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Track Listings
| 1. Democracy? |
| 2. Song.com |
| 3. Thrill Kill |
| 4. She |
| 5. Lookin For Action |
| 6. Would You Be So Hot |
| 7. Absinthe |
| 8. Amen |
| 9. Neverland |
| 10. The End Of Time |
| 11. Obscene |
| 12. W |
| 13. Beauty Of The Beast |
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
At the beginning of the Damned's Grave Disorder, "I suspend the sitting, grave disorder having broken out", is barked by the admonished voice of then Speaker of The House Of Commons, Bernard Weatherill, before chunky fuzzed-up guitars and power drums jump-start a frantic poppy rant about revolution changing nothing and voting changing even less. Ah, the mirth and the mayhem. And--come to think of it--the melody and the macabre. The Damned are back and--thank hell--all their faculties are intact. Superannuated punks, ceaselessly providing live music for Britain's gnarly pallbearers to pogo to, Grave Disorder is only the Damned's fourth studio album in 16 years and, remarkably, the first to feature bereted loonball Captain Sensible since October 1982. Rat Scabies has gone, to be replaced by ex-English Dogs tubthumper Pinch, Monty Oxy Moron is in on keyboards and Dave Vanian--he of the one-time gothic Dickie Davies hairstyle--remains at the vocal helm. Vanian even gets to sing a manly-voiced love song to missus and bassist Patricia Morrison (formerly of Sisters Of Mercy) which humorously robs Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" of a few chords. Vanian, actually, is at the top of his game: "Absinthe" , his tribute to the hallucinogenic washing-up liquid of Fin De Siecle Paris is a wonder; "Amen", a grimly insurgent anti-religion rocker with clanging church bell samples is hilarious; and the Andrew Lloyd-Webber treatment on the brilliant "Beauty of the Beast" (Vanian's tribute to the flesh-crawling artfulness of the vintage black and white horror flick) only makes you mad that the Damned never got around to doing a gothic version of Phantom of the Opera in their 1980s heyday. Even so--from the spiky, surfed-up ode to Internet addiction on "Song.com" to the political wryness of "W" (surely pronounced "Dubya")--this is neat, neat, neat all the way and probably the finest album the Damned have ever made. --Kevin Maidment
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Once again the Damned surprise their fans with another excellent album packed full of colour, life and vigour. After a break off production, I had a nervous anticipation before pressing the play button, but with no regrets, and a reassuring catchy fast beginning, I began to sit back, take a deep breath, and prepare myself for the next 60 minutes. Certain tracks are certainly burried deep in their punk roots; "Looking for action" and "Would you be so hot" are certainly the wild cards on this album, but within minutes your taken to another mature side to their musicality; their gental guitar riffs and soft vocals from Absinthe, rock rhythms and alternative sounds using bells,male choirs and organs in "Amen" Following this is the happy and superb guitar riff melody of "Neverland" - almost undoubledly one to get you washing your pots with a jiggajig!and pretty soon after the piano off-beat "Obscene"
This album really does well to combine all eras of the Damned, "Till the end of time" and "Beauty of the beast" is Vanian clearly wanting to show he can still compose classical tunes in the same eerie flavour and tone as Sanctum Sanctorum and Is it a Dream with two very convincing tunes to wind this album down. But also this collection shows the new fans the Damned's originality and punky ideas in other tracks on here.. I cant name a favourite. I love Obscene for its fresh dancy feel (as with Neverland!); Its got those unmistkable drums, the lovely vanian's voice popping up and down the scale, and some nice keyboard passages, then neatly followed by the catchy Oz style aborigine beginning of "W"!
What fresh air!
All i can say is just play and enjoy the ride. I salut Dave for ending this album in the way he has done before. Leaving the listener quite literally lifted off the music playing field in admiration and dizzy happinness! Admire the calming peaceful end.
This album really does well to combine all eras of the Damned, "Till the end of time" and "Beauty of the beast" is Vanian clearly wanting to show he can still compose classical tunes in the same eerie flavour and tone as Sanctum Sanctorum and Is it a Dream with two very convincing tunes to wind this album down. But also this collection shows the new fans the Damned's originality and punky ideas in other tracks on here.. I cant name a favourite. I love Obscene for its fresh dancy feel (as with Neverland!); Its got those unmistkable drums, the lovely vanian's voice popping up and down the scale, and some nice keyboard passages, then neatly followed by the catchy Oz style aborigine beginning of "W"!
