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stuporfly's review against another edition
3.0
Quite good fun with loads of great stories from the artists who made the music.
sandin954's review against another edition
4.0
A highly entertaining though subjective and sometimes snarky look at the New Wavers who broke through in the eighties. I thought the authors did a great job of organization and putting things in context and the oral history parts were interesting. Part of the fun though was firing up the Google Machine and checking out the videos on U-Tube. It brought back a lot of memories with the only downside being that I keep catching myself humming "True" and "Obsession".
blevins's review
4.0
This is going to be a longer one and it might turn into a rant. You are warned. I grew up in the 1980s and was a massive music fan...still am. Many of the bands covered in Mad World are bands that I still hold near and dear to my heart: Depeche Mode, The Smiths, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Echo and the Bunnymen, Soft Cell, The Cure, The The, Gary Numan, Human League, New Order, Kate Bush, Yazoo and on and on it goes. When people make fun of the music in the 1980s they are, for the most part, clueless. The GOOD stuff from that decade had more artists trying to be original, innovative and unique in the span of a couple of years than the entirety of the decades that followed. Yes, the people in this book had crazy hair [A Flock of Seagulls, who made two amazing records by the way] and they wore crazy clothes [Adam Ant, ripped off by Michael Jackson] but so the hell what? As the authors of the book point out, they weren't marketed to the point of numbness by record labels looking for the most watered down product as they are now. In this era, you could write a pop song and it could be a hit and it could be weird, subversive and just flat out strange. Nowadays? Forget it. We are in the world of uber homogenized culture that is available 24/7 at our fingertips online. I kind of miss the absolute thrill of discovering a new band, a new song, a new anything that would blow my teenage mind. That happened all the time in this era...how often does it occur now? Rarely.
I'll take music from about 1975-1985 over any ten year period before or since as you got so many unbelievable off-shoots and styles ranging from Kraut, punk, post-punk, disco, country rock, electronic, heavy metal, pop, classic rock, country. It's kind of unreal the sheer amount of high quality stuff that was released then if you are open minded about it. All of those kinds of rock styles are still being mined by young bands 30-40 years later but what made it so special from 1975-85 was the fact that it was new then...these people with the crazy hair and the synthesizers and the moody black and white photos with the skinny ties--they were the ones creating this sound out of nothing. They were the ones facing ridicule head on by friends, other bands, the media, bands of the 1990s and the early 2000s before the 1980s became "cool" again and saw this same music being mimicked by all the youngsters.
I don't want to sound cranky. I love that it is being copied to be honest. I love that there is so many new synthesizer based bands putting out music now. But, people need to realize that the youngsters are just sort of replicating stuff that has already come. It's fine to do it, let's just give the originals the respect they deserve. I was one of the people that would argue with anyone who'd listen to people who were into grunge or indie rock or whatever dull movement came after the 1980s that 1975-1985 was the zenith, the apex, the magical moment in music history when all this energy and creativity swirled together to make some genius [and some embarrassing] music. But even the embarrassing is very memorable. You can't say that about modern music as much.
So, yes, I was into these bands...I still am. I listened to Depeche Mode's "Some Great Reward" [with my personal track list w/ the b-sides added] a few days ago on its 30 year anniversary and guess what? That's great album full of unbelievably ahead of its time use of sampling that turned the sounds of the factory into booming percussive backbone. I am extremely depressed I can't see Kate Bush live in London as she performs her first live shows in 35 [!] years. I could go on...this stuff meant a lot in the early to mid 1980s, to me, to many others. Read this book and you'll find out why.
PS--The book was nearly docked at least one star for me by the overly snarky Jonathan Bernstein's introductions. If you are trying to make a case for a lot of these bands to get the respect that they deserve, why in the world would you ask some doofus to ridicule and mock them before they are even interviewed? By the end, I wasn't even reading his absurd opinions. This is how he sums up The Smiths "How Soon Is Now?": Not a fan. Gee, that's insightful. Another band gets this: Zzzzzzz. What a twit this guy is.
