PURE
O.K., it’s time
for the Numanarchist to do his Armchair Expert review of Gary Numan’s latest
album “Pure” which hit the shops at the beginning of this week. Now I know what
some of you are thinking; “How come Numanarchist is so late putting his review
on-line? He’s usually well on the ball when it comes to reviews of this sort…”
Well, I know that you might find this very
difficult to believe, but, I didn’t want to upset anyone! No, it’s the truth,
honest.
I was really looking forward to this album after
hearing “A Prayer For The Unborn” and three live songs from his last concert. I
had purposely not listened to any rough versions on phonelines so that I could
listen to his new album fresh. This was something I hadn’t really done for
years. In fact, I think the last time I listened to an album after hearing only
one track and a few small snippets was “Outland” and even then, it came out
after the tour had started so I had heard half of it live first. Oh yeah, that
happened with “Metal Rhythm” as well didn’t it? Anyway, I wanted it to be as
new as possible to me so that I could judge it from the finished product just
like I had so many times in the past…
Now, before I go any further with this, I must
point out that I REALLY expected to like this album a lot. I liked “Exile” far
more than “Sacrifice”, which I still can’t really enjoy listening to. The only
bit of doubt that I had was the fact that it was getting lots of good reviews
by the music press, surely a bad sign as we all know they usually hate his
stuff when we all love it. I decided to put this to the back of my mind. They
were probably just being nice because Gary had suddenly become “hip” and that
suited them. So, without further ado, I got he CD from HMV and thought “Oh the
cover’s shit again.”
I got home and settled down with a drink and set
the hi-fi to “loud” if for no other reason than to piss off the bloke next door
who constantly does the same to me with his Oasis albums. Knowing that I would
be putting my thoughts on the website, I also decided to keep a notebook close
to me because sometimes the first impressions can disappear after a few
listens. I have recently been putting together a sort of review diary of all of
Gary’s albums saying how I felt the first time I heard them and what I think
now. I found I could remember quite a lot about how I felt about albums in
general but not about every track. This time I would know exactly how I felt…
What follows here is an honest review of a person
who has been a fan for almost 22 years. I don’t expect anyone to have exactly
the same feelings as I had or have. This is NOT to say whether the album is
good or bad, just my own thoughts about it. My review is split into two parts;
the first listen and then the second opinion. To get back to my point about not
wanting to upset anyone, I’ll just say read it through to the end before
passing judgment on me. Also, please bear in mind that I AM The Numanarchist,
and as such, I sometimes find it difficult to be completely serious. If you are
here to see whether you will like the album or not, you’ve come to the wrong
place. You really should be at the record store buying it, then you can make
your own mind up…
Well the cover’s shit. Don’t like that at all.
There are some better photos in the booklet though. Anyway, it’s what it sounds
like that counts.
Okay, the CD is in and the remote is at hand.
Press play. Hang on what’s that f%#*ing noise? Is there something wrong with my
CD player? Oh no, it’s just FX. Here we go, the now familiar keyboard line from
the song that started out being an updated version of “Friends” from the first
album. Oh yeah, I like this! The vocals have got attitude. Wow that chorus is
KICKIN’! Not sure whether the singing in the verse is a bit muddy, maybe I’ve got
the bass up too high. Whoa, that chorus again. Love the effects on his voice.
Excellent.
Track 2. Oh this one seems a bit boring. The
chorus is quite nice though. Oh it’s Hetrodyne from the last concert. Seems to
have lots of effects but not much “musicalness” (Yes, I made that word up).
Nice outro.
3. Lots of FX again. Oh no, them whispered vocals
are crap. Great chorus then it virtually stops again after it, back to the
whisper. Quite experimental, with the emphasis on “mental”, please don’t
do it again!
4. Where have I heard that piano line before? Oh
this is boring. The singing’s OK in the verses but it’s difficult to pick out
anything that I like.
5. What’s that sound now? Is he in a submarine?
Everyone has been saying how great this track is but I hate it apart from the
chorus, which is really good again.
6. That bloody piano again! Now some bassline
with effects. This must have taken all of five minutes to write and record
7. Run out of good synth sounds or what? The
chorus is good then there’s another instrumental section that sounds like it’s
from “Sacrifice”. For f#*%s sake I
really don’t like this album. Oh the guitar is very powerful. It may grow on
me.
8. I already know A Prayer For The Unborn. Love
it. It’s excellent. Not keen on some of the rhythm sounds but the song itself
is great. Love the way it changes half way through. Best so far.
9. Submarine sound effects again? Shitty
whispered vocals again. Gets better in the second part.
10. That’s a nice sound, even if it does sound
like previous albums again. Oh what the hell did he put that heavy guitar on
the end for?
11. Some of the sounds here remind me of the
Depeche Mode stuff of a few years ago. How did I know he was gonna whisper
again? Very good chorus again with strong guitar and vocal lines.
To be honest, there is very little on this album
that makes me want to listen to it a second time. At least I got a student
discount! If only I had bought it on cassette instead. That way I could cover
the recording tabs and have a spare blank tape.
Well, I had second thoughts about buying it, but
I have just enjoyed (sorry that should have read “endured”) another listen. I
know that some of his albums have taken a while to grow on me. “Telekon” didn’t
impress me much. It wasn’t offensive to the aural receptors, just a bit boring.
On the first listen of “The Fury” I remember thinking “What the F*#k have you
done?” I got to really like both of these albums after a few listens. Sacrifice
on the other hand never did grow on me that much and, up to now, I still
maintain that this is his worst album. As I say, up to now…
Alright, let’s get back to the second listen.
