Artist: OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) | Album: The Punishment Of Luxury | Label: White Noise Ltd. | Catalog #: 88985 43551 2 | Released: 2017 | Genre: Electronic, Pop, Synth Pop | Country: UK

With 2013’s English Electric, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark made a record that paid tribute to their heroes Kraftwerk, while also embracing their own mid-’80s sound, which made them the darlings of the John Hughes set. They must have liked the formula they used to get that result, because they repeat it on 2017’s The Punishment of Luxury. Now down to the duo of Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys, they’ve once again crafted a sleek and shiny synth pop album that has all the clean lines of their original incarnation and all the gloss of their poppiest era. It makes for a very nostalgic listening experience, but it never feels like a museum piece, especially since neither man’s voice sounds like it has aged a day. The duo sound like they are having a blast on the kitschier tracks like “Art Eats Art” and “Robot Man,” while also being proper studio boffins on songs like “Precision & Decay” or “La Mitrailleuse” that tip the scales in favor of art. As impressive as those two elements of their sound are, when they combine the gloss and the technique is when things really start getting good and they fully recapture the spirit of their best work. It mostly happens on uptempo, dancefloor-centered songs — the pulsing title track is one fine example — but the heartfelt ballads also benefit from their years of experience and skill. “One More Time” and “Ghost Star” are the kind of drop-dead beautiful ballads most of the bands that followed in OMD’s footsteps wish they could make. In fact, The Punishment of Luxury is the kind of album they still wish they could make. It may be a little old-fashioned in places and there’s the occasional track that doesn’t work 100-percent, but the album is another strong showing from a band that could have packed it in years ago and become a nostalgia act, but have instead continued to make fine pop art.

Tracklisting:

CD1

01. The Punishment Of Luxury
02. Isotype
03. Robot Man
04. What Have We Done
05. Precision & Decay
06. As We Open, So We Close
07. Art Eats Art
08. Kiss Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Bang
09. One More Time
10. La Mitrailleuse
11. Ghost Star
12. The View From Here

Duration: 00:42:00

CD2

01. Isotype [V1.1 15-025-16] [02:38]
02. Delta (The Punishment Of Luxury) [15-06-10] [03:52]
03. Robot Man [27-01-15] [03:23]
04. Precision & Decay [30-03-16] [03:31]
05. Bomber (One More Time) [16-101-15] [03:07]
06. A Fallen Angel (What Have We Done) [V1.4 07-11-16] [02:19]
07. Art Eats Art [V1.3 23-02-16] [01:17]
08. Broken (As We Open, So We Close) [04-10-16] [03:58]
09. Isotype [V1.7 23-02-16] [03:02]
10. Kiss Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Bang [25-02-15] [04:09]
11. The View From Here [V1.3 23-01-15] [04:27]

Duration: 00:35:43

Single download
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – The Punishment Of Luxury
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Isotype
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Robot Man
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – What Have We Done
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Precision & Decay
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – As We Open, So We Close
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Art Eats Art
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Kiss Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Bang
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – One More Time
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – La Mitrailleuse
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Ghost Star
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – The View From Here
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Isotype V1.1 15-025-16
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Delta The Punishment Of Luxury
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Robot Man 27-01-15
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Precision & Decay 30-03-16
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Bomber One More Time
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – A Fallen Angel What Have We Done
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Art Eats Art V1.3 23-02-16
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Broken As We Open, So We Close
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Isotype V1.7 23-02-16
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – Kiss Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Bang 25-02-15
OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark) – The View From Here V1.3 23-01-15

Category:Pop
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