But they don't have to make another album as they will make a good wage doing the MK 1 tribute sets on the festival circuits .
Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Moderator: StanInBlack
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BikerinBlack
- Rats Rally
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
For me no but its better than Giants which should never had been released maybe 4 tracks as a EP single would have been better .But imo they don't have a good album left in them nowadays .
But they don't have to make another album as they will make a good wage doing the MK 1 tribute sets on the festival circuits .
But they don't have to make another album as they will make a good wage doing the MK 1 tribute sets on the festival circuits .
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jetblacksdad
- Ugly
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Give it a go.StanInBlack wrote: ↑16 Jul 2023, 08:31 I haven't felt the need to listen to it since release day, so I suspect not.
I played MOM quite a few times and over a period before i decided it wasn't for me.
You might like it! give it a go and report back/ I dare ya!
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Why on earth would a moderator on a Stranglers forum want to give the latest album another go after just playing it once or twice? 
Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Let us know how you get on. I think my thoughts on it are pretty much the same. I like most of it but still not sure about No man's land, Lines and Breathe.
Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
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aldinblack
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Perhaps he wants to compare it to the next Stranglers album, which he already knows is rubbishjason wrote:Why on earth would a moderator on a Stranglers forum want to give the latest album another go after just playing it once or twice?
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StanInBlack
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theraven1979
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Ok I'm not quite as against this album as Stan is - I listened to it a few times when it was released but it's been over a year since I last heard it. So what did I think?
Water
The intro ain't too shabby. But then we're into a simple repetitive bass run . JJ singing (which is nice) but the verses are very folky to my ears. A little "hey noddy nay" and after a while it just sounds a bit dreary (imagine some bored school kids singing it..... "water has come" - it sounds like that). The keyboards are very similar sounding to stuff from Giants. Baz chips in with a bit of rock standard string bending and it sort of fizzles out. Then it's all over I can just never imagine wanting to pluck this song out again.
This Song
Sorry I skipped this. Got as far as Baz singing "Boxxxxxxshhttt". I recall quite liking this when it came out. Lyrically it's probably the strongest on the album.
And If You Should See Dave
This is alright and I'm not just saying that because of the sentimentality of it all. I like the style they've gone for - kinda classy 60s vibe - the cowboy saloon vibe thing works really well. For me this is a nice Stranglers song without throwing the kitchen sink at it (which a lot of songs suffer from on this album). And it is of course a fitting tribute to Dave.
If Something....
Vocal effects from the off. Similar to the last track it's moving away from the "rock n roll standard" which has been the thing that sets them apart from other bands and makes them who they are. Again I think they need to tone Baz's vocals down a bit the "It's war" and "I miss yer" kinda ruins the vibe. This is of course a Frankenstein monster of a track sounding like about 3 different "ideas" stitched together. It's a good effort but due to the stitching it ruins the songs flow. It coulda been so much better. That said, I encourage more of this if they're to do another album. The little Kraftwerk nod and brass bits are most enjoyable.
No Man's Land
I really really had to force my way through this as I know some people rate it? It just does nothing for me - I can imagine many bands coming up with this sort of thing. It's boring. Trying to say something good about this? I'd say the little keyboard runs on the chorus are decent. Next!
The Lines
Oh god! No please no.
Payday
From the off this sounds dreary and dismal. "Payday, it's mayday" - Please stop. Next!
Down
I quite liked this when I first heard it and I still stand by that. Simple, not too try hard but with a strong melody (With respect to Lionel Richie perhaps) and half decent lyrics. Worthy of an album track IMO.
Last Man On The Moon
Almost wander into Prog in the intro. It kinda plods and Baz's vocals have had some kinda "futuristic" treatment which just sounds naff. There's a gap like they've run out of ideas so Baz chips in with pretty standard guitar picking. It's not one I'll be whistling (or revisiting) any time soon. Shame cos the keyboards (Dave?) aren't too shabby and are deserving of a better song/lyrics.
White Stallion
The intro reminds me of something from About Time perhaps? The pulsing "disco"? beat is alright but that's it, that's the hook really. Kinda then wanders off into recent Damned territory. Then inexplicably we have some terrible "Choir Number 1" off the shelf mod synth thing which sounds cheesy and annoying. They've clearly gone for a "big sound" but it just doesn't deliver.
Breathe
Sounding like something from JJ's Un Jour Parfait I quite like it - I'd have liked to have heard JJ singing tbh. Again, they shine when they're doing simple songs without going OTT. The "fight to the end" seems a little strange and almost ruins it.
If I was to sum the album up I'd say it's not their worst but it's down the pile for me. It's like seeing someone fading - it sorta resembles The Stranglers in bits but it's like they've forgotten who they were. I can't imagine the blood line any stronger for any future album but I'd be incredibly happy to be proved wrong.