I'll take music from about 1975-1985 over any ten year period before or since as you got so many unbelievable off-shoots and styles ranging from Kraut, punk, post-punk, disco, country rock, electronic, heavy metal, pop, classic rock, country. It's kind of unreal the sheer amount of high quality stuff that was released then if you are open minded about it. All of those kinds of rock styles are still being mined by young bands 30-40 years later but what made it so special from 1975-85 was the fact that it was new then...these people with the crazy hair and the synthesizers and the moody black and white photos with the skinny ties--they were the ones creating this sound out of nothing. They were the ones facing ridicule head on by friends, other bands, the media, bands of the 1990s and the early 2000s before the 1980s became "cool" again and saw this same music being mimicked by all the youngsters.
I don't want to sound cranky. I love that it is being copied to be honest. I love that there is so many new synthesizer based bands putting out music now. But, people need to realize that the youngsters are just sort of replicating stuff that has already come. It's fine to do it, let's just give the originals the respect they deserve. I was one of the people that would argue with anyone who'd listen to people who were into grunge or indie rock or whatever dull movement came after the 1980s that 1975-1985 was the zenith, the apex, the magical moment in music history when all this energy and creativity swirled together to make some genius [and some embarrassing] music. But even the embarrassing is very memorable. You can't say that about modern music as much.
So, yes, I was into these bands...I still am. I listened to Depeche Mode's "Some Great Reward" [with my personal track list w/ the b-sides added] a few days ago on its 30 year anniversary and guess what? That's great album full of unbelievably ahead of its time use of sampling that turned the sounds of the factory into booming percussive backbone. I am extremely depressed I can't see Kate Bush live in London as she performs her first live shows in 35 [!] years. I could go on...this stuff meant a lot in the early to mid 1980s, to me, to many others. Read this book and you'll find out why.
PS--The book was nearly docked at least one star for me by the overly snarky Jonathan Bernstein's introductions. If you are trying to make a case for a lot of these bands to get the respect that they deserve, why in the world would you ask some doofus to ridicule and mock them before they are even interviewed? By the end, I wasn't even reading his absurd opinions. This is how he sums up The Smiths "How Soon Is Now?": Not a fan. Gee, that's insightful. Another band gets this: Zzzzzzz. What a twit this guy is.
haleyshort's review
5.0
This was so incredibly fun. I love the mixtapes, I love the way they told the stories, it was just a joy to read. And I learned so much! I hate the Brit’s but I love the new wave and that is just the way it is.
oohsarracuda's review
3.0
I have to agree with the other reviews who loved the book but loathed the authors. This is a four star book - if you take out all the introductions and personal musings from the authors. Their contributions are so unprofessional, grating, and disruptive that I'm docking the book a star. The book is fascinating, but it's supposed to be an oral history of new wave artists, not an opinion piece. Lori, Jonathan - either you're professionals or you're not. Either you're writing an oral history of blah blah blah, or you're writing a book of your opinions interspersed with interviews. Comments like "zzzzz" or "not a fan" or "science was never my favorite" or "how fat Belinda Carlisle was" (seriously, Lori, you call yourself a feminist?) have no place in a book like this, and they drag the book way down. This book isn't your blog. It's not Twitter. How you feel or what you think about a song doesn't matter in a project like this; shoehorning it in is disrespectful, egotistical, and detrimental.
The scope of the book is lacking a bit, too. Are we supposed to assume there were no all-female bands making new wave noise? Are Alison Moyet, Teri Nunn, Alannah Currie, Annabella Lwin, Patty Donahue, Astrid Plane, and Kim Wilde the only women of new wave? Of course not. Were the only women in new wave fronting male bands or singing their dad's songs as solo artists? Of course not. The Motels, The Go-Go's, Bananarama, and Missing Persons are mentioned throughout the book. Why did none of their songs make it into this oral history? Perhaps Jonathan Bernstein's brusque dismissal of all of them as "posers" (among other epithets) holds a clue. (Dismissing the Go-Gos as posers shows an impressive lack of understanding of their roots, for sure.) The new wave this book hands is is almost entirely white, and almost entirely men. And while new wave was predominantly white and predominantly male, it wasn't exclusively so.
Still, I liked the book. I learned loads of interesting things. It was a quick, fun, captivating read for me. I suspect I'll avoid anything by these two authors in the future, though.
P.S. ANIMOTION? Give me a freaking break.
