Bronski Beat – The Age Of Reason (Cherry Red Records)
2CD
Out Now
6 / 10
Synth pop legends re-invent classic 80s album.
Re-making previously successfully albums has become something
of ‘a thing’ of late. It can be a dangerous
game to play in many respects, either it is a huge success and the new version
offers a new angle (or on odd occasion betters the original) or, it maybe fails. Sadly, The Age Of Reason drifts into the latter
category as it falls short and in plain terms, often just doesn’t work.
It’s a brave thing to do, The Age Of Consent was, and is, a
landmark album. The pop genius of Steve
Bronksi (the bands constant) was undoubted and coupled with the sadly departed Larry
Steinbachek and Jimmy Somerville, Bronski Beat were a true breath of fresh air in
the onslaught of synth bands in the early 80s.
The songs on the original album are second to none and it is a classic
album.
On The Age Of Reason, Bronski is joined by programmer Ian
Donaldson and vocalist Stephen Granville who sounds like a cross between
Sylvester and David McAlmont (no bad thing) and the album is re-imagined with a
modern dance feel. It tries its best to update
the songs and in many ways, it does so but, to be frank, the songs in their new
form don’t really carry themselves. The
original versions seem to spiral around in the head as the new album is
listened to and it becomes a case of remembering how good it was rather than
how it now is.
Granville is a good singer, no doubt, but his voice is often
too far down the mix to be able to stand out and the attempts to sometimes
follow Somerville in presentation doesn’t quite sit right. Album opener, the mighty Why is the stand out
track as it retains some of the raw feel with ‘that’ bassline that pounds from
beginning to end and does enable the voice to stand out as it should. From thereon in The Age Of Reason doesn’t
quite live up to expectation.
No More War is spliced with It Ain’t Necessarily So and
passes without any major impact, Junk and Need A Man Blues represent blandness
rather than edgy tracks that they once were.
The track synonymous with Bronski Beat, Smalltown Boy, loses its piercing
percussion sound in favour of a forgettable beat which almost takes the track
to bland-land.
Strangely, the album doesn’t contain I Feel Love/Johnny
Remember Me made famous for including Marc Almond and it seems strange that is
it missing. Maybe copyright issues prevent
its inclusion but its absence is a big loss.
Strange goes to irony as one of three new tracks, Flower For Dandara
closes disc one on a high note - a tribute to the Brazilian transsexual Dandara
dos Santos who was callously murdered outside her Brazilian home earlier this
year. The track is tastefully performed
and with the addition of vocals from Rose McDowall is a fitting mark of respect.
Disc two of the release features four more versions of
Flower For Dandara and two other new tracks in five mixes of Stars (the Sylvester
cover) and four mixes of I’ll Be Gone.
The quantity of mixes makes the new songs tedious and overpowering.
The Age Of Reason isn’t a bad album, it just feels wrong in several
places and often just doesn’t sound quite right. Classic songs are always classic songs and
the tracks here are certainty perfect pop on many levels but, disappointingly,
the new versions fail to add to the originals and a purchase of The Age Of
Consent may be a preferable decision.
Published on Louder Than War 25/08/17 - here
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