Jim
Water
The intro ain't too shabby. But then we're into a simple repetitive bass run . JJ singing (which is nice) but the verses are very folky to my ears. A little "hey noddy nay" and after a while it just sounds a bit dreary (imagine some bored school kids singing it..... "water has come" - it sounds like that). The keyboards are very similar sounding to stuff from Giants. Baz chips in with a bit of rock standard string bending and it sort of fizzles out. Then it's all over I can just never imagine wanting to pluck this song out again.
This Song
Sorry I skipped this. Got as far as Baz singing "Boxxxxxxshhttt". I recall quite liking this when it came out. Lyrically it's probably the strongest on the album.
And If You Should See Dave
This is alright and I'm not just saying that because of the sentimentality of it all. I like the style they've gone for - kinda classy 60s vibe - the cowboy saloon vibe thing works really well. For me this is a nice Stranglers song without throwing the kitchen sink at it (which a lot of songs suffer from on this album). And it is of course a fitting tribute to Dave.
If Something....
Vocal effects from the off. Similar to the last track it's moving away from the "rock n roll standard" which has been the thing that sets them apart from other bands and makes them who they are. Again I think they need to tone Baz's vocals down a bit the "It's war" and "I miss yer" kinda ruins the vibe. This is of course a Frankenstein monster of a track sounding like about 3 different "ideas" stitched together. It's a good effort but due to the stitching it ruins the songs flow. It coulda been so much better. That said, I encourage more of this if they're to do another album. The little Kraftwerk nod and brass bits are most enjoyable.
No Man's Land
I really really had to force my way through this as I know some people rate it? It just does nothing for me - I can imagine many bands coming up with this sort of thing. It's boring. Trying to say something good about this? I'd say the little keyboard runs on the chorus are decent. Next!
The Lines
Oh god! No please no.
Payday
From the off this sounds dreary and dismal. "Payday, it's mayday" - Please stop. Next!
Down
I quite liked this when I first heard it and I still stand by that. Simple, not too try hard but with a strong melody (With respect to Lionel Richie perhaps) and half decent lyrics. Worthy of an album track IMO.
Last Man On The Moon
Almost wander into Prog in the intro. It kinda plods and Baz's vocals have had some kinda "futuristic" treatment which just sounds naff. There's a gap like they've run out of ideas so Baz chips in with pretty standard guitar picking. It's not one I'll be whistling (or revisiting) any time soon. Shame cos the keyboards (Dave?) aren't too shabby and are deserving of a better song/lyrics.
White Stallion
The intro reminds me of something from About Time perhaps? The pulsing "disco"? beat is alright but that's it, that's the hook really. Kinda then wanders off into recent Damned territory. Then inexplicably we have some terrible "Choir Number 1" off the shelf mod synth thing which sounds cheesy and annoying. They've clearly gone for a "big sound" but it just doesn't deliver.
Breathe
Sounding like something from JJ's Un Jour Parfait I quite like it - I'd have liked to have heard JJ singing tbh. Again, they shine when they're doing simple songs without going OTT. The "fight to the end" seems a little strange and almost ruins it.
If I was to sum the album up I'd say it's not their worst but it's down the pile for me. It's like seeing someone fading - it sorta resembles The Stranglers in bits but it's like they've forgotten who they were. I can't imagine the blood line any stronger for any future album but I'd be incredibly happy to be proved wrong.
Jim
"I bathed in sun and walked in rain
It taught me how to laugh again"
It taught me how to laugh again"
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toilerinblack
- BLUE SISTER
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Intresting your DM review it certainly goes to show you how each fan hear's and rates a song differently and that's the beauty of music and especially with this band who over five decades has produced so much different and varied styles that there should be in theroy something there for everybody to like and also dislike and for me the best ended with Hugh in '90,there could never be another The Raven,La Folie or any of their first three albums again because there is now no longer Hugh,Jet or Dave,but for me DM is still a different and decent album with many good songs to it's name and credit.
For me the Lines or Down are the albums two weakest tracks for sure that i haven't changed my mind about from the first hearing of them on release day and i certainly wouldn't of chosen to have included them in the final studio version and if Sisterhood is a good track then i would of made room for that one by leaving off one of these two tracks for sure.
But a good and honest DM review from your perspective of it JIm though we respectfully differ.
For me the Lines or Down are the albums two weakest tracks for sure that i haven't changed my mind about from the first hearing of them on release day and i certainly wouldn't of chosen to have included them in the final studio version and if Sisterhood is a good track then i would of made room for that one by leaving off one of these two tracks for sure.
But a good and honest DM review from your perspective of it JIm though we respectfully differ.
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Cricklewood
- The Man They Love To Hate
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
Water does come off like a school hymn at times heh
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jetblacksdad
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Re: Dark Matters has it stood the test of time?
I'm far more motivated by the tune/melody/groove than the lyrics.
A good tune will always carry a weak lyric but t'other way round........
Some of the lyrics are , indeed, weak but the the music is string. Water has a great all over sound. JJ could be singing about washing his pants and it would still sound banging!
A good tune will always carry a weak lyric but t'other way round........
Some of the lyrics are , indeed, weak but the the music is string. Water has a great all over sound. JJ could be singing about washing his pants and it would still sound banging!
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