OMD/BAUHAUS STARCAISE
Sebas E. Alonso
The new life for OMD continues with good albums and new hits. Only Taylor Swift is going to stop them from achieving the first UK album number 1 of their entire career this week. The authors of legendary records from the 80s and songs as recognisable as 'Enola Gay' or 'Electricity' have continued for some years now in duo format -Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys- with such satisfactory results that they even considered disbanding after their 2017 album, 'The Punishment of Luxury', because for them it meant "retiring at the top". Now they say that this new work, 'Bauhaus Staircase', would be a good epitaph if it were their last, and they are right.
Bauhaus Staircase' is defined as Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark's most political album. The single 'Bauhaus Staircase' sets out to "tear down fascist art". Further still, 'Kleptocracy' proclaims that "no matter who you voted for, they've already bought the man you elected", amid quotes from "stolen money", Deutsche Bank, the Kremlin, the KGB and "all the Saudi money in Central Park".
There are more neutral and ambiguous songs, seemingly simply about love or life, but also striking are two spoken word tracks about birth and death ('Evolution of Species') and overpopulation ('Anthropocene').
The latter is a story about the number of inhabitants on Earth in different eras and - WARNING, SPOILER - ends with the planet destroyed and a total of zero inhabitants, in a reflection on climate change. This excuse is used by OMD to end their new album in a totally beautiful way, with a ballad about death like 'Healing'. It would indeed be very poetic if it were the last song on their latest album -if it is at all-, as the lyrics begin "You will never die your death / But will you ever learn to live".
All this wouldn't be worth so much if OMD had lost their panache, but that's not the case either. I thought they were swinging at the idea that they were going to sound like ABBA on this album, but the melody of 'Look At You Now' speaks for itself. Slow Train', on the other hand, is reminiscent of the more art pop era of glam geniuses like David Bowie. This track takes you straight back to 1980 or to Goldfrapp's recreation of those times on 'Black Cherry' (there was a cut called 'Train' exactly). And they don't disappoint when they sound like themselves either, like on 'Don't Go' with those synthesizers that are joie de vivre itself, or on 'G.E.M.'. They won't fill stadiums like Depeche Mode, nor will they have the cult following of Pet Shop Boys, but I'd swear they're in a better creative state than both of them.
Hello again. I totally agree. No more touring for now. If the release of the album is in December, these months will be for the presentation of the album on radio, in music magazines with interviews.
As I've said before, no interviews have been done in Spain.
There is an Argentinian website (mellotron.web.car) where a review of the concert he gave in Verona (Italy) appears in (Spanish).
In the next issue of a Spanish magazine (ruta66) there is an article dedicated to TONY LEVIN (November 2023).
In short, apart from not having passed through Spain on the i/o (Europe) tour, there has been a lack of interest in talking about PG live. Personally I have written several short articles about the songs that have been coming out in the full moon...in the blog rock the best music (Spanish).
I'm not sure if they are going to tour again, especially when there are tours of their members (Ayanna & Tony).
Bruce Springsteen is coming to Spain in June 2024 (Madrid and Barcelona), which makes it difficult for people who live far away from these two cities...
So far, it seems that the i/o promotion will start in December 2023. Let's hope that in Spain it will be picked up by a music magazine. On the other hand, if concerts have been filmed, will there be a dvd-BlueRay of the tour i/o?
And one more thing, will there be new tour dates 2024 in Europe, playing i/o songs?
I have listened to both songs and in my humble opinion they are different. Perhaps what makes them similar is that in Fallen Angel RR sings as if he were talking, just as PG does at the beginning of I/o.
On the other hand, although I'm going off topic, the soundtrack of Martin Scorsese's last film has music by Robie Robertson (RR).
Hello, forum friends
Finally we are getting to know the physical format of i/o. I think the cover is stunning and what comes after it will be too.
I don't know how he will be able to put in one or two cds the different mixes of the songs.
A BlueRay of some of the concerts would be nice.
In LP format I imagine there will be two; there might be a box set with cds and merchandising of the tour i/o.
The date is yet to be set and I think that as far as I know so far there will be no tour in spring, although some songs may be released in the next full moons.
