Pet Shop Boys - New Album "Hotspot" Jan 24 2020

Yeah, the number of "hi-res" 44.1 kHz releases lately is a letdown.

I'm going to give this one a listen on Tidal (assuming they get it) before I purchase it.

 

Listening now. Amazon sent my copy a day early by mistake, I guess. So far it's okay. First track does nothing for me but 'You Are The One' is fairly decent. That's as far as I've got.

 

Wow, you are missing a lot. Probably their best album since Fundamental. or maybe even Behaviour. It's really wonderful.

 

I dispute those claims, including the one you're using as an avatar

 

Haha, well I love Very (of course), but I think I love Behaviour and Fundamental even more these days. They have never made a bad album though (as Christgau so famously said), just some better than the others.

 

Just finished the first listen. So far, only 'You Are The One', 'Only The dark' and 'Burning The Heather' really strike me as good. The last track is disappointing. It will need a few more listens but I can't see it improving that much. Still, a new album is better than nothing at all. I don't know what to make of it to be honest, feels a bit like PSB on auto-pilot.

As boyjohn says, they've never made a bad album (which I totally agree with) but this seems (on first full listen) like one of the lesser ones. Maybe my least favourite of their whole discography.

Yeah, early days.

 

I totally agree. 'Monkey Business' is absolute garbage. Working with Stuart Price has yield the worst results. Gone are the great melodies and hooks.

 

Not sure we are listening to the same album, I think this one has some of the most beautiful melodies that they have ever done.

 

Twenty Something is one of the few great songs from 'Super' . If anything that should have been the first single release.

 

Well from the tracks I have heard so far nothing even remotely comes close to anything on Behaviour or Very. My favorite PSB song is 'Liberation' which is absolutely gorgeous. There isn't anything even close to that on this new album. Also I can't stand Stuart Prices' production. It sounds cheap and none professional. Many of you will think I'm crazy but I think going with Price was the worst thing the boys have ever done. These 3 albums they did with him haven't produced one great song that even comes close to anything from 'Release' back to their debut' Please'. I'm a hardcore fan and honestly only buying this CD just to have all their CD's but I rarely if even ever play their last 2 albums.

 

Interesting, I still listen to Electric and Super quite often, there are only a few tracks that I don't care for. I think that Price really rejuvenated their career. Before you give up, definitely listen to Only the Dark though, it is so beautiful.

 

I sort of agree. Something changed after Elysium. The quality was there but it was hit and miss. I'm also in the same boat as you, I've been a fan since Please but these last few albums have only really been purchases because I still love them so much as a band.

 

There's a 2 disc version?

 

Instrumental version (so you'll hate it even more, cause of Price lol)

 

I got off the boat since Bilingual. Do they have any albums after that that's consistent?

From what I'm hearing this album doesn't sound so good.

 

Yes it changed after Elysium because they used Stuart Price and I guess the boys would rather record more techno dance tracks and have strayed away from anything even close to what they have done before. I think they still have it in them to write great songs but with Price as the producer they have changed the demographic to more head banging music and that's not for me. Maybe they are trying to appeal to a much younger audience but I wasn't impressed with the last 2 albums and from what I have heard from the new one I'm not impressed. Basically you could take any of the songs from the new album and last 2 albums and it all sounds the same. Nothing memorable in them. Just my opinion and many others will disagree.

 

Hotspot 2CD

 

can almost guarantee it’s so compressed you wouldn’t even notice the difference. Hopefully the vinyl will sound okay at least.

 

i really like Nightlife and Fundamental.

 

I agree with you. Fan from the start and they lost me after Elysium (which I love). The few tracks I've heard from the new one do not impress me at all, didn't like the last two albums either.

 

I love PSB, I have all the albums, all the special editions, all of it. I really really really want to love this new album...
...but sadly I agree with all of the recent comments about something being lost when they started working with Stuart Price. Electric and Super were major letdowns for me and I can't quite put my finger on why (aside from Price himself). They're the only two albums in the vast canon that I listen to (and I have tried, I have given them a chance) and they leave me feeling agitated and disconnected. I wish it weren't so.

But to those of you who love this new album, I'm very happy for you. Maybe I've just gotten old and cranky. I don't want to rain on anyone's parade. I will still buy Hotspot at some point and I hold out hope that I'll be pleasantly surprised!

 

Fundamental is great. Top 5 PSB for me.

I also quite enjoy most of Yes and Elysium, with beauties such as "King Of Rome" or "Memory Of The Future". Easy to overlook, but I'd add their soundtrack to Battleship Potemkin as a wonderful record (as is the b-sides compilation Format).

Release and Nightlife are alright. Nothing great, but by no means unlistenable.

Which brings us to the last two... awful... but I have hopes that, if not a masterpiece, Hotspot is a step up from those. For one, it's got "Burning The Heather" which is better than anything on Electric or Super.

 

Its more of a throwback to their earlier albums in pacing, and structure.
Fast paced upbeat songs, then slower, more melodic pieces inbetween.
Some clever lyrics, but not anything really new, or different.

The singles are varied, and there is one more.
Here's monkey business, very disco:


it's the third single, and there is one more planned.

they seem to be rushing through the promotion of this.

in the past, it would take several weeks for each single, and releases.

however, nowadays, song last about a week, before they move on.

i don't know if this album will have much staying power.

later
-1

 

I am so loving the ballads. You Are The One, Hoping For A Miracle, Burning the Heather, and (especially) Only the Dark are just ace.

 

I've got the 2-CD version (complete with 12" signed print apparently) arriving tomorrow. Did anyone else pre-order this?