As far I know, this hasn’t been released in the UK (correct me if I’m wrong), so I stole it from that pirate of the music industry, Yassassin. The word on the web is that L+R are in decline, & judging by this LP who am I to argue. The songs are Love And Rockets songs, & on their own they are fine; but put them against what has been previously released & you’ll get my drift. No wonder they kissed & made up with Pete Murphy; a Bauhaus resurrection was the best way to boost interest in the band.
This is the point I put forward to the Bauhaus Newsgroup:
Crud: > Do you think the whole thing (Bauhaus Resurrection Tour) was a ploy by L&R to boost their dwindling support? I mean – I would go & see them now, having seen Bauhaus.
Danfouts: > More likely I think it was a testing of the waters to determine what kind of returns could be realized by investing their talents in this other thing, Bauhaus, as opposed to focusing only on the one thing that is L&R. I’m in the same boat you’re in, in the sense that I’d go see a L&R gig now despite the fact I haven’t been bothered for years. But when you go from selling out stints at the Hollywood Palladium or the Brixton Academy in one band to playing third on a bill to Liz Phair and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy in a small club in Boston less than a month after the Bauhaus thing winds down…I imagine that would be quite anticlimatic to say the least. And when you’re 40 or whatever, different considerations presumably take precedent over the considerations that you had as a 16 year old—or those that a 16 year old fan would like you to place at the forefront in order to make a good rock and roll story by abiding by the rules of integrity. It just happens that way, like it does for a 40 year old accountant or welder or whatever. So if the eventual goal of Bauhaus Part Two really is fame or larger crowds or more press or more money instead of just wanting to do it because of its “artistic potential” or the assertion that they’re “thrilled to work together again” or any other rationale that would constitute the stereotypical “right (fan acceptable) reasons,” we’ll probably never know. I would guess they’d prefer—particularly Daniel—to do L&R exclusively if it had the potential to still be bigger, since they get to write the lyrics and sing at the forefront and speak on behalf of their own “contemporary” music, but I can’t see them ignoring the potential of revisiting the Bauhaus thing as a fully reformed and recording/touring outfit. Too much temptation and upside. Hopefully, the are getting along splendidly and really do want to revisit the whole Bauhaus thing because they’re back in love with each other, but in the long run, I don’t really care what the real motivations are as long as it happens.
The band continue their obsession with heaven (are they merely goth freaks who used to attend the nightclub of the same name & decided to devote a life’s work to it?), my only gripe with Mr. Ash & the brothers Haskins are the sometimes lightweight & meaningless lyrics. This is where Mr.Murphy had the upper hand; although cryptic to the core, there was always something in those songs (particulary post-Mask) that you could relate to. Whereas these boys keep prattling on about Heaven! Is it a Kevin Haskins obsession? Take a look at his artwork on the previous LP, depicting the earth, sun & moon. Regardless of all this analysis for art’s sake, you’ll find this a truly mellow but uplifting album full of that trademark 12-string guitar, unique drumming, fretless bass & soft vocal.
The question that always niggles my tiny mind is, what would’ve Bauhaus sounded like if they had’nt’ve fallen out with each other? My guess is that they’d've been a lot harder than L+R, I think Pete Murphy added that edge, that sense of aggression to the line up, whereas the rest of them are quite content to mellow with age, inhale the drug & let it lay you back. I’m not complaining; Love & Rockets are a superb band & one I still play a lot today; particularly this CD; their 2nd. There’s not a dull moment to be had & this is ranked way up there with the big boys (with my Bauhaus collection actually). Coupled with the extra tracks taken from singles; Ball Of Confusion, a Stateside hit (where the band made a good living), the excellent Holiday On The Moon which, as a song is over by the 6th line, but they repeat that last line about 30 times, taking you on a trip of weightlessness. The CD version also features a different version of Ying & Yang - another great track, I could go on forever; every song has it’s moment & every song has a place in my heart.
My 1st experience of L+R came from a Cherry Red Records sampler LP which was called £1.99, which I bought for the said price, because it was cheap and I lived in a bedsit. On it was a track called Haunted When The Minutes Drag by Love & Rockets, I was, & still am haunted by this track & yearn for the minutes to drag even longer when it’s playing. I was aware that L+R were once Bauhaus, who I had discovered properly as they were in demise; OK so I had a copy of Bela, just like every young punk had, & I’d seen them perform Ziggy on Top Of The Pops, but I saw L+R as something other than the 3 guys out of Bauhaus, which is exactly what they were; that’s, something other than the 3 guys out of Bauhaus. The Haunted song IS the outstanding track on an LP littered with Kevin Haskins’ new electronic drum kit (no doubt a Christmas present), & a hangover from the Tones On Tail yuletide party.