In its favour, “Pure” is a very
good first track, so it’s one up on Sacrifice already! Although this basic song
is over three years old already, having been done during the “Exile” tour, this
new improved version really has a sense of power and menace about it. The
choruses in particular are very strong. I might put this as joint number two in
my Numan Title Track chart, number one being “Machine And Soul” and the other
joint number two’s “Berserker” and “Strange Charm”.
“Walking With
Shadows” I found a bit boring but it has a highly infectious chorus line.
Although not as powerful as some of the others, it stays in the mind quite
clearly. In fact, strange though this seems, it has been that part more than
any other that has been filling my thoughts when I wake up! The alarm goes off
in the morning and the next thing I know some bastard’s singing “All they want
is your heart and soul”, and it certainly isn’t coming from the radio! I liked
the title “Hetrodyne” as well.
“Rip” has that strange whispered, yet aggressive,
singing on the verses. I just don’t like the sound of it at all. But then the
chorus is splendid once again and his singing here really gives the impression
of anger and frustration with the shouting “Hey, I’ve done nothing to you.” I
wish I could enjoy the verses as much. I think it would be better if it was
just the first verse that used that effect and the second verse had a more
normal singing voice. This might carry the power that was built by the chorus
further into the song instead of it almost starting again.
“One Perfect Lie” is probably my least favourite
track. To me there seems to be no hook. It’s a sure bet that this is the track
he wrote about having his dog put down and, having had the experience a couple
of times myself, I can certainly identify with the feelings and sentiment of
the track. The “torn and guilty” outro sounds very similar to something from
many years ago but I can’t place it yet. I can’t even think if it was Numan or
someone else. Some of the piano/keyboard lines sound so old Numan to me.
(Editor’s note: This review was
taking me so long to write that by this stage I had listened to the album a
considerable number of times. In fact I’m on the twenty-sixth go as I write
this passage! It just keeps growing on me…)
The next track is one that has come in for a lot
of praise from journo’s and fans alike.
“My Jesus” came as a big disappointment to me.
The intro seemed to go on for ages and the piano/keyboard line wasn’t a million
miles away from the previous track. But then there’s this great build up of
vocals coming in that sounds brilliant. Sadly this energy is then entirely lost
for the first verse. I was finding it so difficult to like it and then up pops
possibly the strongest chorus singing we have ever had from Gary. It is SO
incredibly powerful and catchy that it completely changed my thinking about the
track. “Aha!” thinks me, “this is where it REALLY starts to kick in!”
Unfortunately, all this momentum is lost as the
second verse reverts back to the same style as the first. Of course, there is
the chorus again after it that gives that feeling of “WOW!” The song gets
better the more you hear it.
“Fallen” appears to be a quick write and record
job to put an extra track on the album. I can’t see the point of it at all. He
has done far better instrumentals and parts of this seem very similar to some
of the stuff on “The Radial Pair”. It also has that piano again. I do like the
vocal effects that dance lightly in the background. Some of that sounds like
backwards speech. I’ll have to try reversing it to see what he’s saying.
“Listen To My Voice” begins a bit like an
extension of “Fallen”. Once again, I’m forced to say that I didn’t like his
singing much in the first part of the verse. Once again, I’m forced to admit
that the chorus is very good indeed. I like the guitar with its distortion
effects (if that’s what it is) and the beat. This one definitely gets better
the more you hear it. I’m not too sure that I agree with some people who have
said it should be the single, but it is a good track.
“A Prayer For The Unborn” could be “Dear Lord,
please don’t let that film ever be released on an extended DVD with extra
scenes”. Actually, I have already
expressed my (rather lengthy) opinion of this track on another page. I loved it
from the first time I heard it. I still love it. I think it’s brilliant. The
only thing is, it seems to get swamped by all the other powerful parts of the
album. Maybe it would have been better as the second track? Maybe it’s just
that I knew this one off by heart before I’d heard the rest of the album, so
maybe I’m just not listening to it as closely as other tracks. I think it would
be a good choice for a single.
“Torn” has very quickly grown on me more than any
other track. The singing in the verses is a bit on the odd side again which I
think is what put me off at first, but I don’t dislike it so much here. After
the first verse there follows a section which, for want of a better term, I’ll
call a middle eight. (If anybody wants to be more precise, go and do your own
bloody review!) This is excellent and is followed by yet another fantastic
chorus. My contender for best track. I would absolutely love it if this was the
single. In fact, I think that I may use a line for my new slogan. “All I feel,
makes me unforgiven”…
“Little InVitro” could make people cry if they
let it. There is so much feeling in it. Once again Gaz comes through with a
great ballad. I always loved “Love Isolation” and this I feel is as good as
that. It’s so open and honest that it’s almost like you are in the man’s mind
sharing part of that terrible experience. I don’t think there could be many songwriters
out there who could achieve this the way Gary has here. Another point is the
really heavy guitar at the end. The first time I heard it, I thought it ruined
the song. On the second listen, I have changed my mind. To me, it manages to
convey how the feelings of loss, sadness and devastation can be instantly
replaced by feelings of extreme anger when you have been through something like
that. I can only wonder what others who have been through it would make of the
song. In some ways, I would like to see this as the single. I think it would
show people a different side to Gary, providing it got some decent airplay like
it would if it was by “Boyzone” or the like…
“I Can’t Breathe”. I don’t think I can say very
much without repeating myself. The choruses are again truly excellent but the
verses rather less so. More heavy guitars send it racing along for a while
before it slows down and then picks up again later.
On the whole, this album has quickly grown on me
and I have been playing it over and over again. There are certain things that I
still can’t seem to come to terms with, particularly the whispering style
vocals on some tracks. However, this is more than made up for by some of the
most powerful bits of music He has ever given us. It shows that sometimes you
can be almost entirely wrong about an album if you don’t give it a chance.
Buy this album now. You really won’t be
disappointed…
