The Raveonettes "The Observator" (2012)

The Observator

release date: Sep. 11, 2012

format: cd

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,68]

producer: Richard Gottehrer & Sune Rose Wagner

label: Vice Records - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Young and Cold" - 2. "Observations" - 5. "Sinking with the Sun" - 6. "She Owns the Streets" - 7. "Downtown" - 8. "You Hit Me (I'm Down)" - 9. "Till the End"

6th studio album by Danish duo The Raveonettes follows 1½ years after Raven in the Grave (Apr. 2011). This time, instead being exclusively produced by Sune Wagner and / or the duo, Wagner has made contact with the producer of the band's first albums - his old idol, Richard Gottehrer, who was a member of US-band The Strangeloves and who later produced albums for acts like Dr. Feelgood, Blondie (first two albums), and The Go-Go's (first two albums), and his song "I Want Candy" (co-written with Bern Berns, Rob Feldman and Jerry Goldstein) has later been covered by many artists since its debut in 1965. Gottehrer is also well-known for having established Sire Records with Seymour Stein in '66 - a label that was known specialising in US releases with British underground artists. As producer, Gottehrer represent a particular immediate garage-rock styled sound, which I guess someone like Phil Spector may have elaborated on for his own distinct multi-layered sound but the Gottehrer-sound is a more direct, less post-produced sound that has some live-quality to it, although, it also goes for being less spacious without the loss of dynamics. In the case of Sune Wagner, the point is, he has that fondness for an original 50s/60s sound that still resonate the artist's product and which links with both garage rock and surf rock, and this is also how Gottehrer was chosen to procude the first two album for The Raveonettes.

The Observator is a short acquaintance of 31 minutes total running time but as an album release it appears much more of a whole than the predecessor, and then it comes out without a cleaner sound than most of the band's other releases. Some may think of it as sounding half-finished but I sense a stronger will to focus on simplicity in a way of binding the songs together - and that appears as a strength. The dream pop element is absent from this one, where you will be reminded of a sound from previous decades in combination of noise pop. With less instruments and simpler arrangements, I sense the common traits for the entire album instead of something pointing here and there. Perhaps, you won't find the best songs by The Raveonettes on this one but instead it works on a different level than the less successful 2011-album as that of a coherent release.

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, Rolling Stone 3 / 5 stars ]

The Raveonettes "Raven in the Grave" (2011)

Raven in the Grave

release date: Apr. 4, 2011

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,38]

producer: The Raveonettes

label: Vice Records - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Recharge & Revolt" - 3. "Forget That You're Young" (4 / 5) - 5. "Summer Moon" - 7. "Ignite"

5th studio album by The Raveonettes follows 1½ years after the fine In and Out of Control (Oct. 2009). The album is a relatively short experience with 9 tracks and total playing length under 36 mins., but this has often been the issue with this band's studio albums, so in that respect it doesn't represent a big change. What appears as something new, though, is a bolder dream pop feel in combination with the typical garage rock sound. This doesn't sound all too bad if only the songs were evenly formed to this shape but that's not the case as too many stick out as mere fillers, or what could have been compositions for a soundtrack, e.g. "War in Heaven", "Evil Seeds", and "My Time's Up" - with the abovementioned highlights sticking out as great singles.

All in all, I feel this doesn't really meet the expectations and falls somewhat flat after a strong tendency with the previous albums. "Recharge & Revolt" and "Forget That You're Young" are however standouts that could sell most albums but they stand much alone and only add to the sensation of an incoherent and unfinished album from a great duo.

Not recommended.

