I dare you, to be real: Bauhaus - 1979-1983 poll

I think Bela is awesome, esp that sweet beat, but I don't get why it's really the only Bauhaus song most people who are aware of a Bauhaus song are aware of (whew). I guess the answer is "The Hunger"? I think my fave Belaaaaa's Undeeeeeaaaaad experience is when they played it for really no reason at a lazer show in a planetarium in Salt Lake City, Utah. So I associate it w/Mormon planetariums now.

perfect storm of gothic lyrical imagery plus exposure plus creepy wail i guess

ppl would think of Bauhaus as a completely different band if "Spirit" had BLD's cultural penetration

lol also the Spotify album I posted upthread swapped "Dancing" and "Hair of the Dog", which I didn't notice until just now

i have no idea why i left "bela lugosi's dead" off my list of favorite tracks from this collection. maybe i wanted to snub the live version, or maybe i was just feeling goth-snobbish yesterday, i dunno. anyway, it was the first bauhaus song i ever heard (thanks to the hunger), and the first i ever loved, one of the most bewilderingly visceral and thrilling musical experiences of my then still relatively young life. murphy & co wrote a bunch of other great songs, but i don't know that they ever managed to top "bela", ever again came up with anything so unearthly, unique and timeless, the sound not just of a genre being born, but a worldview, a way of life. i can't call it my favorite bauhaus song anymore, but that's only because i've heard it too often and it's come to symbolize too much. still an amazing legacy all on its own.

I've had the whole thing as a spotify playlist for months:

http://open.spotify.com/user/nathanwoolls/playlist/0D0tnfNZ5JxXbVYWFI4KYa

Dark Entries was a surprisingly easy pick for me here.

Crut, have you heard Angel Hair's cover of "Stigmata Martyr"? Really accentuates the brutality imo.

Man, I had a Bauhaus t-shirt for EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK at one point in the 80s, but c'mon, I still loved the damned music.

Perversely, I went with She's In Parties, even though Mask is my favourite album, it's just that the bassline on SIP is one of my favourite David J wobbles ever.

xp Angel Hair was so awesome

The lone vote for "In The Flat Field" will be me, because when I first heard Bauhaus, expecting them to sound like The Cure, and they sounded more like The Birthday party, I became an instant fan and bought a poster for my freshman year dorm room. This was the song I heard.

I joined you in voting 'In The Flat Field' - song just kills.

Maybe people like Bela Lugosi cos of the suave bossa nova beat? Perfect for poolside cocktails down in the crypt. Anyhow, easily the first Bauhaus song I heard, I remember it from when I was 10 and Bauhaus were on some BBC2 yoof tv programme. Young mind blown at creepy band, creepy fans, creepy song.

Going to vote for the Passion of Lovers, but yes, Spirit is great too!

Dark Entries, with Lagartija Nick a close second - glad to see someone else loves that thumping riff.

In the great-coated dourness of the early eighties, Bauhaus always seemed like they were on their way to the most fabulously decadent and depraved parties imaginable.

Does anybody know why Burning From The Inside is so under-represented? It's got amazing songs like "King Volcano", "Slice of Life", and "Hope", but only "She's In Parties" made it here.

Still a great comp obviously, I could vote for almost anything on it. Leaning towards "In The Flat Fields", "Silent Hedges", or "All We Ever Wanted" at the moment.

Probably because Burning From The Inside is basically a Love & Rockets album with Peter Murphy singing on it? Not an insult, I love that album so much, but I can imagine that causing division within the band when coming to representing it on a comp.

Wasn't KING VOLCANO a single? It's simple and stupid but I loved that one. Would vote for it if it was here. As it is I'm torn between 'She's in Parties' and 'Third Uncle'.

I think I'll go for She's in Parties in the end as Third Uncle is a cover.

Yeah, I love Bauhaus's version of Third Uncle, but I think I love the Eno version slightly more. They did grebt covers, though. Like, they took really obvious influences and just made them completely their own.

