We have a new weekly feature for you on this blog page, we will be looking at all the studio albums by the Pet Shop Boys (Other artists will follow after the Pet Shop Boys feature is completed), the feature will be packed with information about the album, detailed information about the tracks on each album and every track on each album will be rated, as the weeks go by we will compile an ongoing chart to see what we rate as their best album all the way through to the album we really dislike.
A scoring system is explained in each feature.
So let's get things underway.....
PLEASE
The Pet Shop Boys album "Please" was recorded primarily between November 1985 and January 1986 at Advision Studios in London. The duo worked long hours from midday until midnight, occasionally taking breaks for meals. The album was produced by Stephen Hague after a trial with their revamped single "West End Girls," which was slowed down and made moodier under Hague's guidance, ultimately becoming a significant hit that helped shape the rest of the album's production. This marked a departure from earlier practices, as the duo focused on a more polished and structured pop sound. The recording process involved sequencing the songs to form a loose narrative around themes of city life, love, money, and nightlife. The album was crafted in about 10 weeks, with the band sequencing the tracks to tell a story that began with running away, arriving in the city, seeking wealth, falling in love, moving to suburbia, clubbing, encountering city violence, and casual relationships, finishing with a reflective closing track.
Among interesting facts, "West End Girls" was initially recorded with producer Bobby Orlando in New York before being reworked with Stephen Hague. The album cost approximately £40,000 to record and took about three weeks for certain singles but the entire album took roughly 10 weeks to complete. The track "Suburbia" was the last song completed, with its album version being a polished demo due to time constraints. The sequencing of tracks was carefully planned to create a conceptual flow, emphasizing storytelling in the songwriting intertwined with the distinctive synth-pop sound characteristic of the Pet Shop Boys. The album's production style leveraged synthesizers, samplers, and sequencers, contributing to a polished yet emotive electronic pop record that established the Pet Shop Boys' unique musical identity.
"Please" was also a breakthrough in terms of its critical and commercial success, setting the stage for the Pet Shop Boys' future in the music industry. It was marked by a combination of dance beats, clever lyrics, and a spectral urban mood that connected with audiences worldwide.
This album reflects the creative and technical efforts of Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, capturing both the mood of the 1980s and their distinctive approach to pop music production.
The album opens with the theme of escape, depicting a couple running away to a new life. The lyrics convey a sense of adventure tempered with yearning for a better existence, while the arrangement features bright, digital synth textures over a pulsing drum machine, setting the urban, electronic tone of the album.
This signature single explores urban class tension and the complexities of city life. With moody, atmospheric synth layers, the production creates a cinematic nocturnal vibe, while the lyrics, rapping and singing, paint vivid scenes of aspiration, anxiety, and streetwise observation in 1980s London.
Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots Of Money)
"Opportunities" is a satirical tale of ambition and social mobility, lampooning materialistic impulses and get-rich-quick schemes. Its snappy, upbeat synth hooks are paired with ironic, tongue-in-cheek lyrics, highlighting an air of detached humor in both theme and sound.
Love Comes Quickly
The theme here pivots to romance, bittersweet and vulnerable. Lyrics reflect on the unpredictability of love, while lush, shimmering synthesizers and a smooth, mid-tempo beat give the track a sense of melancholy optimism.
"Suburbia" tackle’s themes of alienation and violence simmering beneath suburban life. The song features an energetic production with dramatic synth stabs and sampled dog barks, adding a sense of unrest and chaos that mirrors its lyrical content.
This track finds hope in companionship. The lyrics express a desire to seize the present with a lover, while reverberant synthesizers and bright melodies evoke a feeling of emotional uplift, contrasting the reflective sadness of earlier tracks.
With darker tones, both lyrically and musically, "Violence" addresses the cyclical nature of aggression and power struggles. The production yields layered, minor-key synths and sharp percussion, giving it a brooding intensity that stands out on the album.
I Want A Lover
Blunt and emotionally direct, this song's lyrics revolve around longing for connection and physical intimacy. The energetic, funk-inspired synth lines drive the song forward, projecting urgent, restless energy.
This track offers a subdued, atmospheric reflection on loneliness and longing, delivered largely in falsetto. The minimalist electronic arrangement and soft, slow rhythm communicate a sense of late-night melancholy and gentle yearning.
The album closes with a playful, suggestive look at unconventional relationships. The production is lighter, with rhythmic synth-pop stylings and catchy hooks that leave the album on a note of curiosity and open-ended possibility.
Throughout "Please," the Pet Shop Boys combine storytelling with wry social commentary, all wrapped in sophisticated, meticulously layered electronic production. Each track reveals a different perspective or emotional vignette from the city, making the album a vivid synth-pop document of the era.
Final thoughts….
This is an excellent debut album with quality from start to finish, for me the only real surprise is “Love Comes Quickly” being chosen as the follow-Up single to “West End Girls”, “Tonight Is Forever” would have made a brilliant single and would definitely have suited the 80s style Extended version format.
TRACK RATINGS
Each track on the album is scored on the following basis, an excellent tracks scores 3 points, a good track scores 2 points, an ok track scores 1 point and an awful track, scores no points, the total is added up and divided by the maximum number of points that would be available and then times that by 100 to get your overall score. For example if an album scores 20 points and there are 10 tracks on the album, that means it can achieve a maximum score of 30, so divide 20 by 30 and times it by 100, it gives you a figure of 66.66, which is the final score rating for the album, in this case you would round it up to 67, if it was 66.33, you would round it down to 66. In the event there is a tie, the album with the most tracks rated at 3 ranks as higher.
Two Divided By Zero 2
West End Girls 3
Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots Of Money) 3
Love Comes Quickly 2
Suburbia 2
Tonight Is Forever 3
Violence 1
I Want A Lover 2
Later Tonight 3
Why Don’t We Live Together 3
Score 24
FINAL ALBUM RATING 80
No comments:
Post a Comment