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22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Yes!, April 22, 2009
"Yes", the 10th studio album from the Pet Shop Boys, is a solid album and a pleasant surprise after the somewhat disappointing "Release" and "Fundamental". Is it the best thing since "Very"? Quite possibly. There really isn't a bad song in the bunch. Politics take a back seat this time around, and the lyrics focus on more personal issues - love and relationships (both the successful and failed variety) Johnny Marr returns to contribute some guitar (and harmonica) work. Some of you may be disappointed to hear that there is no huge, overblown production like "Go West" this time around (I confess to being mildly disappointed myself).
My personal favorites (so far): "All Over The World" (reminds me of a more beat-heavy "Se A Vida E"), "King of Rome" (a somber ballad in the vein of "Do I Have To?"), "Pandemonium" (an upbeat stomper) and the odd closer, "Legacy" (as another reviewer noted, similar in feel to something off of "Behaviour"). I was a little disappointed with "This Used To Be The Future" on the bonus disc - it's nice to hear from Phil Oakey, but something about the song just didn't work for me. The dub mixes are pretty much what you'd expect.
A couple of notes about the package itself: the set comes in a folding glossy cardboard case that - for some reason - is 6" long rather than the standard 5.5", as I discovered when I tried to put it into the storage compartment in my car's dashboard and it wouldn't fit. I can tell that the extra half-inch is going to cause me annoyance. It also comes with a booklet containing the lyrics to all of the songs and the production credits.
If you have stuck with the Pet Shop Boys to this point, I don't have to urge you to pick this one up - you probably already have. If you are new to the Pet Shop Boys, you could do worse than start with "Yes". Thanks Neil and Chris!
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17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Shiny Bubbly Romantic Pop, April 24, 2009
A great outing from the Boys and I am in that camp that thinks this is their best since Very. It is certainly one of their most consistent albums and from track 1 made me smile. Some of this is just perfect happy (yes, happy) bouncy pop songs. The others are beautiful, slower ballads. Beautiful arrangements, great guitar and strings, Neil in fine voice - this is a great treat timed perfectly for summer. Enjoy!
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43 of 55 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Their achievements are not without merit in any way and the Brits award is a clear proof., April 21, 2009
They had theit hits in the 80s, when everything was pretty much a novelty. The Pet Shop Boys added to that curio-laden era.
They've never been away, but the last couple of albums never seemed to have that spark that earlier material seemed to have.
To some people, the duo's last studio release "Fundamental" suffered slightly due to political subject matter.
Having such a reputation as great musicians, it allows the Pet Shop Boys to call upon other musical geniuses to work on their album. Johnny Marr who was in a band called the Smiths was called in to work his magic on guitar arrangements. Owen Pallett, who is well known amongst Arcade Fire fans, also lends a hand to work on various string sections. And Philip Oakey ( Human League) helps the proceedings as well.
For their 10th outing, Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe have hooked up with hitmaking production team Xenomania in an attempt to return to core values and reaffirm their pop relevance.
Thankfully, collaborating with Xenomania, the pop production house behind hits from Girls Aloud and Alesha Dixon, hasn't goaded the Pets into trying anything undignified. "Yes" sounds clean, fresh and contemporary.
It all starts promisingly: "All Over The World" samples a nutcracking snatch of Tchaikovsky to deliver a grand, mordant hymn to global pop songs and everyday desires.
But the heart of the album lies in more low-key numbers such as the slightly delirious "Pandemonium", "King Of Rome", an exquisite tale of post-break-up loneliness, and the tortured melody of "Legacy", inspired by Tony Blair, which recall the windblown balladry of 1990's "Behaviour".
Maybe the characteristically titled "The Way It Used To Be" - is about a once brilliant love that disintegrates over time - is one of the best thing here, defiantly struggling against easy nostalgia, along with the gorgeous, string-filled 1960s fantasy which is "Beautiful People" with its flamboyant Bacharach and David-like stylings.
It's a bunch of joyous pop songs. The real pop feasts are in the first half of the album . Although they are well received, nothing major ever surfaced to get people excited like the first single "Love Etc." Complete with a mesmerising animated video, it caught the balance perfectly of synth pop without being too sickly sweet.
"Yes" isn't perfect. "Does the union of Pet Shop Boys and Xenomania work as well on record as it does on paper? Are the middle-aged Tennant and Lowe, now in their 25th year as a hit-making duo, relevant in today's musical landscape? Will lapsed fans who enjoyed their triumphant performance at last month's Brit Awards find plenty to enjoy here? For the answer to all those questions, you need only glance at the album cover". - Nick Levine.
If "Yes" doesn't do well, there can be no such excuses. The timing couldn't be better for a Pet Shop Boys comeback, after all - synthpop is, inescapably, the sound of 2009.
Some people may say, at the end of the listening, that the CD is a little too predictable and boring, and that it's just their past legacy that continually keeps their fan-dom alive.
Well, certainly their achievements are not without merit in any way and the recent Brits award is a clear proof.
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