Customer Reviews

Dark Continent / Call of the West

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If you don't already own these two classic albums on CD, here's the best of Wall of Voodoo's music at an affordable price. Given that Dark Continent has been out-of-print on CD for a while, this disc is also worth buying for that album alone. (The version of Call of the West included here doesn't differ appreciably from the earlier CD release.) There's nothing fancy about the packaging (unlike my vinyl copy, lyrics are not included); and, while the sound quality is quite good, it's nothing special. But this disc does get the job done.

If you're new to Wall of Voodoo, you're in for a real treat. This disc, plus The Index Masters, will give you all of their output that really matters: that is, all of co-founder Stan Ridgway's tenure with the band. Ridgway's voice and Marc Moreland's guitar were made to go together; and, while I'm also a fan of Ridgway's solo work, the compositions here are shorter, sweeter, and more energetic than when he is left to his own devices.

This IS the essential Wall of Voodoo. Add the WOV EP to your collection and you've got the best. Forget about 'Sammystown' and 'Happy Planet,' it ain't Wall of Voodoo without Stan Ridgway. I'm so glad this is finally available on CD, my 80s-issue LPs are about worn out! The WOV sound is truly unique, crazy drum-machine beats, Marc Moreland's (RIP) wicked surf/crunch guitar, killer synths and Stan Ridgway's visually-epic lyrics. Call it New Wave, industrial surf, cowpunk, whatever ---there just isn't anything else that sounds like Classic Wall of Voodoo.

It was the perfect desert music, a combination Los Angeles punk "X" and country rock "The Doors", at a perfect time, early 80's, where all music with soul in it had a chance to fly above it all. Well crafted tunes with fun and twisted rhythms under clever and road tested lyrics.

I have to admit to having this disc in my 'wish list' for a long time. Boy, I should have jumped on this one. A lot of people will know Wall Of Voodoo for their lone hit, Mexican Radio. A song that I just love the dickens out of. It and Red Rider's Lunatic Fringe & Golden Earring's Radar Love are some of the finest works of Rock from the 1980's in my view. Anyway I thought the album a bit pricey, even for a double album. But, well I bit the bullet and got a copy of Dark Continent/Call of the West and have just enjoyed the heck out of it. I wished I'd gotten off the dime a bit sooner... the rest of the songs are that good. I'm going to flesh out my collection with additional purchases of Wall Of Voodoo discs. I've a pair in my wish list now.

The sound of the disc(s) just strikes a resonant with me. I like a lot of the 1980's sound, New Wave and all. I would not quite list this as New Wave, it has more of a Rock sound in it to me. Either way, it is a excellent listen. The sound quality is very good and my only wish is I would have gotten to know Wall Of Voodoo a lot sooner. More so than just the few tracks I had heard prior. Dare I say knock your socks off? What a revelation of wonderful sound this has been. It goes without saying that your milage may vary, we each tend to find our own musical path in life. If this is a fork in the road for you, well perhaps you should take it. I wanted to have the album Mexican Radio came from, I do that quite often, go get the album from which my favorite tunes emanate. For the most part, a enjoyable plan of attack. I'm a bit in the old school vein, and in my search for new music and or bands/groups to subscribe to I've been able to cross several decades of music. Wall Of Voodoo holds a place in my near and dear listing. Music that seems to 'speak' to me, if only in the harmonics of its sound. I'm pleased to get this... if you have an inkling that you might enjoy this double disc, dare I suggest that you like I, take the plunge and discover an art form of delightful proportion. I think this disc and perhaps all the early work for sure to be SUPER. Enjoy!

I've included a track listing below for those who like such.

Dark Continent ~

01. Red Light
02. Two Minutes Till Lunch
03. Animal Day
04. Full Of Tension
05. Me And My Dad
06. Back In Flesh
07. Tse Tse Fly
08. Call Box (1-2-3)
09. This Way Out
10. Good Times
11. Crack The Bell

Call Of The West ~

01. Tomorrow
02. Lost Weekend
03. Factory
04. Look At Their Way
05. Hands Of Love
06. Mexican Radio
07. Spy World
08. They Don't Want Me
09. On Interstate 15
10. Call Of The West

Remember that this is one of those two albums on one compact disc issues.

I've only recently discovered the music of Wall of Voodoo after a long infatuation with visionary 80s bands like Oingo Boingo and Devo. Wall of Voodoo's charming quirkiness fits right into that very particular musical niche when bands were experimenting and pioneering very unique sounds back in the early 80s. The combination of Stan Ridgway's distinctive off-key singing with Marc Moreland's spooky guitar style is absolutely perfect.

This cd combines both Stan Ridgway-fronted Wall of Voodoo albums into one amazing package. Unlike the 2-album-compilation releases of Devo, there actually appears to be a lot of thought put into this release. The booklet includes a very nice essay about Wall of Voodoo, the packaging is nice, and the cd even has cd text for track titles (something I see too little of even on modern releases).

Although almost every song is worthwhile, specific highlights include their best known hit Mexican Radio, and my personal favorites Back In Flesh, with it's amazing bassline, and ode-to-procrastination Tomorrow. Both albums are remarkable and packed with unique and amazing music; having them sold on a single disc is an incredible deal and I highly recommend this release.

Good combo, now that cd's are capable of putting more songs on than the limited space of vinyl, it's nice to be able to double up on some of those old "albums"
I think they could do a better job at remastering, but other than that it was fun to hear those old "film noir" type stories/lyrics that only ridgeway seems to put together. Makes me want to watch all those old movies like "Double Indemnity", "Maltese Falcon", etc. and some David Lynch films. Lynch ought to make a movie like some of his old stuff, "Wild at Heart", "Blue Velvet" maybe even in black and white, a tribute to all those old "film noir" movies of the 40's and 50's with Stan doing the soundtrack. Oh Well.

I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY ARE FINALLY RE-ISSUING "DARK CONTINENT" ON CD,THEY SHOULD HAVE PUT ONE OF THE OTHER OUT OF PRINT WALL OF VOODOO ALBUMS WITH "DARK CONTINENT" BESIDES "CALL OF THE WEST" IT HAS NEVER GONE OUT OF PRINT AND IS DIRT CHEAP TO PURCHASE.THEY SHOULDVE PUT "SEVEN DAYS IN SAMMYSTOWN" OR "HAPPY PLANET" OR THE "UGLY AMERICANS LIVE IN AUSTRALIA" WITH "DARK CONTINENT" BUT MAYBE THEY WILL RE-ISSUE THE OUT OF PRINT MATERIAL THAT WOULD BE AWESOME.