[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, 👍Spin 3,5 / 5, Pitchfork 5,7 / 10, 👎Slant 1,5 / 5 stars ]

The Raveonettes "In and Out of Control" (2009)

In and Out of Control

release date: Oct. 6, 2009

format: digital (11 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,84]

producer: Thomas Troelsen & The Raveonettes

label: Fierce Panda - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Bang!" - 2."Gone Forever" - 3. "Last Dance" - 4. "Boys Who Rape (Should All Be Destroyed)" - 5. "Heart of Stone" - 7. "Suicide" - 9. "Breaking Into Cars" - 10. "Break Up Girls!" - 11. "Wine"

4th studio album by The Raveonettes following two years after Lust Lust Lust (Nov. 2007) has been made with hot producer Thomas Troelsen. Songwriter Sune Wagner released an acclaimed solo album debut with a bunch of songs written in Danish in his own name in 2008. Much to the usual formula this new album here consists of eleven tracks that doesn't challenge the total album length - even for vinyl releases. Here, the songs come to an end after 37 mins.

Now with Troelsen as co-producer of the album and as co-composer of 7 songs his presence is noticed on the overall sound, making this the band's most pop-founded album to date. Skillfully, Wagner and Foo still maintain their trademarks holding Troelsen on a tight leash, which secures a noticeable change to a modernised 60s sound, or a shift towards a contemporary pop / rock-style with enough influence from 60s surf rock to make it a certified product by Sharin Foo / Sune Wagner. In addition, Foo and Wagner fronts the cover in a b/w photo but for the first time without assimilating a style of the 1950s or 60s.

Stylewise, there's the usual garage rock revival and surf rock vibe runing through the whole album but it's done with a new twist leaning on modern pop-productions, and it works quite nicely. The album starts off with five fine songs that put this on a new high and although the whole affair fades somewhat in the second half, the album still stands as the duo's so far best.

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com, PopMatters 3,5 / 5, Pitchfork 6,9 / 10, The Guardian, Alternative Press 4 / 5 stars ]

The Raveonettes "Lust Lust Lust" (2007)

Lust Lust Lust

release date: Nov. 12, 2007

format: cd

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,77]

producer: Sune Rose Wagner

label: Fierce Panda - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Aly, Walk with Me" - 2. "Hallucinations" - 3. "Lust" - 4. "Dead Sound" - 8. "You Want the Candy" - 9. "Blitzed" - 10. "Sad Transmission" - 12. "The Beat Dies"

3rd full-length studio album by The Raveonettes following 2½ years after Pretty in Black (May 2005) basically continue the style of the predecessor but with a stronger original sound both by mixing 60s surf rock and contemporary recording methods using electronic drums and synths to create a 50s / 60s vibe that nonetheless works really well, and by including more of the surf rock and garage rock sound they incorporated on the debut. The album is not a lengthy affair but provides us with 12 songs with a total running time just below 41 minutes. Previously, the band of songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Sune Rose Wagner and bassist & vocalist Sharin Foo were aided by a full backing band playing traditional instruments, but not this time. The album appears to have been recorded by Wagner and Foo only - with the former playing all instruments and Foo 'only' adding vocals to the songs. The result is quite fine with a strong blend of styles, yet keeping the course balancing both soft / hard and ballads / rockers in what appears as full control. It's really a coherent and unison album that lifts the level by another notch.

Btw. this is the band's first album that doesn't have Wagner or Foo on the front cover.

The album is a strong contender to the best album by The Raveonettes.

[ 👍allmusic.com, The Guardian, Spin 4 / 5, PopMatters 3,5 / 5, Q Magazine, Uncut 3 / 5 stars ]

The Raveonettes "Pretty in Black" (2005)

Pretty in Black

release date: May 2, 2005

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,66]

producer: Richard Gottehrer, Sune Rose Wagner

label: Columbia - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "The Heavens" - 3. "Love in a Trashcan" - 5 . "Uncertain Times" - 6. "My Boyfriend's Back" - 7. "Here Comes Mary" - 11. "You Say You Lie" - 12. "Ode to L.A."

