Erasure were a better band, a better singles act, and have a better discography than the Pet Shop Boys

'I Say I Say I Say' was the first Erasure album I bought at release - I was 11 when it came out, got 'Pop' at Christmas in '92 and 1993 was agony with nothing new from them. I still only have it on cassette, need to rectify that.

The limited edition CD version had a pretty neat pop-up sleeve!

http://cdn.discogs.com/T0sZWcYWkkMccF4Oc3XQ92t69Rw=/fit-in/300x253/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(96)/discogs-images/R-182957-1110405282.jpg.jpg

Very surprised "O L'Amour" wasn't a single on that list.

Ohh...

Chart (1986/1987) Peak position

UK Singles Chart[7] 85
U.S. Billboard Dance/Club Play Singles Chart[8] 3
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales Chart[8] 9

I liked the Colin Newman mix of 'Fingers and Thumbs (Cold Summer's Day).'

idk I like about three quarters of Pop! and think they really honed their sound in the Crackers Intl-Chorus period, but I can't escape how their obsession with a template wore them down. In Vince Clarke's admirable work ethic from Depeche Mode and the Assembly and Yazoo to Erasure there was the commitment of a hack.

Very surprised "O L'Amour" wasn't a single on that list.

Ohh...

Chart (1986/1987) Peak position

UK Singles Chart[7] 85
U.S. Billboard Dance/Club Play Singles Chart[8] 3
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales Chart[8] 9

― half the staying power of Erasure (Eazy), Tuesday, September 1, 2015 9:58 PM (6 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yeah, even though Clarke had obviously had success with Depeche Mode, Yazoo and The Assembly, Erasure got off to a really shaky start commercially. In fact, if I remember this correctly, Erasure turned into what they were completely by chance... I think the whole idea behind what eventually turned into the first Erasure album, Wonderland, was that it was initially supposed to be a series of Clarke-penned songs with different singers on each track, but then he auditioned Andy Bell and did away with the original idea, and Andy Bell became the permanent lead singer and they started writing songs together. It was originally meant to be a one-off project, but is now Clarke's longest running act after only doing one album with Depeche Mode and two albums with Yazoo (and he didn't even want to do the second Yazoo album!)

Wonderland didn't even make the UK Top 40 album chart upon release - it peaked at #71! The original release of 'Who Needs Love (Like That)' was the biggest hit from the album, peaking at #55 in the UK Top 40 singles chart - 'Oh L'Amour' and 'Heavenly Action' both performed extremely poorly at the time of release, which is surprising because 'Oh L'Amour' in particular is seen as one of their "classic" tracks. It must have been a bit of a shock to Clarke that the first Erasure releases didn't perform too well commercially, especially after having success with previous outfits, but I guess in a sense this was a good thing. Erasure weren't an "overnight" success, they built their fanbase and reputation gradually: 'Sometimes' was their "breakthrough" UK hit, which led to The Circus charting at #6, and then next came the The Innocents and singles like 'A Little Respect' by which time Erasure were a household name.

I just filed a long essay on a particular kind of '80s queer synth pop and thought about including Erasure but didn't, in part because it's obvious why the kids and their parents liked'em.

Because they wrote a series of good, catchy singles/albums?

Yep. I don't think the albums are particularly special though.

In Vince Clarke's admirable work ethic from Depeche Mode and the Assembly and Yazoo to Erasure there was the commitment of a hack.

― The burrito of ennui (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, September 1, 2015 9:58 PM (57 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I don't quite understand what you're getting at here. I think if Yazoo had made it to a third album, then Wonderland is what it would have sounded like, and I do think that sonically Erasure progressed from there, mostly with Clarke being solely responsible for the music and getting the sounds together for the records. I dunno, "hackwork" isn't something that springs to my mind whenever I hear a classic Erasure record.

Yep. I don't think the albums are particularly special though.

― The burrito of ennui (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, September 1, 2015 10:57 PM (9 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'd argue the opposite - particularly The Innocents and Chorus.

No such thing as a "classic" Erasure album. Unless you mean "record" to include singles.

