Customer Reviews

Sessions

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

 

 

THe stranglers have always been sort-of outsiders. From the very early days they were the first punk band to incorporate a keybord, and their lyrics always took on deeper, sleazier, darker, yet still good humoured topics. In all honesty, I believe that the stranglers are perhaps one of best alltime punk rock bands to ever have graced sound systems. This recording is a collection of some of their best and catchiest songs done live in a studio. All the songs are tight and clear, and every instrument sounds superb. Infact, if I didn't know any better I would have thought this to be a plain old studion album. You can tell the difference by the following: in this album the bass is thumpier and smoother-as opposed to their other studio works where the bass is growly and slightly distorted-and there is much more guitar, that is, the guitar is more audible, whereas regular stranglers records have a predominant keybord sound. ALso, the backing vocals are much more noticeable than on the regular recordings. These are nit-picky details, but in some cases add an improvement, but frankly if you want a nut-shell reasoning, the overall recording is just cleaner than regular stranglers' records. Other bands to whatch out for in this vain of punk rock would be the Jam, Radiobirdman, and the much newer fore-runners of the current punk rock scene, The International Noise Conspiracy. Forget blink-182, sum-41 and newfound glory. If you are looking for some real punk rock with cathcy melodies and humorously ingenious lyrics, then buy this album.

This release is a compilation of sessions performed for the BBC in England. It covers their earlier years with United Artists. The songs are reproduced faithfully although the BBC engineers were unable or unwilling to give that edge heard on The Stranglers early studio albums. This CD is for Stranglers fans only, but if that includes yourself then it is not a bad buy.

I've had this for years, and thought it was good all the way through, but I've recently become more drawn to the '82 session tracks i.e. the final three. The Nuclear Device / Genetix medley works OK, but if you have "Rattus Norvegicus" or any live album with "Down in the Sewer" in it, then get this. You will not hear a sweeter, cleaner version of this song anywhere else, so far as I know. The instruments are almost perfectly balanced, and Jet's drumming is beautiful in it's simplicity, but Hugh's guitar gets washed out a bit somehow.

The Stranglers a name that put fear and loathing to the GLC.A band that,fired the nation into punk.4 guys a chemist,icecream salesman,a musian,and a student,The Stranglers.
This cd shows off the band to their best.11 tracks ranging from thier first album,to their last(at that time La Foile).
The best of the tracks are Wog,No More Heroes,Sewer.
This cd shows how the band sounded when Hugh and JJ were working togthere,not pulling each other a part,an excellent cd a must for those who love the band,a must for those who like The Stranglers,a must for those who want to hear how the band sounded in the good old days.

Probably the best bit of these sessions is the marriage of Nuclear Device and Genetix. But I have to say, these aren't nearly as good as the studio versions (especially Goodbye Toulouse). One the other hand, the liner notes do put the sessions in an interesting context about what they were trying to convey on John Peel's show. Still, I would suggest looking at the songs listed here and getting the studio albums on which they originally appear.

This is a great CD for those into the early Stranglers stuff.

I saw them live back in the 70's & this CD brought back the memory of those cookin' shows. Excellent versions of all the classics especially "Burning Up Time". A must for fans of the early Stranglers pre "la Folie" LP.

Only the stranglers can outdo themselves, and on this attempt they come up short. The album features a number of their big "hits," and although have most of these songs on vinyl or disc, i decided to buy it. The production of this album was off I think, because I enjoyed the originals a lot more than these "attempts." I love the Stranglers dark, electronic-gruff sound...especially the tracks on here "I Feel Like a Wog," and the classic "No more Heroes." Who has the brilliance (or audacity) to rhyme heroes with shakespereos)? Anyways, my favorite Stranglers song would be Bear Cage. But if you want an album that features a lot of great Stranglers songs, and you are just getting into the band, you might want to get this one. IT is great, don't get me wrong, but it's definately not their best. If you like the Stranglers, I would recommend newer groups like Suede (in Yank terms, London Suede),and older groups like Stiff Little Fingers, the Buzzcocks, Wire, and the legendary Chameleons UK...oh, and Joy Division... CHECK IT OUT! PEACE!