231) Blancmange - Happy Families

Blancmange formed in 1979 with lead singer Neil Arthur and Stephen Luscombe on keyboards releasing three albums before splitting in 1986, they came back before Luscombe left due to ill health and Arthur has gone on a creative surge releasing several albums to this day.

However, let’s go back to the start when they released their debut album Happy Families in 1982.

I Can’t Explain opens but it’s the backing vocals (chants) of Stevie Lange and Joy Yates that elevate this song with an almost industrial vocal from Arthur, the song Kind as well for major contributions from the backing vocalists.

The band know how to use their guests, and special mention must go to guitarist David Rhodes who has collaborated with Peter Gabriel and Talk Talk and adds innovative playing to several tracks.

Feel Me was one of the many singles from this record with an almost funk backing and again Arthur works well off the backing vocalists, its taut, excellent electronic pop.

Don’t laugh but the start of the ballad I’ve Seen the Word I hear Ian Curtis like vocals, I’m usually way off so feel free to disagree but this was released as a double A Side with God’s Kitchen which could not be more different as over beats and synths the band seem pissed off with the world.

Living On The Ceiling was the big hit with sitar and tabla added to the mix and they “were up the bloody tree,” bizarre and intriguing all at once, a deserved top ten hit.

Waves followed Ceiling into the charts and is a grand scale song with strings and soaring vocals, its overblown but were in the land of lavish songs back then and this works better than so many, another highlight.

Cruel really opens thirty seconds in and over a strangely disturbing synth from Luscombe, Arthur produces his most assured vocal on this record.

Mention Blancmange and people remember Living on a Ceiling and Don’t Tell Me. They are certainly more than that and you would not be wasting your time in enjoying Neil Arthur’s later Blancmange albums. (give the song The Fall a listen, you will see why I like it)

7.25/10

GIVE IT A STREAM: Living on the Ceiling