One record at a time: 157. Goldfrapp - Silver Eye

I'd love to tell you that this review is based upon years of listening to this album and that I have exercised due diligence in considering all of its virtues and foibles. However, this is not true.

I bought this clear vinyl when the album was released in 2017 and I have listened to it precisely once. I have subsequently revisited a couple of tracks that initially caught my ear as mp3 files, but I think it would be fair to say this record has, up to this point, made very little impression upon me.

As I play the album now I am very impressed by the opening track "Anymore" which is both catchy and pretty funky too - I seem to remember this is the highlight of the album. The title of the album is derived from the lyrics to the second track "Systemagic" which has a great tune and some fabulous vocal harmonies from Alison. Things slow down for the deep blistering tones of "Tigerman" and its superb synth textures. This may not be the best composition ever recorded but the production is perfect. 

With some of Goldfrapp's previous albums I always got the feeling I'd heard the songs before. "Black Cherry" opened the door but some of the subsequent releases were a mere recreation. With songs like "Become the one" things feel a little more innovative and interesting again. 

"Faux Suede Drifter" is dull and sounds like it belongs on the previous album. The observant amongst you will have noticed we have, once again, skipped an album in the Goldfrapp back catalogue. I don't own "Tales of us" on vinyl as I am not keen on these tracks that are vocalised without real words. As an exceptional talent, Liz Fraser can get away with it, but it doesn't work here.

"Zodiac Black" is a song best enjoyed by more ardent fans and is a disappointing start to the second side. However the instrumentation and production of "Beast That Never Was" is truly remarkable and lifts an average composition to a higher plane. "Everything is Never Enough" employs some of the naive sounds of early eighties artists such as Soft Cell, but it drags on a bit too long. By the time we reach "Moon of Your Mouth" it feels like the ideas are running a bit thin and whilst "Ocean" tries to deliver an epic Depeche Mode style finale it doesn't quite succeed. So this album definitely deserves more than the cursory listen I have given it, but it isn't amongst my favourites. 2.5/5

One record at a time: 156. Goldfrapp - Headfirst

Here I will be listening to a 2017 180g repressing of "Head First". In terms of the Goldfrapp back catalogue, we have skipped "Seventh Tree" as I regard it as pretentious swaddle that I wasn't prepared to buy on vinyl.

Happily "Head First" is a good album that dispenses with the artistic statements and concentrates on delivering eighties tinged synth pop.

The first single from this album, "Rocket" seemed to be everywhere back in 2010 and its infectious melody and sing along lyrics were perfect. There is a Richard X remix of this track that is also fantastic. This is a seriously catchy song.

Two more singles follow in the form of "Believer" and "Alive" which remain in the upbeat retro style of the opening - all be it with guitar smeared across the latter. "Dreaming" almost sounds like peak Giorgio Moroder with its seventies tubular bells and pulsing synth lines. The title track is an upbeat affair that has a good dollop of ABBA (don't let that put you off), a sprinkle of ELO and a touch of  Erasure: a more heady mix you could not ask for.

When you're confronted with an album full of shiny pop songs, you need something to offer respite and contrast. This is why I like "Hunt" as it builds an atmosphere without being over complicated (and it uses synth toms, so what's not to like). "Shiny and Warm" falls back into the seventies tinged sound of the "Supernature" album with predictably mediocre results. "I Wanna Life" is essentially a rehash of "Rocket" and "Voicething" is the kind of self indulgent rubbish that proliferated on the previous album. I'd summarise this album as having a very good start before a disappointing ending. 3/5

One record at a time: 155. Goldfrapp - Supernature

This copy of Goldfrapp's third album is pressed on 'translucent' green vinyl and was released in 2020 as part of BMG's ongoing exploitation of the Mute back catalogue.

I bough this album on CD back in 2005 and found it less satisfying that its predecessor. Whereas "Black Cherry" sounded effortless and innovative, "Supernature" sounds contrived and overtly commercial.

