Grave Disorder

Damned

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 21, 2001)
• Original Release Date: August 21, 2001
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Nitro Records
• ASIN: B00005NFK5
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,931 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
The Damned are back and--thank hell--all their faculties are intact. These superannuated punks have ceaselessly provided live music for Britain's gnarly pallbearers to pogo to, but Grave Disorder is only their fourth studio album in 16 years (and the first to feature bereted loon-ball Captain Sensible since 1982). Rat Scabies has been replaced by ex-English Dogs tub-thumper Pinch, while Dave Vanian remains at the vocal helm. Vanian even gets to sing a manly voiced love song to missus and bassist Patricia Morrison (Sisters of Mercy), which humorously robs Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" of a few chords. Vanian is at the top of his game: "Absinthe," his tribute to the hallucinogenic dishwashing liquid of turn-of-the-century Paris, is a wonder; "Amen," a grimly insurgent anti-religion rocker with clanging church bell samples, is hilarious; and the Andrew Lloyd Webber treatment on the brilliant "Beauty of the Beast" (Vanian's tribute to the flesh-crawling artfulness of the vintage black and white horror flick) only makes you mad that the Damned never got around to doing a gothic version of Phantom of the Opera in their 1980s heyday. Even so, this album is neat, neat, neat all the way and perhaps the finest album the Damned have ever made. --Kevin Maidment

Product Description
Grave Disorder is the brand new release from the legendary band The Damned. The new material was written between March and May of 2000, produced by Grammy award winner David Bianco (Tom Petty, Teenage Fan Club, Del Amitri, Rollins Band, Buffalo Tom, and Afghan Whigs) and marks the first time that David Vanian and Captain Sensible have collaborated since Frankie Goes to Hollywood was polluting our airwaves. Rumors spread like wildfire that these sessions delivered some of the strongest new material from The Damned since Strawberries was released back in 1982. Grave Disorder was The Damned's Nitro records debut comes packaged in a Digipak with 13 Damned tracks.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Damned Are Back And It's Been Worth The Wait, August 21, 2001

By	Michael E. Strupp (St Croix, US Virgin Islands) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Grave Disorder" demonstrates that, far from being washed up old punksters, The Damned are alive and well and creating excellent and innovative music, far better than the botched "Not Of This Earth" from the mid-1990s and even their more commercial efforts on the MCA Label back in the 1980s. For those who loved "The Black Album," and "Strawberries," this is the album you've been waiting 15 years to hear.

The range of songs on "Grave Disorder" is extremely impressive - - from slow, haunting ballads to incredibly fast and hard charging punk rock - and the lyricism of Captain Sensible and the voice of Dave Vanian remain in fine form. New bandmembers Pinch, Patricia Morrison and Monty Oxy Moron are superb in their musical ability with noteworthy songs including "Song.com", "Democracy?" and "Would You Be So Hot (If You Weren't Dead?)"

If you want to hear great new music from a time-tested band, experience "Grave Disorder."

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A DAMNED SHAME THAT MORE PEOPLE DON'T KNOW THEM, May 3, 2004

By	No Name (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

Wow-ee is this a great album or what??? The Damned absolutely refuse to die, and God bless `em for it. In my opinion, the truly great artists never stop writing and recording, and these guys must be in it for the love of music, because they have never matched the commercial success of the Clash or the Sex Pistols. However, I personally prefer the Damned to both of those bands, and Grave Disorder is a prime example of why. It's a near-perfect blend of punk, rock, pop, and psychedelia, with a touch of goth attitude thrown in.

The Damned are very serious about their music, but they never make the mistake of trying to SOUND serious in an effort to prove it. Sure, they have political and social concerns, but it never overpowers the music or threatens to weigh things down. There is a sense of theatrical fun and experimentation that runs through the album, and while they incorporate many different elements into their sound, their style is uniquely their own.

"Democracy" starts things off with explosive drumming by Pinch and ferocious guitar work by Captain Sensible, while Dave Vanian tells us that "Revolution changes nothing, and voting changes even less". This is followed up by "Song.com" a punk/Beach Boys hybrid which salutes the internet. After that comes "Thrill Kill" a first-person account of a serial killer's illicit fantasies intoned over an ominous minor key bass line. It's one of the best tracks on the album, and despite its (apparently) gruesome subject matter, Vanian's theatrical tongue-in-cheek approach makes it less horrific and more horror-movie-like (which was undoubtedly the idea).

"She" is a stomping psychedelic number, with a decidedly Sisters-of-Mercy-esque vocal at the end. "Looking for Action" is the closest thing to pure punk on the album, and it sounds like it could have easily fit in on the first Damned album (Damned Damned Damned). "Would You Be So Hot" examines the positive effects of death on one's level of popularity, and "Amen" is a scathing attack on organized religion, propelled by a throbbing two-chord riff and frantic drumming by Pinch.

"Absinthe", a moody minor key tune, features some odd but appealing chord changes and atmospheric theremin work by Vanian. I have to ask, when was the last time you heard theremin on a punk record? Hell, when was the last time you heard theremin on anything??? That fact alone should intrigue people enough to check out this innovative and diverse CD. "Neverland" is a timely parody of Michael Jackson that originally appeared on a Captain Sensible solo CD, but the chorus and the bridge are just so bloody magnificent he decided to redo it with the Damned.

"The End of Time" is another goth-flavored number with obsessive lyrics, and "Obscene", one of my personal favorites on Grave Disorder, has a lilting little melody which is offset by nightmarish keyboard effects. "W" has an almost techno feel and should be of particular interest to Bush-baiters, while the album closer, "Beauty of the Beast" features a gorgeous performance by Monty, the Damned's resident keyboard player.

The Damned are truly one of the most under-appreciated and undervalued bands out there, and this CD is proof of it. Don't remain in the dark about these creative geniuses. Pick this one up and find out for yourself.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally! I've waited 15 years for this album, August 28, 2001

By	John T. Edwards "John Edwards" (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Man! Wow! Finally I've got new music from the Damned to listen to! This album shows just how great this band was, and still is. It picks up where '82's "Strawbwerries" left off without skipping a beat. By the way, DO NOT get "Not of this Earth". It's Nothing like the Damned should sound like. Get this, "Strawberries", and "The Black Album" (get it on vinyl too!). Make sure you take a good listen to "Would You Be So Hot (If you weren't dead?)" It grew on me and now is stuck in my head for a week. I hope I don't wait 19 more years 'till the next one.