One record at a time: 128. Erasure - The Voilet Flame

By 2014 Erasure seem to have become aware of the vinyl resurgence and this white and violet double album was made available a few months after the initial CD and digital release. I seem to remember this version was initially exclusive to the now defunct PledgeMusic service. The basic premise of this retailer was to take your money upfront (a 'pledge') which was then used to finance the production of the physical product. 

When this album was announced I thought that an Erasure album produced and co-written (well he gets publishing anyway) by Richard X was guaranteed to be a winner. Whilst this record is undoubtedly better than some of its predecessors, "The Violet Flame" isn't quite as successful as I imagined it would be. Yet again Erasure deliver an album with a terrible title and art work that seems to be completely unrelated to the project.

Things kick off with the rather splendid "Dead of Night" which has some great synth arpeggios and a thundering bass. I seem to remember reading Vince and Andy changed their traditional approach of writing songs using a guitar or piano and wrote with the synths used to create the final product. You can hear that some of these tracks are a little more reliant on a groove than traditional chord structures but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The club friendly single "Elevation" is a case in point where there isn't a great deal of differentiation between the verse and chorus, but somehow it doesn't matter.

Another single "Reason" continues the club vibes with its TR-808 style hit hats, bubbling bassline and resonated sweeps. Richard X turns up the compressor to emphasise the pounding of "Promises" but it lacks melody. The first four tracks on this record have been pretty relentless but "Be The One" is our first opportunity to catch a breath before another trance inflected single "Sacred" comes rolling through. "Under the Wave" cuts back a little on the heavy club vibes and allows the melody to emerge much more successfully. Things go a bit avant-garde with "Smoke and Mirrors" and whilst the end result isn't brilliant, it makes for a welcome change of pace. "Paradise" sounds like some kind of disco reject or a poor "Supernature" pastiche that I can leave or take. The obligatory closing lament is delivered by  "Stayed a Little Late Tonight".

The vinyl version of the album includes six extended and club mixes taken from the two singles which had been released up to the point of the vinyl being made available. Whilst all of the mixes are competent, none stand out particularly.

I went to see the band live on the tour that accompanied this album and, to be honest, this new material fell a little flat. In isolation this album sounds good, but when these songs are held up to the best of the back catalogue, they pale in comparison. This album is much more club orientated than I remember it being and I can't help but feel this sound was two or three albums too late in their career. 3/5

One record at a time: 127. Erasure - Snow Globe

"Snow Globe" is a Christmas album that was released 2013 but not pressed on vinyl until 2016 when Erasure's back catalogue was bought by BMG. 

When I found out Erasure were recording a Christmas album, I have to admit, I wasn’t very excited. In fact I was anticipating it being as bad as “Other People’s Songs”. Yet, somehow this album isn't the car crash it could have been.

Tracks like “Silent Night” and “Silver Bells” work because Andy sings them so well. Vince’s sparse arrangements augment the beauty of the vocals as they are imaginative and unique. 

Strangely, a quarter of the tracks here are original material that are unrelated to Christmas. This means "The Christmas Song" sits cheek by jowl with new pop songs like "Loving Man". Whilst the running order of the album is incongruous, the new material is actually very good."Bells of Love", the afore mentioned "Loving Man" and "Make it Wonderful" are some of the best songs Vince and Andy had written in the 8 years since "Nightbird". An oddity of an album, but definitely worth a look. 3/5 

One record at a time: 126. Erasure - Tomorrow's World

If I were to use single word to sum up this album it would be "disjointed''. The complete disconnect between the title and the artwork is a good example of the incoherent nature of what is happening here. The way producer Vincent Frank (Frankmusic) manipulates the sound on some tracks is quite jarring and out of step with the traditional sound of the band. Whilst this album has a more contemporary feel, I get the impression things didn’t necessarily sit well with Vince and Andy.

The single "Be With You" is insipid and a bit of a poor start. The best track for me is "Fill Us With Fire" which also happens to be Vince's favourite. This track builds and releases in the best dance floor tradition and carries a real sense of euphoria. A couple of unremarkable mid-tempo songs "What Will I Say When You're Gone?" and "You've Got To Save Me Right Now" follow before the twisted dance funk of "A Whole Lotta Love Run Riot" whips things up again. "I Lose Myself" is another contemporary sounding dance track that pounds along and satisfies if you're in the mood for a boogie.

"When I Start To Break It All Down" was a curious choice for the lead single as it is a bit limp. There were a raft of remixes issued in what felt like a desperate attempt to shore up a fundamentally weak composition. It is no wonder it stalled at number 172 in the charts. 

When it was released, this album disappointed me as I felt the impetus gained on "Nightbird" was being frittered away. In the interceding 10 years, nothing has happened to lessen my disappointment. 2/5

One record at a time: 125. Erasure - Light at the end of the World

"Light at the End of the World" was released in 2007, but like a few Erasure albums, it wasn't released on vinyl until 2016. 

I tried hard to like this album when it came out, but I could never really warm to it. Their previous effort "Nightbird" had reignited my interest (and belief) in Erasure and the lead single "I Could Fall In Love With You" was a very promising introduction. The anticipation for this release was also heightened by Vince describing it as more dance orientated. In reality this is an album of “so-so” compositions with unremarkable execution.

The first track, "Sunday Girl" is naive and has terrible, nonsensical lyrics. Whilst the single version of "I Could Fall In Love With You" is superior to the version here, it remains a  passable effort. "Sucker for Love" continues in the same vein as "Sunday Girl" with its annoying melody and disjointed backing track. In fact, all of the backing tracks on this album sound uninspired and as if Vince was just phoning in his contribution. 