What fresh air!
All i can say is just play and enjoy the ride. I salut Dave for ending this album in the way he has done before. Leaving the listener quite literally lifted off the music playing field in admiration and dizzy happinness! Admire the calming peaceful end.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Vinyl
Having listening to the Damned ever since their first single (New Rose 1976) I was surprised last year when this album was released. Didn't knew the existed any more! Anyway, although it has been a while since their former album I couldn't be more satisfied: they've gone back to the 70's! And that is, in this case, very good. Dave and the Captain has produced a number of exellent songs with (almost) the same quality as ever before. Put Damned Damned Damned, Music for Pleasure, Machine Gun Etiquette and Black Album in a pot, stir well and there you have it: Grave Disorder. Of course we all miss Rat behind the drums but you can't have it all can you? Dave (Vanian), who has been in the gravedigging business for real, can certainly be proud of this work and of puttin' things in This-order. The Damned are back!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Well what can I say? This album follows seamlessly in the foot steps of the classic "black album" and "Strawberries", yet with a new modern style without abandoning the shear energy which is The Damned. I was one of the few I think who really liked the Phantasmagoria period aswell as the much loved earlier stuff , this is more akin to The Stawberries stuff but any new album by the band would have been welcomed after all this time, but I dared not hope for a cracking album like this. It has it all From the Sheer pop of "song.com" and "would you be so hot" to the energy of "Democracy" and "W", aswell as the haunting vocals of Vanian on "Absinth" and "Amen". The only real criticism is, was it necessary to include Captain Sensibles 5 years plus old "Neverland", but heh even this I can forgive, infact I'm beginning to like it all over again.
The Damned, after all the false dawns over the last 14 years are truly back, now I can forget the truly awful "Jack and the Beanstalk". Anyway I can't waste time writing anymore. I need to listen to the album again. Welcome back Captain all is forgiven.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Sometimes you just cannot get enough of the Damned
A bit of a hidden gen this one. An album that would appeal to your advanced Damned fan but then they'd already have the album and commented on it. Read more
Published 20 days ago by D. Gaskell
Grave disorder - The Damned
Everything I love about our mates The Damned is here on this Disc. An album that presses all the right buttons from start to finish, the line up may have changed but the unique... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Baldzilla
Rollercoaster album.....BRILLIANT!!!!!
The Damned are back on form, there's some great material on this album From the highly addictive 'song.com' to the dark 'beauty of the beast' there's no filler in this album. Read more
Published on 22 Sep 2006 by Jackie Dee
Damned good
I purchased this in the first month of release, and was pleased that the album lived up to what my expectations predicted, the damned like a lot of bands go through musical... Read more
Published on 27 Feb 2006 by P. J. Turner
Crash Bang ! the Damned have re-landed!
Once again the Damned surprise their fans with another excellent album packed full of colour, life and vigour. Read more
Published on 12 May 2003 by "salltheman"
The return of The Captain!!
A very pleasant surprise this - I thought they had lost their way a bit after the heyday - Machine Gun Etiquette / Black Album period. Read more
Published on 17 July 2002 by Noxious
the best damned album yet???
big thanks must go to the offspring for putting the damned back in the studio for this marvelous return to form from mr vanian & co.an all round excellent album. Read more
Published on 29 Jan 2002 by pilkydam@aol.com
this CD rocks!
Ah! The inimitable Damned. What would you expect after 25 years? Grave Disorder has shades of "Damned Damned Damned", whispers of "Strawberries", and a nod... Read more
Published on 12 Jan 2002 by skully
Better than you could possible have hoped for
Hit on this after it was recommended as an album of the year in the Independent. Went to see them at Hackney Ocean for the first time since 1981. God this/they are good. Read more
Published on 4 Jan 2002
"Me, I'm on the side of the angels ..."
Caveat Emptor! As others have noted the overall sound of this album is Strawberries era (Isn't this 2001?). Read more
Published on 16 Nov 2001
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