Waiting for the Sirens' Call

This album was alleged to me more akin to Technique, an album which I still love to this day and have no trouble listening to every track. This claim couldn't be further from the truth - it sounds more like a mix of Republic and later Electronic material. If I didn't know better I'd say Johnny Marr had something to do with half of these tracks - his influence on Mr Sumner certainly shows!

This isn't a bad thing because if it did sound like Technique it would sound extremely retro, and it's good to hear New Order moving forward with their sound (I think this album is what Get Ready should have sounded like frankly). I for one wasn't prepared for the the sound of Get Ready at the time.

Stand out tracks for me are Morning Night & Day, I told you so and Jetstream, whilst Who's Joe, Krafty, Waiting for... are all growers. Draculas Castle is in my opinion an awful track which does not sit well with the rest of the album, and the track Working Overtime does not ruin this album even though it has a surprising sound compared to the rest of the album.

In conclusion, if you're looking for thumping disco style New Order in the vein of Technique/True Faith/Blue Monday then you'll most likely be disappointed. However, if material from Republic, the better tracks on Get Ready and Electronic's later material is more your cup of tea, this is a well worth a listen.

If Get Ready was the rocking, re-invigorated sound of a phoenix rising from the ashes, Waiting is the sound of the band discovering if they can re-visit their sonic legacy without repeating themselves. For the most part they don't, though first single Krafty, with it's chiming Regret-style guitar, Atmosphere-ic keyboard fills and endearingly terrible lyrics, is a total retread (not, I must admit, that I really mind: no can do New Order like New Order). Indeed, it's the often bad lyrics that prevents this record from earning a fifth star, especially the first couple of songs whose lyrics are pretty much interchangeable and don't really enhance the music.

When things gel, however, look out: gorgeous, melodic, and filled with elegiac longing, the title track is a winner, and instant-turn-it-up-classic Turn is anthemic and more satisfying than anything on Get Ready. The danchall-ish I Told You So is great, (at least until it abruptly fades off without really reaching a climax) and Guilt is a Useless Emotion finds the group in full-on disco mode and sounds fantastic (producer Stuart Price is a perfect match for the band - can we please get some Thin White Duke remixes happening on the single releases, please?)

Overall, the album is highly polished in all the right places, and although it doesn't achieve a satsfying overall cohesion, it's well-sequenced and flows wonderfully. A minor complaint: I would have put the fine Dracula's Castle second last where it would be a better fit - it's a great marriage of rock and electronics and really sums up the album's goals nicely, plus it would be a better lead-in to album closer Working Overtime, which, though a punky departure for the group, works surprisingly well.

Pick it up - this is a great summer pop record, never a bad thing, and overall a nice addition to the New Order oeuvre.

Fast Synth, Road To Ruin, Krafty, Waiting For THe Sirens Call, Jet and Turn will sit comfortably amoung other New Order classics for years to come.

This is all fact.