Customer Reviews

Boi-Ngo

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Boi-Ngo" was the second album of Oingo Boingo material I bought. The first was the compilation album "Skeletons in the Closet," which can give one a very specific idea of what Boingo's style is. But when I saw this album in stores and bought it without even thinking about it, I was completely enthralled by how much ground Danny Elfman had covered in style. So my ideas of Boingo are based on this album and "Skeletons in the Closet" mostly, because they were the first ones I ever heard. And the first Boingo song I heard was "We Close Our Eyes" which is Track 5 on this album. It hooked me in the first place, so I have a natural affinity for this particular album. However, of all of Boingo's stuff, this is the "sweetest" sounding, if that makes sense enough. The messages are no heavier or lighter than any of Elfman's earlier songs, like "Grey Matter" or "Only a Lad," but they resonate with more of a charm to them. It's unfortunate that present styles of punk and ska and all that has turned people against the cliche 80s sound that Boingo was one of the manufacturerers of.

Track 7 "My Life" is the sweet part of this deal. It really is one of those songs that yanks my heart strings.

Dance-friendly and usually catchy (although "New Generation" isn't really all that catchy), "Boi-Ngo" offers a very specific sound and feeling that you can't get anywhere else. One of my all-time favorites of Boingo, "Elevator Man" is featured Track 3. Listen if you want to enjoy yourself in this life! And might I suggest you really examine the lyrics and see if you can find the hidden meanings I did.

Last of all, Track 9 "Pain" is probably the most musically appealing on this album, very much the familiar sardonic rock from earlier Boingo, but with a matured style. And a great ending to the album!

While I agree that this collection might not best represent Maestro Elfman's previous incarnation, there is still some good strong fun to be had here. The opener "Home Again" is a punchy, well known gem of O.B.'s output, and the acapella-introduced "Where Do All My Friends Go" follows strongly on its heels. Other highlights include "Elevator Man" (who's goin' down, who's goin down, typically fun, dark Elfman lyric), "We Close Our Eyes" (representative of a warmer direction the band started to take, nicely performed on the "Farewell" video), "Not My Slave" (a nice lesson in equitable reationships), "Outrageous" and "Pain".

A bit repetetive at times, not as arrangementally developed as earlier work overall .... on the other hand, a very clean recording, and less compressed and mechanical-sounding than they were at the outset. It needs to be stressed, that even at their less distinctive, Oingo Boingo ran circles around their musical contemporaries, distiguished by an unmistakable sound that was part tribal, part big band, part new wave quirk, spiced up with a twisted dark irony that was lead singer/songwriter Danny Elfman's trademark. This would not be at all a bad album for the novice or curious first-time listener, since there would be much dispute over which of all the other recordings were the best.

Oingo Boingo. Oingo Boingo, I love that name, and I love this CD. This was one of the first Oingo Boingo CD's that I fell in love with. No, I didn't grow up in the 80's and no my parents don't listen to them, I was just lucky to find them over the internet. So, I hope someone is reading this that has never heard of Oingo Boingo, because you really need to. The thing I love about this CD and all the others is the Oingo Boingo horn section. Man, Sluggo and the boys can really squeeze out those notes. If you like 80's new wave music, your sure to like this. It's a brilliant CD, with genious in every note. My favorite songs are "Elevator Man," "We close our Eyes," "Not my slave," and "Where do all my friends go." But all the songs have something good about them. I really wish Danny and Co. were still doing this, because I started likeing them after their reign was over.

This album is not for the faint of hearted. If you have heard of Oingo Boingo and want to check them out I suggest Best-O-Boingo for a better over view of the band. However, if you are a fan, and you want to hear Danny Elfman's insanely creative style mixed in with an electronic 80's sound, then this is the way to go. Good examples of this are Where do all my friends go and pain, and the original version of we close our eyes is a masterpiece of the synthesiser. Two thumbs up for good family fun!

An exceedingly good album, probably their 3rd best. Do yourself a favour- once you get one album, you'll get the lot!

... but Elfman makes up vocally and lyrically.
Home Again-4.5 out of 5-The only reason I gave this such a great rating is because of the music. The music really sounds good on this song.

Where Do All My Friends Go-4 out of 5-I really love the way this song begins, a capella. Sounds really good. Elfman is a really great singer.

Elevator Man-4.5 out of 5-This one, also, has good music. A good dance song.

New Generation-4 out of 5-This song is good. I really love the chorus. The vocals and the trumpets in it. Great one.

We Close Our Eyes-4.5 out of 5-A suprisingly good song by OB. Really doesn't sound like them, but it's good. I can imagine this song playing over the credits or during a prom scene in an 80's movie.

Not My Slave-4 out of 5-Another good dance song.

My Life-3.5 out of 5-Not my personal favorite off the album(that would be Where Do All My Friends Go), but it's okay.

Outrageous-4 out of 5-Good music. I really like the chorus.

Pain-4 out of 5-Good music. Great vocals by Elfman. The fiddle sounds great.

When I bought this album, I was expecting more from it, because I had gotten Only A Lad first, and was a little disappointed when I listened to it. But, it's still an okay listen.

Many will find this album to be disappointing when compared to Oingo Boingo's last album, Dead Man's Party.

Upon deeper inspection they were still very much the same in sound although lyrically, they may be slightly less jokey. From my perspective, this is where Oingo Boingo grew into a less commercialized band who desired more of a limited audience. This may be due to their shortened name which some may have mistaken for an entirely different band.

The songs are less memerable than their previous stuff but they kept some good material.

We Close Our Eyes sounds surprising like the Moody Blues.

Pain sounds like something Depeche Mode used for their song Personal Jesus with the sawing / breathing effect.

Home Again is an uplifting and gradually expansive synthesized feast.
The rest of the album may not appeal as much to some but it's nice to see someone other than U2 was creating great music back in 87.

This album has two standout tracks in "We Close Our Eyes" and "Not My Slave." The song "Where Do All My Friends Go" is also quite good. The rest of the album is good but not excellent.

Oingo Boingo / Boi-ngo: This album is filled with classic Boingo tracks and is as fun as one would expect. It is frightening to think that this horn section is now out on the streets with nothing to do be cause trouble. Five Stars

This record isn't really that bad at all. But fans of Oingo Boingo usually like this one the least. The problem is, it's also not the best from Oingo Boingo. This album IS distinguishable from other Oingo Boingo albums because it's lighter and poppy. It is a fun record though, even if it's not as much of a party as Dead Man's.