ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL PIONEERING INDUSTRIAL MUSIC
Nicholas S. Blakey | Jamaica Plain, MA USA | 12/30/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Along with fellow Sheffield industrialists CABARET VOLTAIRE's "1974-76" and the London-based #1 industrial group THROBBING GRISTLE's "Very Friendly: The 1st Annual Report of TG", THE GOLDEN HOUR OF THE FUTURE represents an absolutely crucial and unquestionably pioneering point in the development and pre-history of British industrial music. The importance of the very fact that this CD includes amazing early recordings by both the pre-DARE!/"Don't You Want Me" line-up of THE HUMAN LEAGUE (unfortunately still not recognized for the amazing unit that they were, if nothing else for such tracks as "Being Boiled", "Blind Youth", "Toyota City" and their eerie cover of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" but also Ian Craig Marsh and Martyn Ware's eventual roles in HEAVEN 17 and the B.E.T. plus their numerous production credits, including Ware's for Tina Turner!!!) but also the previously unheard (and not too dissimiler) group THE FUTURE (Ware, Marsh and future-CLOCK DVA mastermind the late great Adi Newton) cannot be understated. At last we can see just how CABARET VOLTAIRE, TG and THE HUMAN LEAGUE were true peers in both their breakdown and re-assemblege of their rock and roll pioneers/influences (The SEEDS and The BEATLES for CV, ABBA and The VELVET UNDERGROUND for TG and Phil Spector, Motown and Gary Glitter for THL but also KRAFTWERK for all three) but also their adaption of dada techniques, Burroughs and Gyson's cut-up methods, the adaption of the JG Ballard/Philip K. Dick science fiction now world theory embodied and refined by the use of strictly sytnhesizers and electronics plus the use of found sounds and field recordings from their own cities and surrounding areas all to paint an extremely bleak and too true modern vision of post-industrial revolution late-1970's Britain. While the SEX PISTOLS, THE DAMNED, THE JAM, BUZZCOCKS, THE CLASH and their comrades were out in front screaming and/or raising havoc and/or consciousness, THL, CV and TG were working on the inside, disassembling society and music from within and examining things from a more distant p.o.v., challenging their listeners and followers from a much greater perspective. THE GOLDEN HOUR OF THE FUTURE is a spooky, somewhat cold but supremely rewarding listen, from the near-hit single charm of "Dance Like A Star" and "Dada Dada Duchamp Vortex" to the humour of "Dominion Advertisement" (which makes as much sense today in our Prozac-riddled 21st century as it did in 1977) and the covers of "King Of Kings", "Once Upon A Time In The West" and the instrumental "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" (a near ode to Eno, ambient music and muzak) and experimentation of "4JG", "Year Of The Jet Packs" and "Daz". This lays the groundwork for not only THL's eventual THE DIGNITY OF LABOUR EP, REPRODUCTION and TRAVELOGUE LP's, but also fits in well with TG's 2nd ANNUAL REPORT and CV's "MIX-UP" LP and EXTENDED PLAY EP. Truly rewarding, fun and absolutely essential."
It's perfectly cold and cool
filterite | Dublin, Ireland | 09/04/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Just what music should be. Some nice instrumentals. A bit of a sense of humour to the mix and good lyrics ( well most of the time ) and what you have is a compilation of tracks that float in your head with great tunes and melody. Amazing to think that in just such a short space of time the Human League would become synth pop's Abba and this work would go unheard of until now. Shame it went to waste. Oh well not to worry.....this compilation should have you enjoying this to no end.....if you enjoyed Reproduction or Travelogue that isPS The instrumental of Reach Out is fantastic. I never liked the lyrics to the damn thing but this instrumental confirmed what I always thought......great music ruined by the lyrics"
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1