The last Blancmange LP in my collection is my favourite by the band, "Believe You Me". Like its predecessor, "Mange Tout" I own the 2015 double album and the original pressing. For this post we will stick with the original.
This record has one of those annoying picture labels that gives you no indication if it is the A or B side. You have to flip it over and decipher tiny cryptic clues as to which side is which. I hate that. My copy also has a price sticker from WH Smith telling us it cost £6.29 when new - a bargain.
The first track "Lose Your Love" is a catchy pop song that is expertly produced by Stewart Levine. Given Neil's penchant for quirky lyrics, I sometimes find it hard to adjust my brain when I hear him singing more conventionally. I'm not sure if the intention was to produce a more commercial track but it certainly sounds different to others on here. Next is lead single "What's Your Problem?" which deserved a much wider audience than eighties radio afforded it. I'm not surprised it wasn't a hit as it doesn't have the instant pop hook the charts seem to demand, but it is a clever song that rewards repeated listening.
There is a nice change of pace with the quirky "Paradise Is" which features the Roland TR-707 drum machine which was a new bit of kit at the time of recording. The fantastic "Why Don't They Leave Things Alone?" is one of those songs that you can't help but sing along to and is probably the highlight of the album. The later single version titled "I Can See It" tries too hard and ends up sounding a mess. Why didn't they leave it alone? The album version was perfect. "22339" is nothing more than an album filler: a nice track, but album filler nonetheless.
"Don't You Love It All" has a great tune and is well produced, but somehow sounds a little facile. "Believe" is reminiscent of early Depeche Mode (before they lost their way and went 'rock') but marks the beginning of a decline for the album. "Lorraine's My Nurse" is the seemingly mandatory ballad with string arrangement and we see the TR-707 return on "Other Animals". Thankfully the TR-808 provides the drums on the instrumental "No Wonder They Never Made It Back!" and the dull "John" closes things out. Like all Blancmange albums, this record is inconsistent and has more filler than I remember. But the highs of "What's Your Problem?", "Why Don't They Leave Things Alone?" and "Believe" outweigh the lows. 3/5
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