Times of Romance

The Lovemakers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 23, 2005)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fontana Interscope
• ASIN: B000AGTQ6I
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #110,898 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Prepare for the Lovemakers, August 24, 2005

By 

Brendan M. Prawdzik (Berkeley, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Times of Romance (Audio CD)

What a great debut record from this down-to-earth Oakland trio (plus the new drummer guy)! I read some good press in the Guardian and decided to see them live at Cafe Du Nord with a friend. I then took ten friends with me the following week. An energetic and seductive live act, the Lovemakers bring much of this thrilling electricity to "Times of Romance." The refined recordings of long-time (three-year) favs like "Dance" improve upon, rather than pervert, the originals. "Shake that Ass" will make you want to hump your stereo and should definitely make it onto the airwaves soon. A few of the tracks, such as "Falling Apart" and "Gonna Find" are almost cloyingly poppy, disturbingly evocative of, say, Faith Hill, but their sweetness and shameless forwardness could not help but win me over. The title track, "Times of Romance," convincingly conveys the pathos of passionate lovers in their demise, and the electric violin solos add to the effect, despite the deliberateness of the cliche. Here and elsewhere, the rich electronic textures of the musical interludes remind me of Pulp, though the effect is much more lively (and perhaps naive) while much less maturely macabre. Greatest of all, perhaps, is that the Lovemakers are from Oakland and embrace the Bay Area as their nurturing fanbase. (I recently read that both Scott Blond and Lisa Light continue to wait tables in Rockridge.) I would consider giving the record four stars only because Light is a Stanford graduate, but that's petty. Of the twelve original tracks on this record, nine or ten could be true radio hits. Good luck, Lovemakers. Thanks for the great free show at Rasputin in Berkeley. Keep up the good work and keep making fun, sexy music for us!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Yo Mama's New Wave, September 30, 2005

By 

T. Connor "Music Nerd" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Times of Romance (Audio CD)

I think the best way to sum this album up is to say that if you like the single (Prepare for the Fight) chances are you'll like the majority of the songs that come with it. This Oakland, CA trio combines the best aspects of bands such as Human League, including the male-female vocal dynamic, but updates the sound considerably, enough so that they not only avoid sounding like a bad cover band but also manage to run well with most electronica and dance you'd hear today.
This is not to say that it is always done perfectly, though. Certain tracks try to bring in a taste of trance (Shake that Ass) but in the end come off with a kind of updated-disco feel reminiscent of NIN's "Only," just with less of an edge. The most "modern" (As far as dance music goes) sounding track is the very forgettable remix of "Prepare for the Fight" by Dummies that serves as the album's last song, a weak attempt at club music in an otherwise great album.
Overall, though, in the year 2005 new wave is a very, very difficult path to follow without turning cheesy, and The Lovemakers manage to immerse themselves in synth-pop without becoming too sugary or just plain dumb. They do it unapologetically and, as a whole, very well. For old fans of the genre and newcomers looking for artists that completely stand out from their contemporaries, this album is a sure bet.

Reccomended if you Like: Human League, The Killers, The Postal Service

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than just 80s-style synthpop!, January 30, 2006

By 

James Webster "Storyteller" (Berkeley, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Times of Romance (Audio CD)

The Lovemakers play great songs with melodic hooks, and are of course fun to dance to. While their sound is somewhat like the B-52s and the Go-Gos, their songs are racier, relying on the underlying dark tension between vocalists Light and Blonde (ironically, the group has achieved success only after they broke up). Prepare for the Fight, Shake That Ass, Falling Apart, Runaway, Fashion--these tunes are catchy, yet different enough to keep the album from bogging down. Light and Blonde are a bit kitschy, but they know how to coo, too. Not a bad cut in the bunch. I hope they make it big and AllMusic finally puts up their bio!