Customer Reviews

Loveboat

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I've been a completist Erasure fan forever. They've always had a knack for writing sweet, lovable pop tunes which beg to be sung along to. Loveboat still has the pop tunes, but Flood's production is constantly trying to sink the effort in a myriad of ways. First of all, there is no consistency on the sound levels from song to song. One track will have so much bass, the treble is completely drowned. Then the next song will be so soft and muffled one can barely discern a song.

The word is that Madonna's Maverick label, who released Cowboy a few years back, have requested that Erasure re-record some of the tracks, record some new ones and re-edit the overall sound before they will release Loveboat stateside. So, hopefully, if there is ever a domestic release, this album will shine for its great songs and not be sunk by unfortunate production.

I've had this album for a while and was a tad disapointed at first. As noted in some of the other reviews, I agree that the mixing and sound quality of some of the tunes are odd, muffled and distorted. However, I suppose that is Flood's artistic contribution. All previous Erasure alsbums had crisp clear production. My favorite tracks are Freedom (very Erasure 80's), Alien (a really great song that I wish would get on American radio)Perchance to Dream (this is one of the songs that sounds muffled and distorted, but I really like it. I first heard it on a download and thought that it was just a bad quality download, but that's really how the song sounded!) I think Perchance to Dream is a great song and I love Andy's excentric falsetto. Love is the Rage (it'll grow on you) Here in My Heart and Catch 22 are simular to me and I like them both. They sound like they could have been on Cowboy or Chorus. (who knows, maybe they were supposed to be.)Then there is Moon and the Sky. It is another muffled production but I love the vocal and the funky disco beat. I read in an Erasure interview that it was supposed to be a ballad. I also read that they (Vince and Andy) don't always control the sound of the finished product. The album has been out for over a year. I don't think that they are going to remix and release in the US. I wish they would. If you are an Erasure fanatic, I think you can find something to love about this album. I recommend it for your collection. Also, the Freedom remix single is very good. Finally, there is also an import single of Moon and Sky on Amazon.com/uk. Check it out.

I know others have said the same, but this CD was almost ruined for me by the terrible mix. I am not a booming bass sort of person, and have never found the mix of previous Erasure tracks to be slanted toward bass, but this CD is so off balance that you can't ignore it. When I bought Loveboat I popped it right in my car CD player for the ride home. After the first track I turned the bass control on my stereo all the way down. It didn't help. After the third track I had to turn it off because the bass was actually making me nauseous. I finally was able to listen to it without getting a headache from the bass, but only by ripping the CD to my Windows Media Player and turning the bass way down. Once I could listen to the songs, I loved them. I listened to the whole CD over and over again. The music (when you can actually hear it over the bass) is great. I hope and pray that the rumors about a re-engineered US release are true.

Being the die hard fan that I am, it is pretty tough to give anything Erasure does, only three stars. This does not, by any means, indicate poor work! It's just that if their best work is a five, then, comparatively, this would have to be a three! Anyway, the first two tracks are what you would expect form the duo, great songs! Crying in the rain, track three, is pretty much the only one I don't care too much for. Perchance to Dream is, in my opinion, one of their best tracks ever! However, being an artist myself, I can't, for the life of me, understand their decision to mix it the way they did!!! The bass drum is extremely loud and distorted making his wonderful rendition of this song almost impossible to hear. I truly hope this is released as a single with other mixes that might correct this. It is so odd, that it took me quite a few listenings to realize what a great song this trully is! Anyway, all in all, this is a mellower album than what they usually put out, but still very good!

this is actually one of my favorite albums in general. I can see why this album has been put down, because of the lack of amazing hits, but aas a whole this project works. 'Perchance to Dream' is a very different song, its beats are original, and the keyboards flow in a way other people couldn't make them flow. Flood really knew what he was doing here. The fans that dislike this album prove to me the lack of openness to the changing times. Their more recent ventures would not have taken place if this project was not made.
Sinply put this, like all of their other albums holds its own. They aree unable to fail. We fans on the other hand, fail to realize what they are saying. Move on guys. Erasure is erasure. They can do no bad.

Quite possibly the most avant garde Elbum put out by Erasure yet. I waited and waited for this. I loved Cowboy although I was dissapointed because it was weak compared to the self titled album, but Loveboat puts Andy and Vince back on track. The mixing is slightly skewed, but Andy's voice still manages to hypnotize. The best songs by far are Alien and Surreal, although all the songs are great. Any true fan of Erasure needs to have this album, hell, buy two copies and give one to a friend.

As a loyal follower of Erasure since "Wonderland," I of course ran right out and bought this off the import rack as soon as it was released. I had already purchased the "Freedom" single, which preceeded the album by a few weeks, and I was excited to hear the rest of the tracks. Unfortunately what I heard was Erasure's worst album of their career. I don't believe the melodies are up to their past standards - Vince & Andy sound tired. The worst, however (as is stated in many of the reviews here), is that Flood's production is AWFUL.

The entire album sounds as if its playing from underwater or underneath a heavy blanket. I don't know what they were thinking...?? Flood did a similar hack-job on Smashing Pumpkins' "Mellon Collie..." album - one filled with beautiful songs that are produced poorly with an overwhelming, muffled-bass sound that drowns out everything else.

... Maverick (Erasure's US record label) has forced the duo back into the studio for some retouches and/or new tracks before they agree to release this in the US.... a good idea, as far as I am concerned... maybe some input from a better producer will help save these tracks.

Good songs: "Freedom," "Catch 22," "Alien," "Here In My Heart"

Horrific: "Moon & the Sky," "Love Is the Rage"

A little wussy, but classic Erasure. The duo has made another good album that unfortunately will go unnoticed by the masses. Freedom and Moon and Sky are instant hits and the more I listen, the more songs I like. On every album that Erasure puts out, people expect a "Chains of Love" or an "Oh Lamour", but that was 13 years ago, and the band has grown since then. Loveboat is a good album that is worth the listen.

I have been an Erasure fan from the beginning. It's been interesting to hear their sound become more sophisticated over the years. When I listen, I am focused on the musical arrangements and melodies rather than the lyrical content. From that standpoint, this CD is very weak. These are not the beautiful melodies we're used to hearing, nor does this album have any of the richly layered vocal harmonies that some of their more successful albums had. In fact there are several songs in which Andy Bell's voice is annoying- to me they are impossible to listen to. Overall, Vince Clarke's arrangements are simple and uninteresting. There is literally only one track which I really like- that's the first track, "Freedom". To make matters worse, I paid a lot for this CD because it is am import. I have a bad feeling that Erasure has already done the best work of their careers, because it's been going downhill for the last 3 albums. Although, I think the right producer is essential and is perhaps the problem here. They may need to rethink their choices.

There are some great tracks on this disc, but those who have commented on the varying volumes and production are right. You must keep your fingers on the volume control throughout the CD unless you have a limiter hooked up! Still, many of the cuts are vintage Erasure and it is too bad it wasn't released in the US. I still enjoyed it!