I've heard all of them through 1995 and there ain't much difference to my ears. The ABBA-esque EP sounds particularly cut-rate. Bell is often a blank singer, and to my ears Clarke's dumb little hooks need a singer with personality to put them across (Moyet, Sharkey could; Bell too on occasion).

"Hack" isn't necessarily an insult, but in Erasure's case where the guys worked hard without much imagination for so many years it makes sense.

Yes, I meant "record" to include singles, although again, I'd argue that The Innocents and Chorus are classics, both being highly regarded by not only Erasure fans, but also dedicated fans of UK synthpop. If I had to rank my favourite UK synthpop albums of all time, both of those albums would be in there without any hesitation. That they haven't had big critical acclaim outside of dedicated synthpop circles like the Pet Shop Boys have is a whole 'nother matter entirely.

I've heard all of them through 1995 and there ain't much difference to my ears.

You're implying that Wild! and I Say I Say I Say sound the same, and they don't.

Well, let's put it this way: I'd love to read a reconsideration.

I'd highly recommend giving Nightbird from 2005 a listen. It's a beautiful record and manages to capture everything that's great about them.

I've found myself listening to I Say I Say I Say a lot today... man, did Vince and Martyn Ware get some wonderful synth sounds on this record. In fact, I think at this point Vince wasn't even using any drum machines and all of the drum sounds come from Vince's collection of synths, just like The Human League did on their first couple of albums before they started using the Linn. 'Take Me Back', 'So The Story Goes', 'Run To The Sun', 'Always', 'All Through The Years', 'Miracle' and 'Because You're So Sweet' are all-time Erasure tracks for me, and I enjoy 'I Love Saturday' and 'Man In The Moon' ... really, there's only 'Blues Away' that I'm not so keen on.

otm

PSB like Depeche Mode... if you weren't there in the 80s, I don't see how you become infatuated with them, takes a leap of faith to believe they were amazing

Erasure? A little respect is all you need

I love PSB. I didn't listen to them until very late, but I actually tie them more to the early-mid '90s. That's just me - I love Discography and even without reading the dates, those clearly feel like they were conceived in the '80s in terms of sound and content. But Very is my favorite PSB album and it evokes memories of my first encounters with gay culture and AIDS in the '90s. It was bewildering to me as a kid because I didn't know anyone who was gay growing up (a few would eventually come out as gay when they were older) and yet the national debate was visible and the stigma from a conservative culture was still prevalent where I was. Even people who didn't have any animosity towards gays didn't see them as equal or normal. Even if they were embracing gay artists, they were still embracing a pop culture that frequently denigrated or mocked gays in some way. But I could see the beginning of change - it may feel like a backward time and place now, but from what I can tell, it was a big leap from the '80s. Also, I didn't grow up with anyone with AIDS, but it was a big, widely-known cause and the schools in retrospect did a great job in educating students about it. That's in stark contrast to the horrific picture painted by people I know now who were living here in NYC in the Village during the '80s. Every time I put on Very I actually choked up a bit for how mournful and hopeful it sounds, and it builds to that wonderful peak in "Go West." It's similar to what it's like listening to Sam Cooke or Aretha Franklin sing about civil rights. So yeah, I wasn't there, but I love PSB, I think they're one of the greats.

I enjoy Depeche Mode a lot too, I went from mildly liking them to loving them over the years, partly because I didn't realize how charming they could be. Their live shows are great, some of the best I've seen visually. They're still primarily a singles band to me though. (I know many have argued for their albums, but I still prefer to hear their singles strung together on a compilations.)

And I enjoy Erasure a lot too - I knew several people who had Pop! and became familiar with those songs even before I knew who they were or really anything else in pop music.

Erasure are very much the better band

As a New Order fan, I didn't pay much attention to either of these bands. PSB definitely had better hooks.

I did like Bronski Beat though.

And I don't know why I thought Vince Clarke was in Bronski Beat. Senior moment.

I'm seeing New Order and PSB in the fall (at least I hope), but I would have to say New Order is the greater band - what they accomplished is tremendous, few can match it.

I like a lot of Erasure: Pop! is wall-to-wall jams. "Chains of Love" and "Love to Hate You" are frequent karaoke jams. Andy Bell comes off as an average guy with average thoughts, which is a large part of his charm and attractiveness as singer/lyricist.

