Peter Murphy : " Silver Shade"

At 67, Murphy looks older than he sounds. The album opens up with an upbeat song that would not have been out of place on his 89 classic "Deep". It carries the new wave bounce, though not as dark as Bauhaus, it is true to the era. He keeps the '80s pulse going with "Hot Roy," which captures the late '80s synth pulse perfectly. Perhaps he is paying a great deal of service to his fan base, which is wise. His pipes stay fluid even when going up into the wavering vibrato of his upper register. 

Morrissey could stand to take notes here as Metropolis Records quietly dropped this album without a great deal of fanfare, and you can't tell me these guys or someone like Cleopatra would not release a new Moz album. "Sherpa" has "Cuts You Up" energy. However, the hook is not as sharp as that song. This song has a very raw, organic production sound that is interesting. The title track grooves with a little more of a smouldering slither. It rides the synth bass tone hard. Not really going to pop hooks on the choruses, but they work. Some of his later solo work has been more along the lines of Dead Can Dance, so this is a welcome return to the punk-inflected roots. 

"The Artroom Wonder" has more of a disco pulse to it. If it were not for his trembling baritone, this could almost be a Depeche Mode song. Not as funky as 'Stayin' Alive" but heading in that direction. There is more of a 90s hip grinding to the tension of the pulse to "The Meaning of My Life", voice swelling to a more powerful climax on the chorus here. The song structure is often simple on this album, but dynamically effective. "Xavier New Boy" is marginally darker and more reflective as it unfolds in a dramatic build.  He is back in motion for "Cohita is Lame". This perhaps feels more like Bauhaus than the songs before it, even with the synth riff 

The most guitar-driven rock moment so far comes from "Soothsayer."  Then things switch over to a more exotic Middle Eastern flavor tango for "Time Waits," which is more like his more recent solo efforts. The dramatic ballad "The Sailmaker's Charm" does not connect as much with me as the previous songs. The is a slight Beatles vibe to it at times. Though it might be more compelling that the ballad he does a duet with Boy George on. This is another one where I can hear a Beatles-like atmosphere in the background. Boy George's voice has not held up as well as Murphy's. Despite this, the rest of the album nails it pretty hard, and it's impressive that he found his way back to this place and delivered in this manner. I will give it a 9.5, way more impressive than Billy Idol's new one. 

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Tears For Fears - " the Tipping Point"

After 18 years the silence has been broken. The duo that comprises this band went through their individual stressors that almost brough them to an end before they finished with the album, they began working on back in 2013. The record label pressure the band to work with younger artists, however they had the integrity to say " no, fuck that this doesn't sound like Tears for Fears.   but the folky "No Small Thing" has not what I was expecting going into this album, despite being a huge fan of this band and fully aware of the ground they have covered over the course of their career. There is the type of dynamic shift you might expect from this band that evens things out. The title track that follows is what sets the controls for sizzle as it reflects the new wave 80s vibe while working in modern electronics. 

"Long, Long, Long Time" is more of pop song that blends in with more recent music but on their own terms. Carina Round from Puscifer contributes backing vocals to this song and other tracks on the album. The Curt Smith penned "Breaking the Man" flows really well.  "My Demons" glides over an electronic groove. Going into this album my main concern as with most veteran rockers is how well is their voice holding up over the years. Their singing is still dynamic and very capable though they might not reach up into their head register like the once did. "Rivers of Mercy" is a ballad. It works for what it is, not my favorite song, but I am sure it will grow on me, they do balladry better on "Please Be happy". "Master Plan" finds them back in their sweet spot, sure it recalls the 80s but that is what I want from these guys even when they are skipping along with a piano driven riff like this one. I mean this could have been on "Songs from the Big Chair". There is also something very Pink Floyd about the big dramatic way it moves. 

The bounce to "End of Night" is very consistent with who they are as a band and stands alongside the rest of their work which is really all I am asking from these guys. The problem with most bands of their status is they have already raised the bar for themselves already, so it is also asking a lot, but they are delivering better than I hoped. The light smooth texture of the vocals on the last song is pretty impressive even if the song itself is a very atmospheric ballad. Midway into the song the dynamics slowly grow. I will round this up to a ten as it is still growing on me but is impressive and earned many a listen thus far and holds up against their other albums.