2nd studio album from The Raveonettes follows two years after the debut and is like that produced by veteran sound technician Richard Gottehrer in collaboration with Sune Wagner of the band. All except track #6 - a cover of a 60s song by The Angels written by R. Gottehrer, Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein - are credited Wagner, who is now credited as multi-instrumentalist handling synths, guitar, bass, drums, percussion and programming. Sharin Foo is exclusively credited as vocalist and on percussion. Additionally, a few recurring musicians also participate. This include guitarist Manoj Ramdas and drummer Jakob Hoyer, who both played on the band's ep debut as well as on Chain Gang of Love. Other than that, the album feature a few prominent guest artists, which count The Ronettes' legendary vocalist Ronnie Spector on vocal [track #12], Velvet Underground legend Maureen Tucker on drums on four tracks, and Suicide instrumentalist Martin Rev credited 'The Instrument' [guitar].

The album reveals a stylistic progression towards slower love song territory, and the songs are generally a bit longer. Like the debut, it contains 13 tracks but as opposed to the former's total running length at 33 minutes this one clocks in at 44:30 minutes. The songs are more traditionally composed with broader arrangements without losing the quality of a distinct sound. There's now definitely a stronger inspiration from Motown, country, and general pop songs of the early 60s, although, some tracks still reveal the bond to garage rock and surf rock. The front cover is like the debut held in cinematic b/w style as if situated in the 50s or 60s, only this time with the added 'technicolor' [added colours] style, and the title could suggest a hint at the 80s (Howard Deutch) popular film "Pretty in Pink" with its own references to the 50s and early 60s.

I believe this was the first full-length by the band that I listened to at the time of the release, and I recall finding it good, although, I didn't purchase the album until a few years later. I think, I initially still hoped Sune Wagner would produce stronger alt. rock music, and it took some time before I just accepted his retro-infused style of American twang and reverb, and then back in 2005, the band really stood on its own when pop music was overwhelmed by retro-waves in terms of synth pop and a new wave of post-punk revival flourished on both sides of the Atlantic. And Pretty in Black is far from those tendencies. The album was, however, genereally met by positive reviews and in retrospect it stands as a more original collection of songs than you'll find on the debut.

Recommended.

[ 👎allmusic.com 2 / 5, Pitchfork 6,8 / 10, PopMatters 3,5 / 5, NME, Rolling Stone, Uncut 4 / 5 stars ]

The Raveonettes "Chain Gang of Love" (2003)

Chain Gang of Love [debut]

release date: Aug. 25, 2003

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,62]

producer: Richard Gottehrer, Sune Rose Wagner

label: Columbia - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Remember" - 2. "That Great Love Sound" - 3. "Noisy Summer" - 5. "Let's Rave on" - 7. "Love Can Destroy Everything" - 8. "Heartbreak Stroll" - 11. "Chain Gang of Love" - 13. "New York Was Great"

Full-length studio debut by Danish band The Raveonettes following the ep debut Whip It On (May 2002) sees the band in a more traditional setup with a more professionally produced album - here co-produced with esteemed producer Richard Gottehrer, who had initiated his career working on 1960s albums as producer for The Angels, The Strangeloves, Dean Parrish, and The McCoys, during the 70s on albums by new wave artists like Blondie, Richard Hell & the Voivoids, and more traditional rock acts like Robert Gordon and Link Wray, and well into the 80s he produced albums for Joan Armatrading, The Go-Go's, The Fleshtones, Dr. Feelgood, before slowing down throughout the 90s where he worked on releases by Aerosmith and Miss B. Haven - after which Sune Wagner 'dug him out' to have someone with the skills to create a sound that would stand the test of time as a proper 60s production. Just as Gottehrer had written songs for and with former classic acts he has co-composed the song "That Great Love Sound" for this album together with Wagner, who is credited all other songs.