Depeche Mode exists for my 19-25 y/o students. They know "Enjoy the Silence" and "Personal Jesus" by name.

Those are literally the two Depeche Mode songs I was thinking about on the bus this morning.

I'm pretty sure I ended up with Bob Saget's copy of Erasure's Pop! (not going to tell the story so don't ask) and am just absolutely obsessed with "Drama!"

I kind of think Depeche Mode > Erasure > PSB > New Order as far as singles go.

"Victim of Love" and "Drama!" are two of the best imo -- along with their cover of "Take A Chance on Me"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX37rIFf9Tg

It's also wild to watch this video with the knowledge that Erasure's entire oeuvre got written about less in solemn terms of "queer identity" than like Frank Ocean or Phoebe Bridgers or whatever

I remember a friend's younger sister going to see Duran Duran when she was 13 or 14, on the Seven and the Ragged Tiger tour; Erasure opened up and she came home saying, in effect, "I was not prepared for that."

I'm seeing New Order and PSB in the fall (at least I hope)

So am I! I have tickets for both nights at the Hollywood Bowl. We'll see if it happens this year.

Pet Shop Boys are a great “albums” band, imo.

I saw DM a few years ago, an old friend was opening for them and so we got absurdly good seats. It was an experience, watching a bunch of Gen Xers screams along to every word of every song. Really fun, tbh!

DM win for me anyday, then Erasure, NO, and PSB.

Be prepared to hear the complete collapse of Bernard Sumner's voice, alas.

xxpost

You could have made that statement before any live New Order appearance since 1981, tbh

I know!

Pet Shop Boys "Disco" remix album (in the cassette format in this case) was the first album I ever bought, and it's a masterpiece. Listening to the Erasure hits takes me back to youth discos and pubs and they were pretty great. But the PSB one is like a sacred object to me.

That New Order/Pet Shop Boys tour is Erasure erasure!

NO/PSB neeeevveeeer mention Erasure.

Love Erasure! though imo they are very much a singles band, i am not as much of a fan of their album cuts, personally.

I remember a friend's younger sister going to see Duran Duran when she was 13 or 14, on the Seven and the Ragged Tiger tour; Erasure opened up and she came home saying, in effect, "I was not prepared for that."

Hmm...you sure it was Seven and the Ragged Tiger? Notorious seems more likely since that was 1986 and Erasure were two albums in, where during SATRT they didn't exist yet!

Saw Erasure on concert about 3 years ago and it was genuinely thrilling. Bare bones show with just two backing singers and a nice but basic lighting setup. I am not even a big fan but it was the best thing I've seen in years. Andy Bell is a blast.

Yeah, I had the album chronology wrong, but Erasure opened DD’s two concerts at Madison Square Garden in June 1987.

A difference between Erasure and PSB is that the latter has a fairly linear sense of melody for the vocals - fewer notes and closer together let's say. It is less ambitiously composed - whereas Erasure melodies are up and down the scales, often in arpeggios if you think of songs like "Love To Hate You" or "Star" etc. In both cases it complements their backing music which for Erasure relies on springy sequencers and for the Petshop Boys is more chordal, has more synth washes and atmospherics.

Basically the Petshop Boys are the John Lennon of synth pop and Erasure are Paul McCartney. I guess that means Depeche Mode are George Harrison.

a George Harrison who affects a love of leather

George Harrison is the vegan Depeche Mode

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jE7-RlrQx2c

the 1993 channel 4 special 'Camp Christmas' is on youtube in full, co-presented by Andy Bell and Melissa Etheridge, they perform several Christmas songs together. In terms of differences between Erasure and PSB, it's difficult to imagine Neil Tennant replacing Bell here. Also features Derek Jarman, Martina Navratilova, Justin Fashanu, Armistead Maupin, Stephen Fry and many more. Fry called it "ghastly and under-rehearsed".

Erasure are the synth-pop Beach Boys, A Little Respect's melody is straight-up Brian Wilson anyway
Drama! is the genre's Good Vibrations
Blue Savannah is Don't Worry Baby

I mean I could go on

there is no comparison as it is like saying the smiths are better than the cure or the clash are better than the sex pistols!