album // Hits!
I'm pleased that Mute have chosen to release a new Erasure greatest hits, rather than going for, say, a remix compilation or some other variation, and in a way I'm pleased that the duo's excellent plethora of hits may again get better exposure. The choice of songs was always going to be difficult with so many quality pop gems to pick from, and I'm sure there will be a number of disgruntled EIS members who disagree with the career snapshot presented on Hits!, however it kind of makes sense - as fans of the duo, we naturally want to see our favourite band do as well as possible, so putting together a compilation of Vince and Andy's best-selling tracks makes commercial sense given the renewed interest in their music. The release of a limited edition double CD version (lcdmutel10) containing a 70 minute megamix by Mark Towns ensures that this reaches the duo's strong fanbase, rather than merely acting as a convenient marketing exercise designed to re-introduceErasure to the music buying public.
Put simply, this compilation is fantastic, and serves as a timely reminder of the strength of the Clarke/Bell songwriting partnership. In addition, the remastered tracks sound clear and fresh, and on the three best-selling tracks from Chorus - 'Chorus', 'Love To Hate You' and 'Breath Of Life' - you can actually hear hitherto undetectable analogue intricacies that the original mastering process must have dampened.
In terms of track choices, we get a similar selection to those played live as part of 2003's Other Tour. Much of the Abba-esque EP is included, while just one single is taken from each of the Wonderland, Wild!, I Say I Say I Say, Erasure, Cowboy and Loveboat albums. Although as a fan, I would have preferred a second instalment of Pop!, if I was given the brief of filling 78 minutes of CD with their strongest songs, I would find it hard to deviate from this selection. What's also interesting is that many of the duo's single ballads are not included, giving the collection an upbeat tone. Also included is the 'August Mix' of 'Oh L'Amour' - see below for details.
Mark Towns' megamix - yuck, the name brings to mind Jive Bunny or Deep Heat, crimes against 80s music - is mostly compiled from 12" mixes, and Towns was apparently given access to the original masters, so the tracks often feature alternative vocals and isolated passages of melody unavailable elsewhere. Towns stitches the tracks together pretty well, much as you'd expext with today's digital toolkit. Mute however have made a mistake in not detailing which mixes have been used here. Some are simply forgettable.
Far better for die-hard fans is the simultaneous DVD release of Hits!, a two disc compilation of all 35 videos and rare footage, which is great if - like me - you have almst worn out your copy of the 1992 Pop! VHS. Owing to the unfortunate decline in Erasure's sales since the critical peak of Chorus, some of the later promo videos have hardly been seen. That said, the best video of all remains the humourous 'A Little Respect'.
On the second disc are included a number of live performances from the band's tour video releases - all of which are still available (to the best of my knowledge) on VHS (although the new digital masters could well herald the arrival of overdue DVD replacements). To my own personal amazement, just days after discovering that I had recorded over my video containing the Red Hot & Blue video for 'Too Darn Hot', its inclusion is perhaps one of the few truly rare items included here. A rare chance to see Erasure's debut on Top of the Pops is intriguing, and the revealing interview footage places this firmly into the completist's camp.
single // Oh L'Amour
Heralding the arrival of their new best of, Hits!, this remixed version of 1985's classic third single from Erasure really does deserve to do well. Covered more successfully by the burger van duo Dollar, Erasure's original release of this track didn't even make the UK top 40, despite becoming an anthem for the duo. Spread across two CDs and a DVD, the main CD starts with a new remix of 'Oh L'Amour' by Daniel Miller and Sie Medway-Smith. Nic Johnston embellishes the mix with some gorgeous acoustic guitar, as he has done on numerous other Erasure remixes, and Andy's vocals are given a new lease of life, sounding as if they had been recorded recently rather than for their debut album, Wonderland. Overall, the track is undoubtedly a grower, but after nearly 20 years of listening to the original, it does take a while to adjust to the new arrangement.
Also on CD1 are two excellent new B-sides, 'Love Me All Night Long' and 'Nothing Lasts Forever', both of which indicate that Vince and Andy haven't stopped composing excellent pop standards, despite putting out a 'covers' album and greatest hits in the same year. 'Love Me All Night Long', a gorgeous love song, features a beautifully euphoric chorus and a rich electronic backdrop of subtle arpeggiating synths, chunky modern beats, acoustic guitars and piano (something of a growing return after the years of analogue intricacy). That said, 'Nothing Lasts Forever' is classic analogue Erasure, thippy beats and squelchy basslines mixed with typically inventive melodies and a stunning middle eight. Vince even adds what seems to be a suspiciously gurgling 303 into the mix, which has rarely sounded so fresh in an electronic composition. Both tracks are simply fantastic.
CD2 features mixes of 'Oh L'Amour' from LMC (not the London Musicians' Collective), Shanghai Surprize and Kenny Haynes. LMC's mix is an upbeat, trancey take on the original, featuring almost all of the original melody and synths but adds an absolutely storming 4/4 beat. The Shanghai Surprize mix again uses most of the original, and includes a gorgeous breakdown which makes use of Andy's beautifully-harmonised vocal intro from the original. Their reworking of one of Vince's best middle eights sounds like a latter-period guest analogue appearance from the shy one himself. Kenny Haynes' mix is a harder trance affair that makes use of Andy's breathy vocal tones and little else from the original.
The DVD, on the audio front, kicks off with Carsten Kroeyers' mix of 'Oh L'Amour'. This is followed by a mix of the track by The Dark Brothers (who produced both B-sides and some of Other People's Songs) with Andy Bell. A live video of 'Victim Of Love', recorded on tour earlier this year, completes a pretty impressive three disc release.
In the first of its kind from the label, Mute also released a new mix of the track by Mark Towns (who completed the Hits! megamix CD) as a £1.00 download from their site and also from the EIS. The download comes complete with PDF sleeves and CD labels and can be burnt to CD, making this a four disc collection. Running at over 7 minutes, the 'Markymix' is pretty special, and well worth the low price.
It's nice also to see ME Company, long-running designers of sleeves for Erasure (from The Circus up to and including the first best of), providing the colourful sleeve design (with Andy's Phantasmagorical Entertainment swan making a much-deserved comeback), which also reprises their clever Chorus / Pop! integrated band logo.