New Model Army - my new favorite band! (literally based on the first 29 min of them I've ever heard)

So, what is your opinion about NMA's new album, "From here"? One of their best, or weakest?
"Never arriving", "End of days", "Watch and learn"...pretty good songs in my opinion!



End of Days

Passing Through

Watch and Learn

 

I saw Ed Alleyne-Johnson busking in Chester. Assuming he’d fallen on hard times, I gave him a sympathetic smile but he just offered a dirty look in return.

Maybe I should have given him some money but I think they had a bloke riding a tightrope on a miniature unicycle a few doorways down.

 

Saw them on the Ghost Of Cain tour.....absolutely brilliant live. I’d recommend the first 4 albums

 

OP here.

For the last few days I've been enjoying a nice cheap, used copy of the 2CD comp Small Town England from eBay (for less than $7, incl. shipping!) -- which includes their debut EP(?) Vengeance on CD#1, plus all the tracks from the two singles before it ("Bitter Sweet" and "Great Expectations"), plus 3 tracks "The Price", "1984" and "No Man's Land" - the group's last for independent label Abstract before they were signed by EMI. Then CD#2 is all BBC radio sessions '83 - '84. The AllMusic review of this said that it was the "ideal representation of the group's pre-Capitol/EMI output".

And then I've got this budget 5CD collection of their first 4 regular albums (No Rest thru Impurity), plus the live Raw Melody Men (1991)-- all coming in the mail tomorrow. So that should keep me set for a month or two, I figure.

 

Just about everything essential to start with, betcha like it! If you can pick up an original Thunder and Consolation album with The White Coats ep (that came between The Ghost of Cain and Thunder and Consolation) and a few other, essential, tracks I would recommend you do so. White Coats (maybe more relevant today than it was at the time covering the harm that industrialisation, pollution and science is doing) is a highlight of the EMI years and 125mph and The Charge are essential with lines like....

The Charge (the live version is on Raw Melody Men) takes inspiration from Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade"

"The massacre now is over and the order new enshrined
While a quarter of the nation are abandoned far behind
Their leaders offer the cliche words, so righteous in defeat
But no one needs morality when there isn't enough to eat
The unity bond is broken and the loyalty songs are fake
I'll screw my only brother for even a glimpse at a piece of the cake
We only cry in private here behind the shuttered glass
When we think of the charge of this brigade, the severing of the past

On, on, on, cried the leaders at the back
We went galloping down the blackened hills
And into the gaping trap
The bridges are burnt behind us and there's waiting guns ahead
Into the valley of death rode the brave hundreds"

I love this verse from 125mph:

"I'm heading north, I'm heading home doing 125
I close my eyes and count to ten ha ha I'm still alive
Perfect Perfect tunnel vision
Razor Sharp and racing racing
These moments immortal
No one touches this"

I think, as Sullivan has aged, they have lost some their anger which is why most of us prefer their earlier work.

 

I have to say that this thread has kinda renewed my interest in New Model Army. I was a big fan in the 80s, saw them live twice (and was blown away by them), but I stopped listening after Thunder & Consolation. My musical tastes were broadening and I didn't have as much time for bands that seemed as overly-earnest and strident as NMA. And though Justin is a good singer, he's got his thing that he does and it was getting a bit samey to me at the time.

But when I saw this thread, I revisited a couple of my old favorite songs on Spotify and they sounded pretty good. Then I found that 5CD collection (shown a couple of posts above) for a pretty cheap price so I decided to dig in a bit more. Listening in depth to No Rest For The Wicked, Ghost of Cain, and Thunder & Consolation I could see why I stopped listening, but I could also see what drew me to them in the first place. The songwriting really is quite a few steps above most of their peers. And even when the production is not that great (NRFTW) or too slick for my tastes, the conviction and energy of the band still shines through. And I'd forgotten how original and exciting the bass was on those early albums. How did they ever find, not one, but two guys that could play like that?!

I was already off the train when Impurity was released so it was new to me (though Get Me Out sounded sorta familiar though). I've listened to it about half a dozen times so far, and except for a couple of songs I think this was a strong addition that kept up the quality of their previous releases.

Next I bought Vengeance again. Even though the production is a little on the thin side, the songs are just a great as the major label releases and I prefer the rawer sound. I haven't heard most of these songs for about 30 years, but it's amazing how the lyrics and melodies come flooding back.

