flow with it?
(Introspective) Does it jar (up) against it in an interesting way?
(Behavior, Very). I loved them at the time of course, but to me both
Bilingual and Nightlife were out of touch with their time and not doing
anything interesting in response to the times either. Yes feels firmly
placed in the pop language of 2009 in terms of songwriting themes and
production and I think a lot of that is due to Xenomania, but also the
ebb of pop back to complexity and inventiveness that benefit the Boys.<br>
<br>Release started the songwriting rehabilitation of the Pet Shop
Boys, Fundamental saw them rejuvenated with sharp political commentary
replacing sexual subterfuge as the point of Neil's observations, and I
think Yes is the integration of the Pets back into pop. You actually
do get some of the old sexual innuendo (Did you see me coming?). Yes
has almost every kind of Pet Shop Boys track and they are all good!
You also don't have any full-on stinkers. There's no Electricity, no
awful singles (Single), no embarrassing tracks (The Only One,
Footsteps, The Night I Fell in Love) no throw-away retro tracks
(Saturday Night Forever), or just plain stinkers (Boy Stranger). No,
there's a vital energy and purpose to each track on Yes. The only
misstep for me is Vulnerable - it's too too repetitive and breaks up an
incredible opening flow of energy. But it's not as bad as some of the
aforementioned and I use the time-honored tradition of replacing one
track on the album for the b-side that should have been in it's place
(This used to be the future).<br>
<br>Okay here's my track-by-track:<br><br><b>Love, etc</b><br>A good
track, but not my choice for lead single, and I think the chart would
agree. It's a little disappointing, especially for all of Mr. Higgins
bravado. I'm With Stupid went to #8 without any Xeno help, thank you
very much. Still, it's a unique and interesting track.<br>
<br><b>All Over the World</b><br>One of my favorites on the album. A
world-eating, uplifting, ecstatic track. I just love it! Live this is
going to be amazing.<br><br><b>Beautiful People</b><br>Everyone I play
this for loves it immediately. This is where I started to notice the
absolutely sumptuous production and string arrangements on this
record. An incredibly detailed track musically. It's lyrically
relevant and is gorgeous, catchy, and singable.<br>
<br><b>Did You See Me Coming</b><br>This is a pure sugar rush - so fun
and upbeat. I love the 60s vocal noodling that Neil does here and on
Pandemonium. It reminds me of Very tracks like A Different Point of
View and 1+1=5. It should NOT fade out though.<br>
<br><b>Vulnerable</b><br>The music is good and the melody sticks in my
brain, but I'm tired of hearing about how challenging it is for Neil to
be rich and famous and in the public eye. Poor poor dear.<br><br><b>More Than A Dream</b><br>
THIS is how to do disco! It's updated, glossy, classy, massive.
Highlight of the album. Johnny's guitar work is well placed and
driving. Love it.<br><br><b>Building A Wall</b><br>A good solid album track, but on a higher par than usual. Menacing.<br>
<br><b>King of Rome</b><br>I was really surprised by this track. It's
a standout on this album. The production reminds me of Cocteau Twins
or M83 and I think it's gorgeous. I think this stands up with their
best Actually and Behavior-era ballads.<br>
<br><b>Pandemonium</b><br>The old magic! Wow what a great track. I
certainly hope this is a single. Maybe the strategy is progressively
better singles going from Love etc, to More Than a Dream, to
Pandemonium. This is 25 years of feet-moving pop knowledge distilled
down to 3:43 seconds of genius. Neil does that Dusty thing on here
that he talks about and it's just perfect.<br>
<b><br>The Way It Used To Be</b><br>A torch epic. Another standout
track. This is pop for grownups. Ordinary People the musical. How
many tweens could relate to this? The bridge and outro are amazing.<br><b><br>Legacy</b><br>
I actually really like this type of - Pop Statesmen - kind of track
they do lately. They have given us an album of pop and now it's their
turn, this is Art with a capitol A. It reminds me of Sondheim's Into
The Woods; angular and observational. It's also pompous and overblown -
but hey, in for a penny.<br>
<br><b>This Used to Be the Future</b><br>I think this would have been
genuis in place of where Vulnerable sits on the album. It's great to
hear Phil being so Phil and the song is interesting and inventive.<br><br><b>The Dubs</b><br>
I like them all! More than a dream especially.<br><br>So,
all in all, I think this is a supurb album. With Fundamental, the best
they have achieved since Very. I'm stunned at the quality of Neil's
voice, the production, the songwriting. They have nothing left to
prove, except that you can be vital and artistically relavant so long
as you choose to be.<br>
<br>Thanks for reading! It's not everywhere that people care about this. I appreciate the forum.<br><br>Best,<br><br>Giulio<br><br><br>-- <br><font color="#888888">-- <br>Giulio Pellegrini<br>DESIGNGAGA | CREATIVE STUDIO<br>
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