"Storm in a Teacup" has a very promising start but it doesn't quite realise its potential. The tracks "Fly Away" and "Golden Heart" come close to realising the "dance orientated" sound that Vince hinted at prior to the album's release, but the compositions simply aren't strong enough. One of the better songs here is "How My Eyes Adore You" which has a great melody but the transition between the different parts of the song is clunky. This song is also an example of Andy forcing his vocal in an unnatural fashion. Normally Andy's vocals soar effortlessly over Vince's bleeps and beats, but on this album the vocals seem to be fighting for room and Andy has to sing louder to force his way into the mix. 

The remainder of the album is forgettable and listening to it has been a bit of a chore to be honest. As I said earlier, I tried to like this album and I listened to it many times when it came out in an effort to force my appreciation. But, realistically, if you have to force an album into your consciousness in an effort to like it, surely it has failed. 2/5

One record at a time: 124. Erasure - Nightbird

Despite being released in 2005, "Nightbird" wasn't made available on vinyl until 2016. My copy came with a free 12x12" art print of the sleeve which is horrendously blurred and doesn't seem worth the effort. Still, this is quite a good pressing and the sound of the record is very good.

At this stage in their career, Erasure were transitioning from being regarded as a washed up eighties band to electronic pop royalty. This record was the first in a few years that wasn't toe curling awful and it certainly put their legacy back on track in my mind.

"No Doubt" begins with some unremarkable percussion noises before suddenly exploding into a Technocolor world that reassures us that planet "Loveboat" has been left behind. As the song progresses the repeated notes of the bassline build a tension that resolves as Andy sings: "It's more than enough just to gaze in your eyes, I'm dying to show you what love is about."

"Here I Impossible Again" was a single that has a great chorus. I always find myself singing along to this song but I don't have much clue what it is actually about. One of the highlights of the album is the magnificent "Let's Take One More Rocket to the Moon" which is intricate and satisfying. These songs aren't the pure pop of "The Innocents" or "The Circus" but something more considered and mature. Whilst Andy's lyrics have always been subject to a certain degree of introspection, they are especially so on this record. Lead single "Breathe" seems to reflect on a life lived and the need to believe: "Stood the test of time, Though I treated you rough, You were always kind".

The backing track for "I'll Be There" is archetypical Vince Clarke, yet the analogue synthesizers seem to be handled much more imaginatively this time around. I'm guessing Vince began using Logic Pro for this album as the music has both a greater depth and possesses a polished edge that had been lacking on some predecessors. "Because Our Love Is Real" has almost nursery rhyme style verses which are punctuated by a more mature chorus. This song made me reflect on the prominence of Andy's performance and the restraint being shown in the backing tracks.

Another magnificent single "Don't Say You Love Me" opens side two with an amazing flourish. The pulsating synths and vocoder effects rumble under Andy's soaring vocals in a way that I find fascinating. The next track "All This Time Still Failing Out of Love" sounds a bit like ABBA being recorded in a rave style. The reflective mid tempo "I Broke It All In Two" is a great piece of song writing that is well executed. The low point of the album is the unfinished sounding "Sweet Surrender". However, given that this song is still better than anything they had recorded in the proceeding 8 years I can live with it.

The ending of this album is something special. Everything about "I Bet You're Mad at Me" is pretty much perfect. The melody is complimented by Vince's swell of synth effects until we reach the all too brief crescendo. A magnificent end to an album that restored my faith in Erasure. 4/5

One record at a time: 123. Erasure - Union Street

Having released a bad album of their own material and an even worse one containing other people's songs, Erasure decided to accelerate the demise of their career by releasing an album of their old songs recorded with acoustic instruments. 

I am trying not to be too negative here I promise you; but in pursuing vanity projects such as this, Vince and Andy left a sizeable number of their casual fans (such as myself) behind. As an admirer of electronic music, "Union Street" is an anathema to me. Yes, artists are perfectly entitled to stretch themselves and try something new, but it doesn't mean I have to like it.

Like its predecessor, I only own this album because it completes my collection. I haven't listened to the record and I do not intend to - low quality mp3 will suffice for this review I am sure.

The song choices are intriguing ("Piano Song" with no piano?) and the arrangements are much better than "Other People's Songs" - but the basic concept of an electronic band re-recording their tracks with acoustic guitar (and even worse, pedal steel guitar) is abhorrent to me. 0/5

One record at a time: 122. Erasure - Other People's Songs

This record is an unmitigated disaster. The only reason I own it is because I felt the need to possess a complete collection of Erasure's albums on vinyl and it was cheap. When the record arrived I hid it away in my collection and pretend it didn't exist. As a consequence, this record remains sealed in its cellophane cocoon and I have absolutely no intention of opening it.

When the lead single "Solsbury Hill" was released in 2003 I remember hardcore Erasure fans being more than a little smug that the band had secured a top ten hit after years in the commercial wilderness. Yet, as an outsider, it was fairly obvious that this success was attributable to clever marketing and a co-ordinated effort by fans to buy multiple copies of the single. Vince and Andy's version of the Peter Gabriel classic is perfectly listenable with the "Radio Mix" on the DVD single being the pick of the bunch, but this is as good as the parent album will get by quite some margin.

I dislike this album for a number of reasons. In some cases I actively dislike the song being covered ("Make Me Smile", "When Will I See You Again"), for other tracks it is because they are very badly executed ("Ebb Tide", "Video Killed The Radio Star") and sometimes it is because the cliche is too much to bear ("You've Lost That Loving Feeling", "Can't Help Falling in Love").

I guess there are people who enjoy this album and I understand that my taste can be eclectic. But to me this is a dumpster fire. 0/5