release date: Dec. 29, 1982
format: cd (1997 reissue)
[album rate: 2 / 5] [2,04]
producer: Neil Young, Tim Mulligan, David Briggs
label: Geffen Records, Germany - nationality: Canada
12th studio album by Neil Young is a solo release. Now, if the two most recent albums by Neil Young were disappointing, this is... strangely disappointing. If not he had abandoned the drug abuse, one might get the thought that he was seriously under the influence of some drug when deciding to make this styled release. Again, it might be his own expectations and / or necessity to deliver something contemporary and a more up-to-date sound, other than folk rock as it was the case with Re-ac-tor. Anyway, this is an electronic synth release by Neil Young[!]. Now, Rust Never Sleeps (1979) was a major album but the fact is, he hasn't been able to make something remotely close to that in the early 1980s and this is just another example of his experiments with musical influences, and of course one may see it as an evidence of his will to try other ways of expression. From a modern perspective, this is just a music historical artifact showcasing Neil Young's great diversity. Then of course, there's also a long dispute of a contract with Geffen Records that he wanted to get out off. Books and biographies tell the story of how Neil Young felt trapped with a record contract and wanted control of his own songs as well as albums - he wanted artistic freedom, so he subdued to his legal entrapment and released a number of albums - approximately one each year, as the contract prescribed - and not always to satisfy his fans or record company who later sued him for making music that was 'unrepresentative' of himself. The album may also be seen in that light, as an attempt to piss off the company by releasing the unexpected.
Btw: "Computer Age" sounds (almost exactly) as if "Expresso Love" by Dire Straits had been sampled and synthesizers and a vocoder was added, perhaps in collaboration with Jeff Lynne, Jean Michel Jarre and Mike Oldfield, and that doesn't make a great song any near good.
This album is not recommend for others than completists.
[ allmusic.com 2 / 5 stars ]
