Couldn't find a thread for it, but I've done a review. Cheers.

http://theworktrials.blogspot.com/20...ows-world.html

been listening to it all day, best album in over a decade and possibly one of their best albums ever. Highlights - I Lose Myself, Whole Lotta Love and Then I Go Twisting.
oooh, I'll give your review a read theworktrials.

I've been a huge fan of theirs for 23 years but IMO there was something missing from the albums they released following their 'golden era' (1986-1994). They just seemed to lack that spark that made the earlier albums so great.

However, 'Tomorrow's World' is BRILLIANT from start to finish. My favourite tracks have to be 'A Whole Lotta Love Run Riot' and 'Then I Go Twisting' but none of them are actually bad at all. I would actually say it's the best album they've done since 'I Say I Say I Say'.

I've been keeping an eye on midweek sales and it looks as though the album will enter the Top 20. I found a link to Radio 1's midweek chart, which places the album at #16. If it manages to go Top 15 it will be their highest charting album since 'Cowboy' 14 years ago.

Sorry, but I don't agree. I think Tomorrow's World has a couple of OK tracks but doesn't have any of the strong tracks that filled their albums up to I Say, I Say, I Say, is generally overproduced and lacks any really memorable melodies.

Still, it will never be the worst album they produce, as they will never, ever, even if they continue for a millon years (unlikely) maks an album as bad as Other People's Songs.

I agree with you in regards to Other People's Songs, that was a serious low point in their career but Tomorrows World is a great album.

I think it's difficult to compare it to 'I Say' or 'Erasure', where the emphasis was more on experimentation than generating hits but it definitely ranks highly alongside their more pop orientated albums such as 'Chorus' and 'Wild!'.

On my initial listening to the album (via streaming), I was a bit perturbed by the production, stating that Frankmusik had, in effect bleached out the Erasure-ness from the album, incensed that Vince's analogue synth purity appeared to be buried beneath club beats. But after listening to the cd, it was evident that Vince's work was still audible, only 'beefed up' a bit. So, I think on the whole, Frankmusik has done a good job on production being sympathetic to that Erasure sound whilst at the same time restructuring it to sound,if not more contemporary, then a bit more invigorating, something that was desperately needed on the likes of albums such as 'Light At The End of The World' or even 'Cowboy'.

For me, this is the first album in a long time where they actually sound a bit more engaged with the project. And it's interesting to note that this borrowing from more club orientated sound was something they were doing back in the late 80's but left behind post Chorus to focus on a more mature sound, which not many people actually 'got', it has to be said.

But as pop albums go, I'd say it was a winner.

Definitely their worst album ever.

I totally agree with everything you said. IMO, 'Chorus' is actually the weakest of their #1 albums and sadly the 'Erasure' album pretty much killed them commercially as they suddenly decided to change their sound 10 years into their career, when all along they had been producing high NRG pop songs. Since then they've only managed to acheive two Top 10 singles, only because both were released in the quiet post-Christmas sales period.

During 1995 and 2003 I actually found myself not really listening to much of their music and it was only upon hearing that 'Solsbury Hill' was heading for the Top 10 that I decided to catch up on what I was missing and IMO 'Nightbird' was a real return to the Erasure I fell in love with all those years ago.

With 'Tomorrow's World' I do think they actually sound more current with a bit of their 1986 and 1994 period included, which is largely due to the production of the album.

I actually think Chorus was/is one of their best tbh, the first album where they set themselves a strict manifesto of using purely vintage synthesizers and the beginning of that unique Erasure sound. Albums prior to Chorus tend to sound a bit dated now if I'm honest and that's my one concern with this new album, that it will date rather quickly compared to something like the classic Nightbird.

I've mentioned this before on another forum but the thing that sets Chorus apart from the other albums (other than their 'vintage' sound) was that during this period a lot of underground club acts were starting to use that 'vintage' synth sound too (The Orb, 808 State, KLF) and for a brief moment Erasure sounded fresh, current and relevant, plus there appeared to be a cross pollination of ideas between the more underground club scene and Erasures' more mainstream pop and that resulted in some pretty fine work on both sides of the spectrum.

And whilst it was sad to see Erasure bid farewell to their more unique, personal vision in favor of an all out pop record, it's good that they found a direction this time around (unlike Light...) and chose to return to their earlier roots of reconnecting with the club scene.

But again, it's a bit of a no-win situation for them, as some may interpret this as merely a cynical attempt to appeal to current musical tastes.