Lead single "Ooh La La" sounds like seventies glam rock recorded on a Minimoog, but it somehow became a top 5 hit in the UK. Second track "Lovely 2 C U" fails as it is twee and pretentious. "Ride a White Horse" resurrects the TR-909 beats but Alison's vocal sounds like she stuffed cotton wool in her cheeks like Marlon Brando in The Godfather. 

One of the highlights of the album is "You Never Know" which drops the four on the floor beats and features lush synth washes alongside amazing orchestral swells. "Let It Take You" is a downtempo plod that proves a good counterpoint to the much superior melodies of "Fly Me Away". As good as the next two tracks, "Slide In" and "Koko" are, the constant barrage of sawtooth waves is beginning to grate on me a little. There is some sonic variety on "Satin Chic" which is also the band's favourite on the album. The song is OK but it sounds a bit like a homage to Sparks.

There is another more ambient track in the form of "Time Out From the World" which provides welcome relief from the pounding beats. The single "Number 1" sounds a bit like a rehash of "Ooh La La", but it does improves on things. The album rounds out with the inconsequential "Beautiful" which continues the trend of seventies glam rock style rhythms and rasping sawtooth patches. This isn't a bad album and you couldn't wish for anything more electronic; but it sounds forced and formulaic in places. When it is good, this record is very good. When it is bad.....2.5/5

One record at a time: 154. Goldfrapp - Black Cherry

This copy of Goldfrapp's second album "Black Cherry" is pressed on purple vinyl and sounds very good indeed. When it was released in 2019 I assumed this was a limited pressing and felt lucky to own a copy. The fact that you can still buy this record today for £15 is testament to the skills of the marketing team at BMG. 

I have never felt the same compulsion to buy debut album "Felt Mountain" as it is both relatively expensive and not as suited to my taste. I find Goldfrapp very hard to pin down: they are capable of producing the most sublime and enchanting music yet are equally capable of serving up dross with lyrics like, "Titties that live on and on forever". 

For me the trouble is there's a bit too much pretentiousness going on. I went to see this band live in 2010 and as we entered the venue the doormen were shouting, "The artist has requested that nobody take pictures tonight. No pictures during the performance". 

This whiff of artistic temperament caused a ripple of discontent amongst the crowd: we had paid our money and expected a pound of flesh in return. As it turned out, most people ignored the instruction and took pictures anyway (including myself). The punishment for ignoring the artist's instruction was metered out via the PA which was turned up to 11 in an attempt to deafen us. I've been going to gigs for over 30 years but this remains the loudest I have ever heard.

Whilst some of the details of this incident might be exaggerated, the core elements reinforce the notion that Goldfrapp consider themselves as "artists" and not mere musicians. Whilst they have a tendency to take themselves too seriously and go off the rails, that isn't the case with this album.

The record opens with the excellent "Crystalline Green" which pulses with analogue synths and sweeping effects. Alison sings some perfect top lines as Will builds the backing track into a soaring colossus - this is nothing like the previous album "Felt Mountain".

"Train" is a monster of a track that left me a changed man when I heard it live at the afore mentioned concert. One day last summer my eldest daughter was complaining about the incessant sound of crickets chirping in the fields; but thanks to "Train" I don't hear much above 2,000 Hz and was immune. But make no mistake, this is a great song.

"Black Cherry" is a nice change of pace and features some great orchestration alongside the synths and downtempo beats. The driving synths are reintroduced by "Tiptoe" which bleeps along with the kind of perfection only achieved by people on top of their game. Side one finishes with "Deep Honey" which is more akin to the ambient sound of the first album and reminds me very much of Portishead (a group that band member Will has been associated with in the past).

My favourite track is "Hairy Trees" which has a great hook and an etherial quality that really appeals to me. We get some TR-909 beats alongside the squelchy synths on "Twist" but unfortunately Alison indulges in her occasional penchant for nonsensical and frankly bizarre lyrics.

I originally bought this album on CD in 2003 based upon a TV performance of the next track "Strict Machine". Whilst familiarity means this track has has lost some of its initial impact, it remains a great piece of electronic music. The last two tracks are a little disappointing but they don't detract from the majesty of what has gone before too much. 4/5