I have also sampled a few songs from their later releases. Haven't spent enough time with most of them to have a real opinion yet, but it seems like the sound of the band moved to a bit more generic rock (or almost metal-ish at times) sound. Am I wrong about that? I'm perfectly will to believe that I am wrong. I was just skipping from song to song, couple from this album, couple from that one, so I don't have a real feel for what the albums really sound like.

The one album that piqued my interest though, was Between Dog and Wolf. I listened to that whole album on Spotify, and just this afternoon found a used CD at my local store. Having now listened to it loud a couple more times, I think it's pretty great. Maybe two or three songs too long, but mostly great. I really love that drums take center stage and guitars are mostly absent with a couple of exceptions. This is exactly how I hoped NMA would mature. Still very recognizable as them (despite Justin being the only one left from the glory days), but showing a lot of growth.

I've ordered, but not yet received Winter and B-Sides & Abandoned Tracks. I didn't sample those, just ordered on blind faith.

What other later period NMA would you folks that stuck with them the whole time recommend? Despite really digging Between Dog & Wolf, I could enjoy an angry guitar heavy album as long as the songs and the sound of the band was interesting and unique.

So to sum up, I'm really enjoying catching up with a band I used to love when I was much younger. With the world in the state it is, maybe I need a band like NMA again.

 

Your impression of their later albums is pretty similar to mine in that they became more rocky from The Love Of Hopeless Causes (Karrang! gave it a great review) and they lost the very English sound they had prior. The two later albums I play most are Strange Brotherhood (the caveat being the triple LP recorded to two CD's (3 sides on each), this is the last album with Robert Heaton but only three of us chose it so....) and Between Dog and Wolf. As someone else mentioned up thread Justin Sullivan's solo effort is worth checking out, it's nothing like NMA in sound (very relaxed) but still great lyrics and Ocean Rising is sublime. From memory he recorded it after the death of his father and he took a trip on a cargo ship where he wrote the album.

 

I saw NMA live more than 10 times here in France since 2005 and i think that the band sounding more "generick rock (or almost metal-ish at times) " is in part because of the guitar player Marshall Gill, he has blues rock roots and he is playing with the band since their great album HIGH in 2007. I'm a bit mixed about Gill's "heavy" playing during the gigs i must say, the guitar player before him (Dave Blomberg) was a bit more restrained and subtle, or maybe it's just that i am more a fan of the "British" sound of the band!

About BETWEEN DOG AND WOLF:

I agree that it's a succesful change of sound, new experience for the band, even if it's still recognizably NMA!
"March in September", "Seven times", "I need more time", "Pull the sun", "BDAW", "Knievel", "Qasr El Nil Brige"...are great songs! I agree with you that it is a bit overlong, 2/3 songs i usually skip but it's still an accomplished, fine album.

Recommended NMA's last albums:

- HIGH (2007), it's as good as the NMA's works from the Robert Heaton era in my opinion!
Full of catchy melodies and choruses, anthemic!
"High", "No mirror no shadow", "Into the wind", "Rivers", "Bloodsports", "Sky in your eyes", "Dawn", "One of the chosen", etc. Fantastic songs.

- BETWEEN WINE AND BLOOD (2014) : mini studio album fastly made just after BDAW's success and it's as good as this last album!
Only 6 songs but they are all good/great, especially the haunting "Happy to be here", the epic "Devil's bargain" and the catchy "According to you"!

- EIGHT (2000) : first album with the excellent drummer Michael Dean. Less punchy and maybe more subtle sounding with great songs like "You weren't there", "Someone like Jesus", "Orange tree roads", "Leeds Road 3AM", "Snelsmore wood"...

- TODAY IS A GOOD DAY (2009): More agressive sounding this one, with almost metal songs like the opening title track, the fantastic "States Radio", "Disappeared", the fun "Mambo queen of the sandstone city"...

Also, you can do no wrong with the wonderful B SIDES AND ABANDONED TRACKS (1994), THE LOVE OF HOPELESS CAUSES (1993),
and Justin Sullivan's extraordinary NAVIGATING BY THE STARS (2003), probably Mr Sullivan's finest work with THUNDER AND CONSOLATION!
It's an album full of beauty, moving, haunting...the acoustic, intimate side of NMA at its peak for this too unknown solo album.

