Review: Trying to figure out exactly when you'll stick on the soundtrack to Game of Thrones Season 7 isn't easy. But that's not to say Rabin Djawadi's epic score isn't something to behold. From the word go, this is adventurous stuff, rooted in classical but clearly inspired by visions of fantastical beasts, mythical lands and legendary quests. You almost feel like Cersei Lannister or Jon Snow or Daenerys Targaryen are about to knock on for their dinner. Like pretty much everything the Iranian-German film and TV composer touches - Clash of the Titans, Warcraft, Iron Man - there's little here you'd describe as subtle or understated. Even the more sweeping overtures sound like they were born for grand concert halls. So, providing you have the space at home, go for it.
B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition
Flying North (3:41)
Commercial Breakup (4:18)
Weightless (3:43)
Europa & The Pirate Twins (3:18)
Windpower (3:57)
The Wreck Of The Fairchild (3:34)
Airwaves (4:59)
Radio Silence (3:43)
Cloudburst At Shingle Street (5:30)
Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***
It might cost a bit more to manufacture but 180g vinyl is much more satisfying to hold. There's something in your brain that tells you weight correlates to quality and it's best to trust it. This decadent cut of silver vinyl is for the reissue of synth-pop legend Thomas Dolby's joyous masterpiece of a debut album (originally released in 1982). From the moment the first notes strike on the technopop opener 'Flying North', it's assured and makes you want to strap in for the long haul and when you do you're rewarded with eclectic leftfield hits, such as 'She Blinded Me With Science', which is so groovy and trippy it make you feel like you're strutting your stuff in the crowd on Top of the Pops in the 80s. It's an album that's up there with anything from the likes of Soft Cell, OMD or Gary Numan.
Review: New wave/synth pop artist Thomas Dolby is on extrovert mode here on his joyous, funky third studio album. Originally released in 1988, the album didn't fare particularly well commercially, at least compared to his 1982 hit 'She Blinded Me With Science', but the sheer inventiveness on display here makes it an underrated gem. The slap bass-laden single 'Hot Sauce' isn't shy in its use of light double entendre and when you think you have it pinned down musically, a Spaghetti Western interlude appears and there's a salsa outro. Elsewhere, on 'My Brain Is Like A Sieve' reggae and sophisti-pop collide to stunning effect and the tongue-in-cheek hit 'Airhead' shows off his David Bowie-esque pop baritone, whilst showering us in a stylistic stew.
Review: First released by EMI and Capitol Records in 1984, critics were in two-minds at the time Thomas Dolby put out his second studio LP. Peaking at No.14 in the UK Albums Chart, and with first single 'Hyperactive!' hitting No.17 in the singles chart, his highest-ranking track, the public reception was certainly warmer. Many music writers were caught between an appreciation for the lyrical poetry and sense of rhythm, but put off by the fact "his passion for texture subsumes what small knack he has for cruder, more linear devices." Skip forward 40 years, to a time when electronic instruments - from synths to AI - have well and truly come to dominate popular music, and the idea that Dolby could ever be considered dull seems unthinkable. What's here is carnival-worthy synth pop the likes of which David Byrne would be proud of. Enough said.
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