Wild About Erasure ~ Not judging by this album (Wild! - Erasure)

Member Name: keeperofthematri

Product:	Wild! - Erasure
Date:	25/05/09 (11 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some solid tracks.

Disadvantages: Gloria is dire, 2,000 miles is duff & there are a few other weak tracks

Wild was Erasure's fourth original studio album following Wonderland, The Circus & The Innocents. It contains the following tracks:-

01) Piano Song (Instrumental):
This is very reminiscent of Julee Cruise's "Falling" from Twin Peaks. It sounds as if it's mainly piano & strings. A bit of an odd way to start the album given that all three of Erasure's previous albums started with songs that were released as singles.

2. Blue Savannah:
A savannah is, apparently, a "tropical grassland ecosystem", a transient zone between forest, desert or prairie. As the lyrics mention:- "somewhere cross the desert" it's apparently a place like this that Andy's singing about. Odd that it's blue though.
His vocals work well with the piano & synths on the backing track but this isn't quite up to the standards of Ship Of Fool or Chains Of Love from "The Innocents.
Blue Savannah was the third single & peaked at number 3 in the UK, making it the highest charting single from the album.

03) Drama:
The lead single from the album which made number 4 in the UK when it was released. Very camp, dramatic & over the top, but great fun & an improvement over Blue Savannah.

04) How Many Times:
We slow down here for a gentle ballad which is in complete contrast to the preceeding track. Andy's voice sounds deeper & more rounded as he asks "why do I end up always the one who is mistaken?". An understated little track.

05) Star:
The fourth & final song released from the album which reached number 11 in the UK chart.
Upbeat & uptempo it's lyrically more simple than Blue Savannah & Drama & therefore much easier to sing along to. A nice bit of pop froth.

06) Gloria:
Oh dear, this is where it all goes badly wrong. It sounds like some sort of dodgy Mexican knees-up & quite how this song made it onto the album is a mystery. Definitely the worst track on any of the first four albums.

07) You Surround Me:
The second single from the album reached number 15 in the UK charts on its release.
This is a slower song than the likes of Blue Savannah, Drama & Star. It's an average sort of track but doesn't make that much of an impression. I'm a bit surprised that the decision was taken to release it as a single.

08) Brother and Sister:
One of the odder songs on the album. This is not the easiest song to like on first listen because the delivery is quite clipped in parts & doesn't flow as well vocally as other tracks on the album do. It may grow on you & it may not. Personally I rather like the fact it's a bit theatrical, OTT & different.

09) 2,000 Miles:
Like "Gloria" this is another track that doesn't work at all. It's nowhere near as bad as the aforementioned "Gloria" but the lyrics are simplistic & rather dull. One to skip after you've heard once & found out how bad it is.

10) Crown of Thorns:
This is a little like Witch In The Ditch from the previous album, in that, it sounds a bit like something from medieval times set to a backing track of synths. Having said that it's a great dramatic song, although it may take a while to grow on you.

11) Piano Song:
This is a longer version of the album's opening song, although this time there are lyrics as well. It's a gentle, pleasant enough song but hardly one of the stronger tracks on the album to end things with.


So, all in all a rather mixed bag of an album. In terms of consistency it ranks below Wonderland, The Circus & The Innocents as it's a very uneven album. In terms of overall quality it's arguable whether this is slightly better or slightly worse than "Wonderland". One to buy only if you're interested in what Erasure were doing between "The Innocents" & "Chorus", otherwise content yourself with getting one of their hits albums for the four singles it contains.

Summary: Get one of the compilation CDs for the singles.