release date: Feb. 1982
format: vinyl (85719) / digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
producer: Cy Nicklin, TV-2
label: CBS Records - nationality: Denmark
2nd studio album by Danish band TV-2 consisting of main songwriter, vocalist & keyboardist Steffen Brandt (ex-member of Kliché), guitarist S'Erik Lerchenfeldt (aka Svend Erik), bassist Georg Olesen, and drummer & percussionist Sven Gaul. The album is stylised Verden er vidunderlig - translated it means 'The World Is Wonderful', but with the subtle addition that with 'vid-' in white also hints both to the colour 'white' ['hvid'] but also signifying 'wide' AND as the word 'underlig' means 'strange' the title both suggests that, yes, the 'world is wonderful' but you may also perceive it as predominantly 'white' AND '(widely) strange'. And then you only have to take a look at the map of the world. Focus on word-play is already a strong trait of Brandt's lyrics, something he should carry on to explore on all of the band's future albums.
I purchased this already in '82 and not long after my first aquisition of a single release by TV-2.
The album has an even stronger focus on the lyrical dimension than the band's fine debut Fantastiske Toyota and its new wave and power pop strengths, have now been exchanged for a more experimental side of new wave or art rock attitude - perhaps a product of being compared to the strongest contemporary Danish act, Kliché. Some saw TV-2 as a Kliché-light version - and that tag wasn't an easy one to neglect since Brandt had played keyboards in Kliché before focussing entirely on TV-2.
The album has an even stronger focus on the lyrical dimension than the band's fine debut Fantastiske Toyota and its new wave and power pop strengths, have now been exchanged for a more experimental side of new wave or art rock attitude - perhaps a product of being compared to the strongest contemporary Danish act, Kliché. Some saw TV-2 as a Kliché-light version - and that tag wasn't an easy one to neglect since Brandt had played keyboards in Kliché before focussing entirely on TV-2.
