Customer Reviews

The Plan

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Let's get some fact straight.An experienced punk rocker won't find this ¨punkier stuff¨ as other reviewers have.Maybe a very weird form of punk-metal ? This is,nonetheless,rawer and excrutiatingly HEAVY,pre

synths,early Numan material.These aren't songs s.body

dug out and took out of a secret vault,proof to it is I have the same album on vinyl ,dated 1984.The additional value here

are the bonus tracks-which almost duplicate the original number-and the remastering,which is almost welcome,the

original sound being Ok anyway.These songs retain the robotic vocals,staccatto guitars and dry rythmic section which are so tipically Numan,with the addition of such strong,fierce playing no metalhead will be dissapointed.The accompaning booklet has much more one could ask for,and certainly makes for a heavier box indeed.I really appreciate this kind of generosity from a record label.

SIMPLY GORGEOUS.

Most albums filled with demos are interesting as artifacts, but don't make for great listening. This one disproves that rule. All the songs are in the post-punk, three minute mode, but Gary finds a lot of wiggle room within that format. "Bombers" and "That's Too Bad" were, indeed, the correct choices for singles - excellent electric guitar rushes with very good lyrics. The two acoustic numbers ("Monday Troop" and "Crime of Passion") are compelling, and add some welcome variety to the program. A few of the songs sound better when they were re-recorded for the TUBEWAY ARMY album ("Life Machine"), but some ("My Shadow in Vain") are significantly different enough to warrant listening to both. A few tracks don't make an impression one way or another, but generally a cool post-punk collection from someone who never really visited this style again.

Really fun stuff from Tubeway Army (1977-1979), a new wave band led by singer/guitarist Gary Numan. Sounds like electronic new wave with a bit of punk tossed in, but all very original.

Recent praise has come to Numan from the M.Manson and NIN camps for his technovibe synth stuff. However, in-the-know hardcore punkers know Numan's pioneering mastery of brutally crunchy punk metal. These songs predate the now-tame semi-distorted Judas Priest and Quiet Riot early 80's metal, and surpass that with advanced corrosive guitar violence that did not reach popularity until SLAYER and METALLICA. You heard me ! Songs like Numan's Basic J would have stood out as the "the really heavy punk one" amongst Metallica's Kill Em All record. Raw, punky, harsh seedy downtown lyrics with earnest artistic freshness. The band is rough but punchy and full of awsome riffs and hooks. A must-have for any fans of Numan, punk, metal.

If you were the only, girl in this world, and I was the only........boy. The lyrics of the songs do not leave your mind. Gary's acoustic songs are great. His fast punk songs, who could not love them? Its a weird un-electronic side of Gary, but I love it.

I never had this album back in the day but it is a nice combination of 1978, 1979, and their First Album. Incredibly powerful guitar work from when Numan was still a Punk.

In the liner notes, Gary says, as if to apologize to the techno fans, "I wrote the 'punky' songs with the sole intention of obtaining a recording contract".....but Gary, please don't deride this stuff, for it RULES! Brilliant songs, with almost all strong, awesome trax like That's Too Bad, Bombers, My Shadow in Vain, Something's in the House, Mean Street, Crime of Passion, Life Machine (poignant song with original subject matter), Basic J., Fadeout 1930, etc. etc. This is a must-have gem for fans of old-school '70s glam/punk, yeah! Get it and you won't be sorry!

This is a fantastic album, even though it's a collection of demo's and unreleased songs from 1977-1978. I recall buying the first Tubeway Army album on vinyl in 1989 thinking "this will eventually be valued for the nugget o' gold that it is." Sure enough. Bands like Six Finger Satellite and scores of twenty something Kraut geeks just love it. "The Plan" has even less keyboard (maybe none) than the debut T.A. record. "Basic J" has the dopest crunchiest guitar I have ever heard! I looked forever to find this on vinyl and then this CD comes out with extra tracks! Thanks to Numan for re-releasing it. If you like late seventies punk like Wire then get this CD!