The scope of the book is lacking a bit, too. Are we supposed to assume there were no all-female bands making new wave noise? Are Alison Moyet, Teri Nunn, Alannah Currie, Annabella Lwin, Patty Donahue, Astrid Plane, and Kim Wilde the only women of new wave? Of course not. Were the only women in new wave fronting male bands or singing their dad's songs as solo artists? Of course not. The Motels, The Go-Go's, Bananarama, and Missing Persons are mentioned throughout the book. Why did none of their songs make it into this oral history? Perhaps Jonathan Bernstein's brusque dismissal of all of them as "posers" (among other epithets) holds a clue. (Dismissing the Go-Gos as posers shows an impressive lack of understanding of their roots, for sure.) The new wave this book hands is is almost entirely white, and almost entirely men. And while new wave was predominantly white and predominantly male, it wasn't exclusively so.
Still, I liked the book. I learned loads of interesting things. It was a quick, fun, captivating read for me. I suspect I'll avoid anything by these two authors in the future, though.
P.S. ANIMOTION? Give me a freaking break.
lazygal's review
3.0
Very different from the last book entitled Mad World I read!
This is, as other reviewers have mentioned, very much a "bathroom" book - one that you can dip into and out of easily. The caveat is, of course, that you have to have either been a fan of the 1980s New Wave or curious about it, and that may be a limited audience. A music loving friend of mine claims that no one does care, these days, and several groups (Thompson Twins) are so irrelevant to today's scene, blah blah blah... Maybe. I confess to having skimmed many entries and quarreled with others because my favorite song by a group was overlooked or only glancingly mentioned. If you're a fan of the music or any of the groups, this is a interesting backwards glance into the era with just enough gossip to be spicy (the playlists I could have lived without).
This is, as other reviewers have mentioned, very much a "bathroom" book - one that you can dip into and out of easily. The caveat is, of course, that you have to have either been a fan of the 1980s New Wave or curious about it, and that may be a limited audience. A music loving friend of mine claims that no one does care, these days, and several groups (Thompson Twins) are so irrelevant to today's scene, blah blah blah... Maybe. I confess to having skimmed many entries and quarreled with others because my favorite song by a group was overlooked or only glancingly mentioned. If you're a fan of the music or any of the groups, this is a interesting backwards glance into the era with just enough gossip to be spicy (the playlists I could have lived without).
boleary30's review
4.0
Loved the idea of gathering the stories behind the biggest songs of the 80's. Problem is they went with their own taste instead of the best songs from the 80's. For example, if you are going to pick a Howard Jones song, how can you not pick No One Ever is to Blame? They picked New Song. Or Adam Ant? have to pick Goody Two Shoes, they picked something else. So, of the 36 songs they picked, I really enjoyed reading about the background on 22 of them. The other 14 I could care less about.
lustrouscoat's review
4.0
It’s not as in depth of an oral history as I Want My MTV (which is twice as long) and it doesn't go into as much of the roots and specifics (like the New Romantics and using African beats) as Are We Not New Wave? But it was definitely an interesting read. I'm familiar with all the songs covered except for 2. The only song that seemed out of place to me was "Kids in America" and I'm sure it's partially because I hate that song.
One thing I wish is that they had gotten more people outside of the bands to talk about the songs, like producers or managers. The chapters that only had one person's thoughts were the weakest compared to the ones with a number, like Duran Duran. And then there were chapters that really didn't cover the song at all, like the one on the Thompson Twins. To be nitpicky, I also thought the Joy Division chapter was in an odd place in the book, more towards the end with the songs that were at the end of new wave.
I would still recommend this book to anyone who is into new wave. It’s a great primer for a bunch of great songs. Except Kids in America.
One thing I wish is that they had gotten more people outside of the bands to talk about the songs, like producers or managers. The chapters that only had one person's thoughts were the weakest compared to the ones with a number, like Duran Duran. And then there were chapters that really didn't cover the song at all, like the one on the Thompson Twins. To be nitpicky, I also thought the Joy Division chapter was in an odd place in the book, more towards the end with the songs that were at the end of new wave.
I would still recommend this book to anyone who is into new wave. It’s a great primer for a bunch of great songs. Except Kids in America.