Yeah, it's good, but I don't think that their version surpasses the original at all. xp

oh i do. love eno's original, but the bauhaus cover is what that song always dreamed it would grow up to be.

it's not a transformation, like say devo's "satisfaction", it's the complete fulfillment of intent and potential

Thank you for this ingenious, seemingly impossible poll. Nothing against the covers but they seem to me to be reverent 'Foundations in Bauhaus Theory' exercises. I need to give this more thought, but today it’s:

The Passion of Lovers
Kick in the Eye
In the Flat Field
Dark Entries
Terror Couple Kill Colonel
All We Ever Wanted
Crowds
Spirit
She's in Parties
St. Vitus Dance
Mask
Stigmata Martyr
Double Dare
Silent Hedges
Lagartija Nick
Sanity Assassin
Spy in the Cab
Hollow Hills
In Fear of Fear
Bela Lugosi's Dead (live version)
Telegram Sam
Third Uncle
Ziggy Stardust

Well, yes Brian Eno's version is slightly better but were not voting between those two in this particular poll ;)

'Kick In The Eye', easily.

My favourite Bauhaus song overall is 'Hope', though.

I have had a copy of this comp on vinyl since it came out! Its rather tattered and well played at this point (though most of that heavy playing was from 85-90, and nothing since, haha)

I hate bela lugosi's dead with the fire of a thousand suns, and I'm a big Bauhaus fan. Will never ever understand the love for that song.

Tossup between "Dark Entries" and "Third Uncle" for me, perhaps.

Their cover of "Rosegarden funeral of sores" is also excellent.

I mean:
"Yin and yang, lumber punch
Go taste a tart then eat my lunch"

Fckin hilariously awesome line.

The problem is that the studio version of Bela wasn't easily available for a long time, as I recall. I was lucky enough to find a CD single of it back in the day but it's absence on this comp leaves a void as it's far superior to the live version.

I had a glow in the dark picture disc vinyl of it.

She's in Parties

Fuuuuuck

"In The Flat Field" I think. Also twas an ILM thread a few years back that got me to dig into Bauhaus properly, so <3 u ILM

i love this, knew that this poll would be fun.

"All we ever wanted" is the only one I could seriously think of picking instead of Bela. Odd that it would appear on a comp as it's the perfect cultish album cut. I was thrilled that they finished their set with that one when I saw them on the last reunion tour.

factreeeeeee towwwwnnnnnn

I love that everyone who has covered it always says "factory town" just like that, regardless of what they do w/the rest.

Except for MGMT, which actually annoys me everytime I hear it. He sings it "fac-to-ry towwnn".

Lagartija Nick, to be contrary. Also becase it soundtracks my rare BDSM dreams.

i think i'm going to get really drunk tonight and try to piece together side 3 and 4 of these as it's not on Spotify as is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duR7mRzx-M8

i have never heard the original but this song is brilliant. i love how is just keeps winding up, getting more crazier by the minute, winds up even more than explodes all over the place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Iuhc0QR61c

It is on Spotify

Volume 1: http://open.spotify.com/album/1vMVPeFOzzvnwC8x6wAie6

Volume 2: http://open.spotify.com/album/12U3k2UeDnmqE4id0G7uOb

i could not find Volume 2 searching under Bauhaus, thanks for the link nate.

The single version of Bela was, of course, also used as the theme music for Goth Talk on SNL which prolly introduced some people to Bauhaus. I like it, but not as much as the live version from Shadow Of Light:

http://youtu.be/1U1SiIWuZeE

This poll, though, is a toss up between "In the Flat Field" and "The Passion of Lovers," though I'm also fond of several others. I think I have to go with "The Passion of Lovers." Kickass performance:

http://youtu.be/XJ_dPJc-ivI

I guess I should have used the real URLs?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U1SiIWuZeE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJ_dPJc-ivI

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

ppl would think of Bauhaus as a completely different band if "Spirit" had BLD's cultural penetration

― Vaseline MEN AMAZING JOURNEY (DJP), Thursday, March 1, 2012 1:26 PM (3 days ago)

I was v surprised to learn from wikipedia today that "Spirit" was a deliberate attempt to break into the Top 30! I would never hear that song and think "here's a band that's really angling for a hit."

The single version I assume you mean? When I first heard the version on the album I was really suprised, its quite different!

...when I was in high school, me and my bff used to sing the song as "The stage becomes a ship in flames/I tie you to the mast/Throw your body overboard/ and kick you up the arse"

... kids.

The single version I assume you mean? When I first heard the version on the album I was really suprised, its quite different!

Wow - not sure I ever heard the single version actually!

The single version is much better.

both versions are great!

that posted video of "Spirit" was the first time i heard the single version. i can see where they are trying to come from thou it not really Bauhaus i know.

This is probably worth posting here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg1QqydUaXk

the winner was:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRNu8S-YoMM