Search - Suicide :: Suicide

Melodious emotional & sonic extremes

Pieter | Johannesburg | 12/19/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Whereas Kraftwerk navigated the Autobahn at a fairly moderate pace, Alan Vega & Martin Rev often break all speed limits. Controlled, even disembodied vocals characterize the German band's music while Suicide's is pierced by whoops, hollers & gasps. Most of these songs are so beautiful and tuneful that they would have been chart material had they been toned down to the level of say, OMD or Eurythmics. With the exception of the 10 harrowing minutes of Frankie Teardrop, a real piece of "psychobilly," the melodies & hooks are irresistible.



The pulsating Ghost Rider with its ominous drone is quite anthemic, more minimalist than Alan Vega's later solo version. Although still appealing, Rocket USA is eerie & doom-laden while Cheree is a mid-tempo ballad with an enchanting chiming melody unfolding behind the drone. There are lighter, more accessible and highly catchy tracks like Johnny and Girl, another slow number with a hypnotic arrangement & richly textured sounds. The remix of Cheree sounds more soulful & romantic than the original. Its chugging rhythms & yearning vocals give I Remember a melancholic air. Then follows Keep Your Dreams, an addictive ditty with a lilting flow.



Disc 2 consists of 6 live performances recorded at CBGB's. Mr Ray is a heavy but surprisingly subdued interpretation of the Velvets' Sister Ray, Las Vegas Man a musically monotonal but vocally exuberant excursion, and the cover of the 60s pop hit 96 Tears is punctured by crashing sound effects & Vega's yelping. There's a slower and warmer rendition of Keep Your Dreams where the synth sounds like an organ, and a menacing rather than mournful I Remember with some blood-curdling screams and echoing vocals. Sparks fly on the spectacular Harlem with its driving beat where Vega growls & bellows instead of the usual gasping & yelling.



The brutal Brussels performance is cacophonic, dissonant and marred by feedback. Tension builds up through the swearing, booing, chanting and scattered clapping, culminating in the dispute over the microphone. It was quite a riot according to the sleeve-notes, making Elvis Costello for whom they opened, even more caustic than he was in those days.



The band's sound on this album ranges from a unique type of electronic rockabilly to experimental like one of their Mute label-mate bands, The Normal (Warm Leatherette & TVOD), to the accessible territory later explored by The Human League, Eurythmics & OMD. The main difference with Kraftwerk is that in unifying man & machine, the German band restrained the emotions while Suicide does just the opposite by using the electronics to amplify emotions to the extreme. On the later CD A Way of Life, they did take a more pop approach but sacrificed most of the passion. This seminal album remains a masterpiece of electronic pop-rock.

"