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Jim Snook
60+0. Canadian. Lives in Germany. RYM profile: https://rateyourmusic.com/~guidedbyvices Last-fm profile: http://www.last.fm/user/guidedbyvices
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Jim Snook's Album Reviews
It's a shame that Gary Numan's legacy has, for the most part, been reduced to one song; the "one-hit-wonder" tag clinging to him like shit on the bottom of his shoe. But anyway, anyone who actually was/is paying attention and gave/gives Numan's albums up to say, 1982/3 a listen will realize that he released a lot of good material, even with having to carry around the massive cross that was "Cars".
You'll get arguments among fans about which is the best from the trifecta of "Replica/Pleasure Principle/Telekon" and the choice will really depend on what aspect of Numan you prefer. For better or for worse (well, much much worse as it would turn out) Numan had a need to evolve. For all the talk about Kraftwerk, Numan's biggest influence on "The Pleasure Principle" was obviously David Bowie and you can see it in as much his persona as his music. At this point, Numan was the Thin White Duke via "The Mensch-Maschine". Funk, Soul, and Art-Rock for the android set.
The debt to Bowie here is huge and there are heavy nods to "Station To Station" and "Low" in its experimentalism and re-interpretation of funk/soul/pop structures. Call bullshit if you want, but "Metal", "Films" and "Conversation" all sport meaty funk grooves in their DNA. Really, the thing that keeps this album human is the rhythm section of Cedric Sharpley and Paul Gardiner. The drums especially, just pound. Despite the focus on synths, it's the bass and drums that are the heart of this album.
Actually, songwriting-wise "Cars" is an anomaly. Where everything else channels Bowie's late-70s artiness, "Cars" pulls an "Autobahn" and perverts a 60s pop line for its melodic hook. Total brilliance.
I've always thought that this album deserved more respect and more investment than just its single, but we've always been a culture that tends to use these moments as benchmarks rather than look at the picture as a whole. "The Pleasure Principle" is not an album that serves as a vehicle for "Cars". "Cars" is not its centerpiece or its selling point. I find it kind of unfortunate that an album this consistent and this good gets dismissed or overlooked because of the burden of expectation that comes from one song. For me, this is easily one of my favorite albums from this time.
You'll get arguments among fans about which is the best from the trifecta of "Replica/Pleasure Principle/Telekon" and the choice will really depend on what aspect of Numan you prefer. For better or for worse (well, much much worse as it would turn out) Numan had a need to evolve. For all the talk about Kraftwerk, Numan's biggest influence on "The Pleasure Principle" was obviously David Bowie and you can see it in as much his persona as his music. At this point, Numan was the Thin White Duke via "The Mensch-Maschine". Funk, Soul, and Art-Rock for the android set.
The debt to Bowie here is huge and there are heavy nods to "Station To Station" and "Low" in its experimentalism and re-interpretation of funk/soul/pop structures. Call bullshit if you want, but "Metal", "Films" and "Conversation" all sport meaty funk grooves in their DNA. Really, the thing that keeps this album human is the rhythm section of Cedric Sharpley and Paul Gardiner. The drums especially, just pound. Despite the focus on synths, it's the bass and drums that are the heart of this album.
Actually, songwriting-wise "Cars" is an anomaly. Where everything else channels Bowie's late-70s artiness, "Cars" pulls an "Autobahn" and perverts a 60s pop line for its melodic hook. Total brilliance.
I've always thought that this album deserved more respect and more investment than just its single, but we've always been a culture that tends to use these moments as benchmarks rather than look at the picture as a whole. "The Pleasure Principle" is not an album that serves as a vehicle for "Cars". "Cars" is not its centerpiece or its selling point. I find it kind of unfortunate that an album this consistent and this good gets dismissed or overlooked because of the burden of expectation that comes from one song. For me, this is easily one of my favorite albums from this time.
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