Released: September 30
Blancmange explore new musical territory on the brand new album ‘Private View’.
Written and recorded by vocalist and sole band member Neil Arthur, the record marks Blancmange’s 11th studio release in as many years and sees him collaborate with David Rhodes, who laces the tracks with guitar and washes of immersive synths.
Conceived in the wake of the pandemic, the album looks beyond the trials of the past two years and strives to find answers and, moreover, solutions to the situation we’ve arrived at, with Neil insisting the desire to keep moving forward underpins the set.
“A lot of people are frightened of the future and are quite happy to have a repeat of something that was done before,” he says. “But it’s just not for me. Looking forward you’ve got a hell of a world to try and navigate through at the moment. We’re all moving forward – so we’ve got to try and find some answers.”
Opener What’s Your Name introduces a future-facing electronic soundscape, backed by marching drums as the song title repeats over the chorus, before segueing into lead single Some Times These, with a fusion of guitar and synthesiser that could have been lifted directly from the early 1980s.
Reduced Voltage juxtaposes pulsing synths with a dark, brooding vocal from Neil – a trope that appears across the set – while I Tried To Be You has an eerie electronic soundscape, enhancing the obsessive narrative of its lyrics.
Allusions to the group’s heyday aren’t unfounded; one track, Here We Go Go, has been in Neil’s head since 1980 and only just materialises on his latest body of work, proving that a good song never goes out of fashion.
‘Private View’ comes to a close with Take Me, a double meaning that asks, “How much does someone have to ‘take’ before a relationship breaks down? How many times can your partner be expected to accept repeated mistakes? Where is the tipping point?”
Opening with a delicate piano motif before intertwining layers build to a motorik beat with Neil’s understated vocal, its quintessentially Blancmange and a fitting closer to an album that looks to the future while remaining respectful of the past.
Four decades on from Blancmange’s first release, ‘Private View’ is a cohesive body of work and, with a creative streak that shows no sign of slowing down, one that has us itching to see where Neil takes his sound next.
‘Private View’ is available now.
