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| 1993 reissue |
release date: Aug. 1981
format: digital (1993 reissue)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,16]
producer: Matt Johnson, Ivo Watts-Russell
label: 4AD Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 2. "Song Without an Ending" - 4. "Icing Up" - 6. "Out of Control" - 8. "Delirious" - 9. "The River Flows East in Spring" - 10. "Another Boy Drowning"
Studio album debut by Matt Johnson mainly produced by himself and assisted by 4AD-co-founder Watts Russell (on tracks #2, #4-8, #10), by BC [Bruce Clifford] Gilbert & G [Graham] Lewis (on tracks #3 & #9), and by Pete Maben (track #1). The album was originally released as an album by Matt Johnson - first reissued in 1983 with a different cover. The first two issues of the album bore his name whereas all later releases were issued under the moniker The The as requested by Johnson himself. In '93 it was reissued as a The The release with a new cover (artwork by Andy Dog, aka Andrew Johnson), which is the only version I'm familiar with.
The music is psychedelic, or neo-psychedelic post-punk. I guess, not many pop / rock albums with an experimental style could avoid the label post-punk in 1981, but this is definitely in the experimental end of rock.
I first became aware of the album in the late 80s and after having noticed the music by The The. This isn't close to many other contemporary releases, and it actually contains clear industrial elements without being labelled as such - I guess, the most appropriate label would be psychedelic and yet without sounding like anything from the 60s. It's not really a huge favourite of mine but it sure is more than just of keen interest, and one can clearly find some characteristic ideas, bits and pieces that should later blossom on succeeding albums.
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| 1983 reissue |
1981 original cover
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