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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not at all tax-ing! A great comeback so buy it., 5 April 2005
Released in 1991 after the original OMD line-up of Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys had split (in 1988; three years of legal wrangles prevented any new releases), 'Sugar Tax' is a superb return. Opening with the hit single 'Sailing On The Seven Seas' with its Glitter Band beat and blindingly quirky organ solo in the middle break, it's a total winner. 'Pandora's Box' is Andy's hymn to 1920s screen siren Louise Brooks and is a great example of the sort of talent McCluskey always had for writing sharp synth hooks with plenty of 'go forward' as we say in rugby league. There's not a duff track on this album. He was obliged to recruit new musicians to help make this a reality but he wrote a lot of it alone. It's romantic, intelligent, understated and memorable. His lyrics and vocals are as perfect as any in the proceeding twelve years which is no mean feat. Not only were OMD a great pop single band but they were a lot more innovative than they were given credit for. Tracks here like the sample-based 'Apollo XI' which gives credit to the American moon shots (and is a great dance tune as well!) and the cover of Kraftwerk's classic 'Neon Lights' shows that he regularly took risks but his pop sensibility always made what he did accessible. I'd love to see OMD reform in their original line-up (arguably neither party has done much worthwhile musically recently - Andy formed Atomic Kitten!) but you never know. A class act and a great album.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
MARVELLOUS MANOEUVRES!, 11 Sep 2000
In many ways Sugar Tax represents a return to OMD's roots: majestic melancholy songs, shimmering choral arrangements and an abundance of electronic acrobatics. Sailing The Seven seas is replete with blues piano, heavy drums, those trademark choirs and a seductive and hypnotic chant. Apollo XI harks back to Dazzle Ships days (remember Radio Prague?), being made up of samples from the first moon landing set to a decidedly dynamic dance beat. The voices of presidents Nixon and Kennedy are used as effectively as those of Kennedy and Pope John Paul II on Psychic TV's "Papal Breakdance" from 1986. Sweeping strings soothe on Walking On Air and All That Glitters, while the title track sports a harder edged lyric (about emotional blackmail), but the real beauty is Was It Something I Said, a song of initially muted power reaching a crescendo of invective that sweeps the listener along to its powerful climax. This is a strong album of great songs.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Never missed a beat............, 7 Sep 2006
5 years later, and it was as though OMD had never been away. Sugar Tax was as good as anything they had previously done, which tells you exactly who was the main creative force in the band. It should not be understated as well just how much music had changed between 1986 and 1991, yet OMD stuck to their musical guns,and this album stands up as well today, whereas a lot of the 'new' bands of the day sank without trace.
Great tunes, great lyrics, intelligent 'pop'music. Recommended.
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