Apart from the i/o songs, which songs to choose?
Sledgehammer fits into the concert, as does Diggin in the dirt.
Introducing other songs is difficult in a very varied songbook. Maybe introduce Games Without Frontiers instead of Darkness for example.
Solsbury Hill is a fixed song as is In Your Eyes; BIKO could also be modified. Another song could be Shock The Monkey (an acoustic version).
This is just an opinion.
Hello friends of the forum.
It's been a few days since I've been online, and I'd like to say that I really liked the review of the Peter Gabriel concert written by this music fan. It is fresh and spontaneous.
On Tony Levin's official website (The Road Diary) there is a link that I imagine will soon show us photos of the North American tour...
I think Peter Gabriel and his band have started their North American tour in Canada.
Is there anyone on the forum who has attended any of the concerts and can give us their impressions?
Is the set of songs the same, any news?
Have there been any pictures of the Quebec concert for example?
At what price is the merchandising?
Any other relevant questions ....
In principle I think the set list will be the same as the European tour. The fact that more than half of the set is made up of new songs is an interesting and novel bet.
PG is not in favour of changing the set list. What I don't know is how ticket sales are going in North America and Canada (who will be disappointed that their basketball team didn't make it to the World Cup final), but that's another matter.
I'd be happy if i/o came out soon and the tour came back to Europe in Spring 2024 and stopped in Spain!!!
Tomorrow begins the second leg of Peter Gabriel's I/O 2023 tour.
-Regarding the change in the setlist, maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to do a song like Secret World or Blood of eden as a tribute to Sinead O Connor.
- Another question in the air is the release date on vinyl, cd or Blue Ray (concerts)...there are still a couple of songs to be released to coincide with the full moon.
- September and October is not a bad release date, and to place as bonus-tracks the missing i/o songs that have been performed live.
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT ALL THIS?
New single by ORCHESTRAL MANOUVRES IN THE DARK:
Although it's been a few days since Sinead left us, I think it's a good opportunity to travel through her discography.
We have to give her a chance if the price doesn't prevent it to albums like: UNIVERSAL MOTHER, FAITH AND COURAGE, sEAN-NOS-NUA, THEOLOGY or How About I Be Me (And You Be You)?
I had considered SINEAD more of a backing vocalist than a solo voice and I think I was wrong.
There is a live album by Sinead: She Who Dwells in the Secret Place of the Most High Shall Abide Under the Shadow of the Almighty is a 2003 double live album.
Disc one collects a variety of rare tracks. It includes readings of traditional Latin liturgical hymns, collaborations with Massive Attack, Asian Dub Foundation, Adrian Sherwood and Roger Eno, and covers of songs by ABBA, The B-52's, and Aretha Franklin.
Disc two is a live performance recorded at Dublin's Vicar Street Theatre in 2002. Six tracks are taken from O'Connor's 2002 album Sean-Nós Nua, and three each come from Universal Mother and O'Connor's most famous album, I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got. One song, "You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart", was recorded by O'Connor for the soundtrack to the 1993 film In the Name of the Father.
If Peter has been working on more songs they will be released in 2024, early 2024.
On the other hand, it is not known if and where PG will tour in spring 2024...?
Well, at this point in August (6-08-2023), we can say that there are still 4 songs left from the live performances (i/o European tour): This Is Home, Love Can Heal, And Still and Live and let Love.
From Full Moons there is one left at the end of August and the full moons of September, October and November.
At the beginning of November, just at the end of the North American tour, it could be released i/o...?
I'm not sure about the video, and I don't think the track list will vary much between Europe and the US.
That's what we can say although PG's plans may be very different....
I would like to think that the album will be released in September or October. Also some song might be a bonus track, in a de-luxe edition.
December is a Christmas release date; I don't see a release date for the album.
Or release it at the end of the American tour?
From what I've read (in Spain) there are some songs that are more popular than others...
About the cover versions, I really like the live versions...
For me the idea would be to make a box-set consisting of the complete cd/lp i/o and a live Blue-Ray of the tour.
I think it would work...