 

Justin Sullivan is not a young man anymore, he is now 63! A national treasure of British music, this man! Underrated songwriter with a fantastic, moving voice.
I agree that NMA's last albums are less angry, more melancholic, "spiritual"...less politics in these albums.

What is your opinion about NMA's last album FROM HERE?



The Weather

Conversation

Maps

From Here

 

I haven't heard the new album. Unfortunately your link doesn't work for me and the people they are using to distribute this album wanted to charge me 26 GBP to deliver the LP and CD to Australia! I couldn't bring myself to pay that much in shipping (simply because it's criminally high) so I will have to wait till it comes up elsewhere in ordinary black and unsigned! Living in Australia I've got used to hearing albums weeks and sometimes months after they are released.

Just seen it's come up on Amazon.com.au but ships from the US so may take months to get here. Having said that the CD and LP delivered is $60 AUD which is only a little more than the shipping cost from the pre release distributor.

 

I got into NMA in 1983, I identified with their anger, frustration and beliefs, I was 19 at the time.

I, and anyone from that time have aged and mellowed no doubt, Thatcher and Raygun (sic) have gone..thank god..not to mention the threat of nuclear war.

I still listen to NMA regularly and I still identify with their beliefs and 'lefty' politics, ultimately, I have matured with them and their new album is all I have come to expect from them, we can't always be angry young men..respect.

 

I started a thread about them on here some years back. It went nowhere. I own everything they’ve done. I have no real favorite album. If forced I’d probably pick The Love of Hopeless Causes.


Here’s the thread: New Model Army - Best Album?

I can see why it bombed now.

Check out Justin Sullivan’s Navigating by the Stars. It’s excellent.

 

So, I was able to score Navigating By The Stars for $1.36 on ebay. From the prices I saw on Discogs, it looks like I got a good deal. Can't wait to hear. Universally it seems to get good marks.

Also, I received Winter yesterday. Listened only a couple of times so opinions are not fully formed yet, but some of the songs have that more generic rock sound I feared. Not necessarily bad, but nothing that would have grabbed me as a special band if I weren't already familiar with NMA. I think it's the lack of interesting bass lines and interesting drum beats that make it sound generic to me. Having said that, as I got deeper into the album I found a few songs I really liked. Born Feral and Die Trying really grabbed me! And when I listened a second time the strings on the title track made an impression. I'm hoping that as I listen more that I'll find more to love.

There are other things I am liking about Winter though. Joolz has really grown as an artist since those early records. Always liked her work but Winter has the best cover of any of the albums in my opinion. I got the edition that is like a little book and it's beautiful. Just really well done. Also the drum sound is great. I really prefer the naturalistic drum sound on Winter and Between Dog & Wolf to the more processed drums on the early albums. (Though the drum sound on The Ghost of Cain is pretty good. Thanks Glyn!) As sad as I am about the loss of Rob Heaton (who was an absolute monster on the kit), they seem to have found a pretty able replacement in Michael Dean. I was especially impressed with the drums on Between Dog & Wolf.

Speaking of Rob Heaton, is it his son playing drums in this video? Description lists a Marlon Heaton on drums.

 

I love the drum sound on the album but I'm sure it's been "enhanced" somehow as it's not a natural drum sound (to my ears) - perhaps more that one drummer the same drummer on multiple takes? All their recent (last 20 years or more) albums are highly compressed and this is no different with Between Dog and Wolf. This video was from the tour and there are six drummers on Vagabonds. Between Wine and Woolf live is a great triple CD (other than Purity which starts off key and is really off putting).

I just realised yesterday the Raw Melody Men was recorded at several venues, one being Brixton 1990 (which was my first NMA gig) and another bring the Town and Country Club 1990 (they played two nights there but only recorded one so I'm not sure if the night they recorded was my second NMA concert or not). Anyway, I've seen a lot of bands since and then and I really do think NMA were (I haven't seen them for 10 years or so as it hasn't tied in with me being in England) the most enjoyable gigs I've been to.

 

Got this in the mail on Saturday, and listened to all 5 discs by Sunday night (and No Rest for the Wicked again just this morning while getting ready for work).

