Depeche Mode - The Best Of, Volume 1 [Japanese Ed. SHM-CD] (2006)

Year: 13 November 2006 (CD Nov 8, 2006)
Label: Tochiba-EMI (Japan), TOCP-66627
Style: Synth-Pop, Electronic, New Wave
Country: Basildon, Essex, England
Time: 74:46
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 553 Mb

According to the band, there are no plans to release succeeding volumes in a “Best Of” series, making the “Volume 1” in the title somewhat of a joke. The debate with hits collections, as always, is over song selection. While no one can argue the inclusion of hits like “Strangelove” and “Just Can’t Get Enough,” there are plenty of other songs whose exclusion some will take issue with. On this particular “Best Of,” the most notable absence is any song from Black Celebration. Maybe it’s just that songs from Black Celebration work better as a complete thematic whole, “Stripped” following “A Question of Time” and “But Not Tonight” succeeding “New Dress.” I don’t know, but I’m still trying to fathom a “Best of Depeche Mode” without “Fly on the Windscreen.” All in all, the eighteen tracks selected for this collection are a fairly representative and fair look at a spectacular and legendary pop band that probably still isn’t given the due it deserves.
As far as the real “Best Of,” the one bearing the misleading `Volume 1" tag, at its best it is a worthy representation of 25 years of pop mastery. At its worst, it is a reminder that, given any 18 songs from this legendary band, whether your favorites or not, Depeche Mode will always be relevant. From “New Life” to “Suffer Well,” there are no bad songs on this record, only great song after great song.
(full version: treblezine.com/depeche-mode-the-best-of-vol-1/)

01. Personal Jesus (03:47)
02. Just Can't Get Enough (03:43)
03. Everything Counts (04:01)
04. Enjoy the Silence (04:14)
05. Shake the Disease (04:51)
06. See You (03:57)
07. It's No Good (05:58)
08. Strangelove (03:46)
09. Suffer Well (03:52)
10. Dream On (03:41)
11. People Are People (03:46)
12. Martyr (03:25)
13. Walking in My Shoes (05:00)
14. I Feel You (04:35)
15. Precious (04:09)
16. Master and Servant (03:49)
17. New Life (03:46)
18. Never Let Me Down Again (04:18)

UploadyIo     365file     FreedlInk

All my files:     UploadyIo     DailyUploads     KatFile

Kraftwerk - Autobahn [Japanese Ed.] (1974)

Year: November 1974 (CD May 27, 1998)
Label: Tochiba-EMI (Japan), TOCP-50578
Style: Electronic Pop, Experimental, Synth-Pop
Country: Dusseldorf, West Germany
Time: 42:46
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 217 Mb

The album marked several personnel changes in the band, which was initially a duo consisting of Florian Schneider and Ralf Hutter; later, the group added Klaus Roder on guitar and flute, and Wolfgang Flur on percussion. The album also completed the group's transition from the experimental krautrock style of their earlier work to an electronic pop sound consisting mostly of synthesizers and drum machines. Recording started at the group's own Kling Klang facility, but was predominantly made at Conny Plank's studio. Autobahn also includes lyrics and a new look for the group that was suggested by Emil Schult, an associate of Schneider and Hutter.
Most of the album is taken up by the 22-minute "Autobahn", featuring lyrics by Schneider, Hutter, and Schult. The song was inspired by the group's joy of driving on Germany's autobahns, and recorded music that reflected a trip emulating the sounds of a vehicle. The album's release in West Germany saw little press attention. "Autobahn" was released as a single and received airplay at a Chicago radio station, leading it to spread across the United States. In 1975, the song became an international hit and Kraftwerk's first release of their music in the US. "Autobahn"'s success led to the band touring the United States with new member Karl Bartos, who replaced Roder, followed by a tour of the United Kingdom.
Initial reception to Autobahn was mixed; receiving negative reviews, from Rolling Stone and Village Voice, who felt the music was inferior to earlier music from Wendy Carlos and Mike Oldfield, and positive reviews that praised the title track as hypnotic and arresting for its imagery of driving on the autobahn. Critics from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and Newsday included the album in their "Honorable Mentions" sections of their year-end lists. Retrospectively, the album has been unanimously praised; Simon Witter wrote in NME the album is of "enormous historical significance" and Simon Reynolds said the album is where Kraftwerk's music really starts to matter. Musicians of the 1970s and 1980s, including David Bowie, cited the album as a major influence.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autobahn_(album))

01. Autobahn (22:44)
02. Kometenmelodie 1 (06:25)
03. Kometenmelodie 2 (05:48)
04. Mitternacht (03:44)
05. Morgenspaziergang (04:03)

