Think Visual, the cover. It’s not unusual in graphic design for typography to carry the design. That is the apparent aim here. It seems conceived and built around the typography and in that regard it’s not too bad—average, I suppose, but not as horrible as the rap it is getting here today. And…it could be argued a purely typographical design is thinking visually. What doesn’t work, then, is the addition of “The Thinker/Muscle Girl.” It seems an unnecessary element forced by marketing gurus who think of The Kinks “brand” as evoking thoughts of Lola-esque, transgender, “kinkiness.” I find it pulls away from the strength of the typography. It would have been a better design without it. Still, the point remains this is an unpopular cover among Kinks fans, bringing up the question: if a graphic design isn’t connecting with an audience, is it doing its job? IMO, the back cover is better than the front.
I have been sinking so deep into madness and perversion that I'm beginning to think UK Jive is even better than Think Visual, and that both are the peaks of 80s Kinks. @mark winstanley , you'll have a lot to answer for on Judgment Day.
Think Visual is a mixed bag for me. I became familiar with some of this material several years ago via the 1987 Chicago live recording, and liked most of it. Happily, for the most part the studio versions hold up against their more energetic counterparts. Ray’s natural gift for melody and hooks is still active but some of the songs are over-repetitive or too long (I’ve been busy editing to get songs on my playlist). I like some of the songs quite a bit, but unlike Word of Mouth for instance, there are some must-skips for me here. It’s somewhere in the bottom half of my Kinks album ranking, but it’s better than some reviews (and the cover) might suggest. The cover? OK, whatever…
Not checked ahead if anyone's mentioned that Dave also was involved in one track of John Carpenter's 1994 'In The Mouth Of Madness' film sountrack too. From Wikipedia: 'The film's main theme, heard during the opening credits, was inspired by the Metallica song "Enter Sandman". Carpenter had originally wanted to use the song, but was unable to secure the rights and instead composed his own theme, with the help of composer Jim Lang and guitarist Dave Davies of The Kinks.'
Think Visual This was my second Kinks studio album, which I picked up from my local record shop - BJs Records in Macclesfield, Cheshire, now long gone - I worked there for a short while, starting as 'work experience' from school - which had the added bonus of getting a discount on purchases for years to come. Along with 'UK Jive', I played this LP to death - after all, I only had two Kinks albums, and they were the best albums I had in my collection (or possibly not). Unfortunately, this LP had a 'jump' part way through 'The Video Shop', and as I'd had a discount on the purchase, didn't feel I could take it back. Now, even when listening to the album on CD (I eventually also replaced the LP), it seems odd without that jump... Worst Kinks album? So the general consensus goes, this or 'UK Jive'. I love them both. This is my era of Kinks.
This album is where I started to become disillusioned with new kinks music, I liked 6 of the 11 songs on the album, rock n roll cities is among them. Sleazy town rips off genesis misunderstanding riff much like catch me now I’m falling rips off jumping jack flash, unlike how are you which revisits tired of waiting and destroyer revisits Lola and adaaotn. Ray is better at recycling his own songs.
They Might Be Giants could be non-sensical and The Dead Milkmen were goofy. And yet by 1986 in some ways I felt both were tapping into something the Kinks used to be but weren’t giving me anymore: short, effervescent, earwormish sense of fun. That’s probably why a new Kinks record didn’t excite me the way I felt when I anticipated future Giants or Milkmen albums. I can imagine The Giants doing something like “Here Come’s Flash” or The Dead Milkmen doing a song like Face to Face’s “Party Line” in the mid-80’s and it would have felt right. Sadly, by Think Visual a song like Party Line was out of The Kinks grasp, although it didn’t have to be. And, for the record, I like Party Line miles over anything off of Think Visual.
Hah! I am not sure I agree with this one! I was thinking you'd actually like it because has a very Listen Like Thieves\Kick era INXS sound to it (I think anyway).
I'd say it sounds like Ray doing a Jim Kerr impersonation., which I find very interesting. I mentioned "Get Up" being a song that sounds like They Might Be Giants.
I went through it today.... possibly my least favourite song of the thread so far, if we take the early covers out lol But we'll get to why in a little while
THINK VISUAL After the somewhat disappointing WORD OF MOUTH (great single in "Do It Again", but most of the rest below Kinks normal standards) I never bought any of the Kinks albums that followed it. I knew of THINK VISUAL, but as far as I am aware I have never heard any of the songs from it. It will be interesting to see what I think of them!
It will be interesting... I think it's a very good album, but two songs stop it from being great for me, and back to back they really inhibit the flow, for me it recovers again... But I'll be interested to see if anything grabs your ear.
Wow, now I can totally hear a circa 1986 Milkmen version of Party Line with a lusty Rodney Anonymous lead and a ragged Joe Jack Talcum harmony. (Joe would sing the bridge too).., I love the Milkmen… yes they often went for the lowest hanging joke or, conversely an overly arcane pop culture reference but they truly had something intangibly and uniquely great to their sound that really gets me.
I find it hard to hear They Might Be Giants doing the Kinks, such unique voices to my ear. Don't Let's Start, Anna Ng and The Flood album are classics to me.... I couldn't get any of my mates onboard with them though lol
‘Money Go Round’ is the most TMBG esque Kinks song imo, to reiterate my comment from the pertinent page on this thread last year. It’s like the most John Linnellian song he never wrote.
They did the Beatles well. My best friend Ed has been a TMBG fan since Day One so I’ve been lucky enough to see them live many times with him. I could hear them giving ‘Ducks on the Wall’ a go.
My copy of Living on a Thin Line arrived a week (or so) back and I genuinely believe most mere mortals could live useful, honorable, full and contemplative lives without ever cracking open this, Dave’s latest tome. That said, your mileage may vary. ~Huck
Ha ha. They are not for everyone. I think they are one of those bands that never put out a bad album, and continue to impress me. My only problem is, I mostly only go for the John Linnell songs. Flansburgh's vocals can be a little grating. I mostly hear them in the Kinks song "Get Up". Try listening to it and imagine it's They Might Be Giants at around the 30 second mark. It has the same type of bouncy music and melody that they do so well. Ray even sounds a bit like Linnell! They still tour and release music after a 15 year break. In 2012-2013 they released a bunch of vinyl only EPs. I collected all of them. They sound the same all these years later. I finally got to see them a couple times over the last decade, and talked to the band before the gig. They also do an odd YouTube show called Big Questions With The Dead Milkmen, where they ask each other random questions every week.
I would love to see someone stick a big photo of Flash on the bottom corner! Hey @DISKOJOE are you using yours at the moment?
I have to check these Dead Milkmen, never heard of them. Big fan of They Might Be Giants though. I wanted to post "Absolutely Bill's Mood" the other day when "Good Day"'s first seconds of drum machine were under attack. It reminded me of the former song, which is one of my favorite tracks on the first TMBG album. Much as I never bothered to sort my sensations out in order to conscientize the difference between Bordeaux and Bourgogne, I never got round to really see the difference between Linnel and Flansburgh. Which one plays the sax ? I saw them in London back in 1991 ou 1992, they were great. Incidentally (there's a TMBG song where this word starts several lines, I can't put my finger on it, though I hear it in my head) the end of Return to Waterloo segues very nicely into the beginning of Good Day. And, I gave a try at an edit of Return to Waterloo along the lines suggested by @Fortuleo but I didn't really know where to go with it. Actually the album version is far better to my ear.
