CLXIX. Various Artists | The Passion Of Covers - A Tribute To Bauhaus

VARIOUS ARTISTS

The Passion Of Covers - A Tribute To Bauhaus

©Cleopatra. US, 1996.

‟This one would've been hard to screw up. Who's not gonna jump in on a Bauhaus tribute CD? They have (mostly) good bands doing all the hits.

The Electric Hellfire Club's cover of "Bela" stays close to the original, as do several other tracks. Faith and The Muse's "Hollow Hills" is a reminder that any good comp sparks interest in the featured bands. Fahrenheit 451 and Eva O take "The Three Shadows (Part II)" in a fresh direction. (Now that Brendan Perry is pretty much retired, Athan Maroulis is neck-and-neck with Peter Murphy for Best Male Voice in dark music.) Black Atmosphere's "Muscle In Plastic" and Wreckage's "Largartija Nick" are the strongest reminders of the role punk played in early goth.

Two Witches' cover of "King Volcano" isn't as bad as others have claimed; it's a goofy song to begin with. The only real problem is that the singer sounds like he just had a novocaine shot. Makes you appreciate This Ascension's "In The Flat Field" that much more. "She's In Parties" continues Ikon's homage to Ian Curtis. Blade Fetish provides a perfect closing with "All We Ever Wanted Was Everything."

The "Multi-Image" cover is nifty, and the bands bring enough new flavor to merit the compilation. I'd give it five stars if it had Faith and The Muse covering "Silent Hedges".‟ 

Scott Sweet

XCI. Peter Murphy | Love Hysteria

PETER MURPHY

Love Hysteria

©Beggars Banquet. UK, 1988.

‟Yet another album bought on the back of Nerdcon '07 – or more accurately Dolarhyde's compilation CD. Peter Murphy's "Socrates The Python" closed his "secret Santa" CD in style and I've been promising myself a copy of Love Hysteria ever since. Rarely does the acquisition match the anticipation but in this case it comes pretty close.

Even though I own a couple of Bauhaus albums I was never really a fan. Their sound was interesting but I could never shake the feeling that they were trying way too hard to be bleakly avant-garde. That impression was accentuated by Murphy's vocal which can be so deep and hollow the guy could have recorded his vocal from the bottom of a cavernous pothole. Even though I've not heard all of his work since leaving the band, he appears to have lightened up considerably and even occasionally dabbles in the pop arena – which I'm sure went down a storm with all those kohl-eyed Goths.

As with Cascade – my only other experience of Murphy's solo work – "Love Hysteria" contains a number of songs that bring to mind other artists. Opener "All Night Long" could have been lifted directly from Japan's Quiet Life album. Such is the similarity I had to check whether Richard Barbieri was guesting on keyboards. Then there's "Time Has Got Nothing To Do With It" which brings to mind Peter Gabriel-era Genesis. Bonus track "I've Got A Miniature Secret Camera" could be a Thomas Dolby song. "His Circle And Hers Meet" has a beat Prince would be proud of. "Dragnet Drag" has hints of Echo And The Bunnymen while "Indigo Eyes" recalls Lloyd Cole And The Commotions combined with A Flock Of Seagulls. But, while guess the influence provides a neat diversion, there's no doubting all these come together under Peter Murphy's own persona. In fact the only oddity here is the one track Murphy didn't have a hand in writing. David Bowie and Iggy Pop's "Funtime" doesn't really serve any purpose because it has the same industrial feel as the original version with Murphy's voice sounding very much like Pop's. And why anyone would want to record a smoky voiced lounge jazz version of the same song is beyond me. I'm all for experimental cover versions but a Cabaret Mix of "Funtime" sounds like the think tank ran out of brain food. Bit like this recent campaign by Walkers Crisps asking the public for their ideas for new flavours. How about a broccoli and strawberry mix? Or sausage and lemons? Or mushroom and camomile tea? No! It doesn't bloody work!

What is a confusing delight throughout the whole of "Love Hysteria" are the baffling lyrics. I know I'm probably in a minority here but I'm not all that bothered about understanding what a song is about. I like the rhythmical cadence that comes with a great necklace of words and Murphy is very adept in this regard. The relentless metronomic beat of "Socrates The Python" comes replete with an obfuscating lyric that is brilliantly incomprehensible.

So two Murphy solo albums down and two albums well worth the money. Let's hope the guy's run continues because I've still gotta a-ways to go.‟

Grampus

  

XIV. Bauhaus | In The Flat Field

BAUHAUS
In The Flat Field
©4AD. UK, 1980.

‟With Post-Punk taking a sudden turn for the delicate and baroque one starts wondering where the atonal freaky stuff has all gone? Where oh where can a boy turn when he wants to hear scratchy wailing nightmare music? Oh Ian McCulloch! Robert Smith! Siouxie Sioux! You're beautiful melodic textures are too much! Fear not though, because this is where Peter Murphy and his band of goths marches in to return representation to dark noisy post-punk, and with quite a band. In fact Bauhaus kind of takes that form of music to an almost cartoony extreme. Nor are they altogether experimental or anything. Actually...whole dramatic opening paragraph aside, I have to say this really does have more in common with the more accessible theatrical post-punk of 80'. It isn't so deep digging as the 79'ers. But man oh man does it use a wholly different pallet than say Echo. Also, what is with rockers named Peter?? Why are they so....dramatic? Peter Murphy is akin to Peter Gabriel (in his Genesis days) in just how much of a damn show he makes his goth music, this ain't no Siouxie mood thing, Murphy is always in some almost Vincent Price type performance style with what he does. But unlike Gabriel he doesn't really dominate the band, the guitar playing is the central component, courtesy of Daniel Ash. He really makes a work of art with those scratch guitars, whereas guys like Keith Levene took more supportive roles with their guitars, standing aside from the rest of the music and lashing out occasionally, Ash does nothing of the sort. He instead billows up storms and winds of the stuff, unavoidably front and center in the songs. There's also cool things like the distorted opera samples that drift through Stigmata Martyr. They even get kind of Gang of Four on us with dance-punk tracks like Dive. For such clear and obvious elements though they play toward those little things as the groups like the Bunnymen do. It's a strange dynamic actually, such bombastic music made for textures and these small things. The mood's not so subtle either though haha, it's a flamboyant gothic theater. Oh god nevermind, this is a confusing review for a simple album! It's a crazy goth album, simple enough. And a very good one, with wild and fun songs. It's not scary even (or very serious either next to stuff like Joy Division), but you can get a real thrill from the ....almost horror movie like roller coaster value of it.‟

Zephos