The Raveonettes had been singled out as part of a wave of upcoming artists, when Sony / Columbia signed the band, which again paved way for Wagner and Foo to work with a famous producer and to fund recording sessions in both Copenhagen and in New York. As with the ep-debut, the front cover suggests 1950s / early 60s with the duo on classic motorbikes as if still images taken from the 1953 film "The Wild One" featuring Marlon Brando, and it also comes with the same line as found on the ep: "Recorded in Glorious Bb-Minor". The album consists of 13 tracks with a total running time of 33 minutes making the compositions quite short. Compared to the one-year old ep, there's a slight turn towards a bolder garage rock and 60s pop music with strong bonds to surf rock and what became known as Phil Spector's wall-of-sound productions, which means a move away from the harder tones of rockabilly / psychobilly. "That Great Love Sound" and "Heartbreak Stroll" were selected for single releases but they didn't peak higher than number #34 and #49 respectively in the UK ("Heartbreak Stroll made a top-3 entry in Denmark), and the album made it to number #43 on the UK albums chart list, #53 in Sweden, and peaking as number #5 on the national list. Basically proving some international interest, though probably not as much as the label had wished for.

Chain Gang of Love is more than a decent debut. But one of the reasons it didn't succeed as well as the label had sat out for, could be an obvious link to noise rock act The Jesus and Mary Chain with bonds to the post-punk scene, indie rock of the 80s, which had all peaked at some point and what ultimately could appear as a too heavy mix of styles and influences pointing in too many directions - at least from distributors' and critics' point of view. However, the band still attracted an audience, although, at this point, they were still regarded as someone to keep an ear on. A potential was there but would they be able to fulfill the expectations?

Back in the day, I would probably have rated this 3 / 5 as the music didn't catch me. It's in retrospect that I have come to enjoy this more, and to see it as an important starting point to band's later releases but without this, they would never have been able to make such great albums later on, and then you have to give it to them and to Gottehrer: they have really made a distinct and classic sound on this one.

Recommended.

The Raveonettes "Whip It On" (2002) (ep)

Whip It On (ep) (debut)

release date: May 27, 2002

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,56]

producer: [rec. by Sune Rose Wagner]

label: Crunchy Frog - nationality: Denmark

Tracklist: 1. "Attack of the Ghost Riders" - 2. "Veronica Fever" - 3. "Do You Believe Her" - 4. "Chains" - 5. "Cops on Our Tail" - 6. "My Tornado" - 7. "Bowels of the Beast" - 8. "Beat City"

Studio ep debut by Danish duo The Raveonettes consisting of Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo. Wagner put an end to his brain-child Psyched Up Janis in 1999, and after a short stint with the instrumental psycho-billy band Tremolo Beer Gut, Wagner formed The Raveonettes with bassist Sharin Foo in late 2001. Initially, the band was full-members band centered around Wagner and Foo, and along the way it rooted as a duo, who would invite various musicians and vocalist to perform on specific releases.

Whip It On is an 8-track ep (originallly issued in Digipak and 10'' vinyl formats) with a running length just above 21 minutes resulting in quite short compositions all credited Wagner. A note on the cover cover stating: "Recorded in Glorious Bb-Minor" explicitly add detailed information about the music. For these recordings the duo made use of additional guitarist Manoj Ramdas and drummer Jakob Hoyer.

Stylewise, this debut represents a narrow combo of styles mostly originating from the late 1950s and early 1960s. It's basically a blend of garage rock, surf rock, and rockabilly - sometimes with a twist of 'modern' psychobilly, and with full attention on twang and reverb. Wagner already showed his interest for American old school rock music while playing in Psyched Up Janis - accentuated on the band's final studio album Enter the Super Peppermint Lounge (1998), and then with Tremolo Beer Gut, he commited fully on surf rock, rockabilly and psychobilly styles. In that regard, The Raveonettes comes out as a more harmony- and vocal-founded project, which focus both on compositional strength as well as presenting us with actual songs. This is actually, something you could say about their entire following production on the many albums that would follow this, and also despite taking on various stylistic detours on their way, but The Raveonettes always seem to carry a strong affection for quality of sound by implementing their output via... songs. The front cover is characteristically held in b/w with few coloured letters - again setting time and place to a period of the late 1950s and early 1960s - basically pre-Beatles era, which at the early stage of the band was mandatory. The album credits doesn't mention any producer, only that Sune Wagner recorded and wrote all tracks.

The album was met by some national attention and the band was right from scratch on both a critics' darling and a much treasured live cult act, i.e. not as such a mainstream hit but a band with evident potential.