Not every song was a grand slam, but there's a TON of great stuff on all these CD's! About 2/3rd of everything I heard at least half blew me away, and the latter (lesser) 1/3rd wasn't half bad either.

Makes me wish there was a good, well-curated 3 or even 4 CD box set of their entire output (across all their many years of output). But I'm happy to pick up more beyond (after) their 80's output -- now that I have all of their first decade's output.

 

Our group of friends listened to the Ghost of Cain constantly. Its the only album of theirs I ever listened to. I love that record.

 

They did do an anthology box set to celebrate 30 years New Model Army - Anthology (1980-2010) (CD, UK, 2010) For Sale | Discogs however IMO you’d be better served by New Model Army - Between Wine And Blood Live or New Model Army - 30th Anniversary Concerts (London Forum) however from the 90’s the albums have progressively be effected by the the loudness war and a more rock/metal sound which is present on the live albums. So, in short, I think you’re better served by the box set you have. Some of those songs you feel are week today you may end up liking more upon further listening!?
For what it’s worth, and I love NMA, but taking on the task of listening to all that “new to you’ music in one day would be quite a challenge. Which album would you now choose as their strongest from what you have heard?

 

Thunder and Consolation and Impurity are my favourites although I do own and enjoy them all.

 

Same for me. But will buy the new for sure.

 

Gosh, it was a lot to wrap around my head in 24 hours. I think the main takeaway was that none of the first 4 studio albums were really lacking in any particularly noticeable way.

And in particular (despite the vote totals in the poll), "No Rest..." and "Impurity" seemed nearly as good as the others -- and the live album was a knockout. I heard a live on the BBC circa 1990 (via Pandora on my subway ride this morning), and now I'm tempted to pick up that release too (as a contrast to "Raw Melody Men").

I can easily see picking up this band's entire catalog over the next few years.

 

Just got this New Model Army documentary in the mail today. Will watch tonight and report back.


60 sided dice

 

The documentary is very good, full of interesting interviews from the band and their friends, but it has one "flaw", it covers only one part of NMA's career, the early albums up to "Thunder and consolation" and "Between dog and wolf"...there are no words about "Impurity", "The love of hopeless causes", "Eight", "Carnival", "High", etc!

You can do no wrong with the "Robert Heaton" era, from 1984 ("Vengeance") to "B Sides and abandoned tracks" (1994)...wonderful songs, wonderful albums!
Everyone talks rightly about "Thunder and consolation", great great album...but maybe "The ghost of cain" is as powerful??
I never skip songs on both of these albums! Again, everyone talks about how fantastic Stuart Morrow (NMA's first bass player) was but my favourite NMA albums are probably from the Jason "Moose" Harris era.

I've listened half of the new album now...like "Winter", it's pretty good, enjoyable but maybe not great NMA, at least for the moment..."Never arriving" is a catchy, almost hypnotic song!

 

"Born feral" is the best track on this album...the drums at the end...fantastic!
"Die trying" is pretty but close to "Higher wall" (on B SIDES AND ABANDONED TRACKS))
Others tracks that i like on the album:
"Beginning", "Burn the castle", "Winter", "Drifts", "Weak and strong", "Echo November" and the underrated "Strogoula".

 

I just noticed this is a Warner release. Did they fix the mastering error in Impurity that is present on my EMI 2CD set? (I don't like pointing these things out but, from memory, its very obvious in the segue between Before I Get Old and Vanity).

 

OP here. I've been through my 2nd full spin of every studio album from the 5CD "Original Albums" box -- and I remain impressed. Discs #1 & #4 were a drop-off in the vote tally for this thread, but I seem to have liked all four discs pretty equally (not that I'm tallying up how many songs I'm connecting with the most on each album). The point being, that there's no huge difference in quality between any of those first 4 studio albums (the ones right after the Vengeance EP, or whatever you want to call it).

A cursory glance at eBay reveals that at least half of the rest of their catalog may be pretty easy to acquire pretty cheaply (and quickly), and presumably some of the rest too, if I'm patient and keep looking for deals.

I'm not quite there yet in terms of wanting/needing to have everything (I've barely had any of their output more than 3-4 days) -- but by this time next year, I'm half-certain I'll probably have half their output on CD, if I were a betting man.