Studio: Music Video Distributors (MVD)
Video: 1.78:1 Widescreen Enhanced
Audio: DD 5.1, DD 2.0
Extras: Interview (55 minutes); Photo Gallery (2 min); Access All Areas (19 min); Biography
Length: 160 minutes
Rating: ***1/2
This concert takes place at The Dome in Brighton, UK in December, and
finishes off the band’s tour in 2003. Their brand of synth-pop
yielded many hits in the early 1980s including “Don’t You Want Me” and
“(Keep Feeling) Fascination.” The original band was formed in
1977. Their first single was well-received in 1978 and helped to
get a tie-in with Virgin Records. In 1981 there was a string of
hits with “Love Action” to number three, “Open Your Heart” made it to
number six, and “Don’t You Want Me” hit number one on the UK
charts. In the mid 80s they had a number one US hit with
“Human.” The band on this disc consists of Philip Oakey (lead
vocals), Susan Anne Sulley (lead vocals), Joanne Catherall (backing
vocals), David Beevers (programming), Neil Sutton (keyboards), Nic
Burke (keyboards and guitar), and Errol Rollins (electronic drums and
percussion).
The way the music is performed is very much like the studio albums and
that will please many listeners who have come to know those songs
extremely well. Given the style of the music there are only a
handful of musicians and the music is entirely electronic with the
exception of the vocals. The vocalists are occasionally out of
tune, not loud enough, or slow/tired, but they still do an admirable
job. The band has more than enough good material from the many
years of making music to put together a solid concert that should evoke
many fond memories of the 1980s—who hasn’t sung along with “Don’t You
Want Me” at one point? The interview on the disc is quite
thorough and covers many areas with the three main band members.
For a look at the band in concert elsewhere, just check out the “Access
All Areas” section—it has videos of the band throughout the country.
Sound quality on the disc is uneven. At times the midrange is
hard and the sound is thin, etched, digital, and electronic (and not in
a good way). It is very spatial however, with good use of the
surrounds and very good vocal presence. As the concert continues
the audio improves somewhat. The video is very well done.
There are phasey blue lights all over in the early part of the concert
and generally the stage is bathed in different colored lights.
The arena is mid-sized and very nice looking. The editing
consists of slow cuts from one camera that often fade into each other
creating a dream-like quality early on in the show. Songs
included: Medley: Hard Times/Love Action; Mirror Man; Louise; The
Snake; Darkness; All I Ever Wanted; Open Your Heart; The Lebanon; One
Man In My Heart; Human; The Things That Dreams Are Made Of; Love Me
Madly?; (Keep Feeling) Fascination; Don’t You Want Me; Empire State
Human; (Together In) Electric Dreams; Sound of the Crowd.
-Brian Bloom