UploadyIo     365file     FreedlInk

All my files:     UploadyIo     DailyUploads     KatFile

Eurythmics - Touch (1983)

Year: 14 November 1983 (CD Apr 1984)
Label: RCA Records (West Germany), PD 70109
Style: Synth-Pop, Pop
Country: London, England
Time: 45:36
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 267 Mb

Touch is the third studio album by British pop duo Eurythmics, released on 14 November 1983 by RCA Records. It became the duo's first number-one album on the UK Albums Chart, and also peaked at number seven on the US Billboard 200. It has since been certified Platinum in both the United Kingdom and the United States. The album spawned the singles "Who's That Girl?", "Right by Your Side" and "Here Comes the Rain Again", all of which reached the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart.
The album was listed 500th on Rolling Stone's "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" in 2003, and again on a revised list in 2012, at number 492.
By the time Touch was released, Eurythmics had achieved international success with their single "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" and the album of the same name. Preceded by the single "Who's That Girl?", Touch was recorded and mixed in about three weeks at Eurythmics' own London studio facility, The Church.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touch_(Eurythmics_album))

Album recorded and mixed in the analog domain - AAD. That is, a minimum of digital processing.
A=Analog. D=digital. The first letter stands for how the music was recorded. The second letter for how it was mixed. The third letter stands for the format (all CD's will have D as the last letter).

01. Here Comes The Rain Again (04:54)
02. Regrets (04:43)
03. Right By Your Side (04:04)
04. Cool Blue (04:48)
05. Who's That Girl (04:46)
06. The First Cut (04:45)
07. Aqua (04:37)
08. No Fear, No Hate, No Pain (No Broken Hearts) (05:21)
09. Paint A Rumour (07:35)

UploadyIo     DailyUploads

All my files:     UploadyIo     DailyUploads     KatFile

Bill Wyman (The Rolling Stones) - Bill Wyman (1982)

Year: 26 March 1982 (CD 1996)
Label: Sequel Records (UK), NEM CD 848
Style: Pop Rock, Rock, New Wave, Synth-Pop[
Country: Lewisham, London, England (24 October 1936)
Time: 40:10
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 254 Mb

After a pair of solo efforts that veered from eccentric yet inspired (Monkey Grip) to eccentric and uninspired (Stone Alone), Bill Wyman perfected his blend of rock & roll and oddball humor into one solid album on 1981's Bill Wyman. Instead of utilizing the all-star group of backup musicians that dominated his previous solo outings, Bill Wyman found the veteran rocker handling much of the instrumentation himself, with only a rhythm section and a few guest stars pitching in. The result is a crisp, consistent sound that mixes the electronic edge of new wave with good, old-fashioned rock & roll production values. Bill Wyman also benefits from catchy, well-written songs that provide a hook-laden backdrop for Wyman's humorous musings: "A New Fashion" is a witheringly acidic send-up of trend-chasing pop stars that layers a memorably melodic chorus over an effectively sparse electronic backdrop, and "Come Back Suzanne" is a one-of-a-kind rock/disco/new wave hybrid that blends power chords with ethereal synth flourishes as Wyman delivers a tongue-in-cheek tale of lost love. Other highlights include "Jump Up," a catchy combination of ska and funk with amusing party-hearty lyrics, and "Girls," a snarling rocker with campy, macho lyrics that could be read as a parody of the Rolling Stones' long line of carnal rock songs. However, the album's masterpiece is "Si, Si, Je Suis Un Rock Star," a deliriously strange but quite funny song that features Wyman delivering a lusty travelogue in a deadpan voice over a backing track that mixes Spanish guitars with burbling synth disco. Ultimately, one's level of interest in Bill Wyman will depend on their love of eccentric humor, but no one can deny that it effectively combines solid songwriting and a sleek, consistent production style. As a result, Bill Wyman is worthwhile listen for classic rock fans who don't mind a little idiosyncratic humor mixed in with their rock & roll.
(allmusic.com/album/bill-wyman-mw0000081271)

01. Ride On Baby (03:55)
02. A New Fashion (04:10)
03. Nuclear Reactions (03:39)
04. Visions (04:14)
05. Jump Up (03:59)
06. Come Back Suzanne (03:25)
07. Rio De Janeiro (04:16)
08. Girls (02:46)
09. Seventeen (03:44)
10. (Si Si) Je Suis Un Rock Star (05:57)

UploadyIo     DailyUploads

All my files:     UploadyIo     DailyUploads     KatFile