Not a real Greatest Hits - Where is Ink and Paper and Hands Across the Sea . They were both videos from the MTV days. Still waiting for a Greatest hits with songs from Stop Start. Or better yet re-release Stop Start. Songs represented are darker than you would expect from Modern English.
Great album - Notorious for the single I Melt with You, Modern English produce a dark brand of pop that is also dark. Like the other reviews claim, this is one of the most highly under-rated bands. If you like Joy Division, Depeche Mode, Dada Pogrom or Gary Numan then you will enjoy this album. There is a lot of similarity with The High Dials in a strange but curious way. The melodies with get you up on the dance floor. Listen and see.
THIS IS NOT A BEST CD! - I AM SO FRUSTRATED WHEN I BOUGHT AND LISTENED TO THIS CD! I THOUGHT ALL THE BEAT IN EACH TRACK WILL BE SIMILAR TO THE BEAT OF MELT WITH YOU. I TELL YOU IT S NOT. PLEASE DONT BUY THIS CD! THIS IS A BIG RIFF OFF!
This is what Modern English was all about! - Modern English have always been much more than just I Melt With You. In fact I would put several of these songs on this disc up against it. Will people who simply know them through Valley Girl be put off by the darker more experimental songs like Gathering Dust or Sixteen Days? Quite possibly, but then they d really be missing the point of what Modern English were trying to get across. I agree songs like Someone s Calling or Hands Across the Sea should have been included, but overall I think this compilation really represents what Modern English were about, and really gets at the sound they were trying to convey. It s also a bonus that they didn t include material from any of the albums after Ricochet Days. The lineup had changed and they lost their direction, though having just seen them live, they seem to be back on track and the new material played was quite good, albeit with only 2 original members.
Whose Best Of? - Modern English are certainly deserving of a decent Best Of, but this one featuring songs from their 4AD years is just one big question mark. The darker, harsher debut MESH AND LACE gets far too much coverage here and their best two albums -- AFTER THE SNOW and RICOCHET DAYS -- are weakly represented. For starters, why on earth someone would omit Someone s Calling and Hands Across the Sea is absolutely beyond me -- two of their quintessential songs. I almost get the impression that this one was compiled by a fan of their earlier goth sound who almost begrudgingly (and smugly?) includes the smash I Melt With You, sandwiched inappropriately between MESH AND LACE material. It would be nice to see material from STOP START (Ink and Paper was a great song) and possibly even PILLOW LIPS included in a truly comprehensive compilation, because this one widely misses the mark by purporting to be a Best Of.