TTT - Modern English
Hello music lovers! 🎵
It's Tuesday, time for #threetunetuesday, and a chance for me to share something I'm listening to.
My last post here was a week ago, and continuing with the music, I'm recalling memories from the past together with you.
Today I'm presenting Modern English, a new wave band from Colchester, Essex. They started in 1979 under the name The Lepers, and after changing some of their members, they called themselves "Modern English". As mentioned, they were one of the many new wave bands that successfully toned down the raw energy of punk and steered it towards more melodic and pop waters, but still engaged and on the edge of the indie and alternative genres.
The band's line-up has changed several times, and they have also disbanded at least twice and then reunited. They are still performing today, almost back to the original line-up after all the transformations.
They have released 9 studio albums, the last one called "1 2 3 4" at the end of February this year.
I like them (well, I have to admit not quite all of them) because they are like a kind of bridge between guitar music and then pure electronic music into which new wave went as a new-romanticism subgenre... and they still keep touring.
For those of you who are not (yet) familiar with #threetunetuesday or #ttt - these are tags you need to set when you post.
It's a music initiative started by @ablaze, and with his words, the jist is as follows:
Every Tuesday I'm going to share 3 songs that I like to listen to and I invite your feedback in the comments below. Better still, why not have a blast of your own Three Tune Tuesday and mention me in the post and I'll come and find the post and upvote it. If you could also use #threetunetuesday tag that would be great, as that is what I use when sifting through all the entries every Wednesday. It'll be a sweet way for us all to discover new music. You'll also be in with a chance of winning the reward.
So, to continue with the music, I've picked out a few clips.
Modern English - Smiles And Laughter
The song is from their 1981 debut album 'Mesh & Lace'. It brought them to the attention of music critics and listeners alike, most notably when they were compared to Joy Division and later Simple Minds in terms of their sound. Well, there was an influence, they are a bit older and at the time they were topping the charts in England.
Modern English - I Melt With You
The song is from their second album, 1982's After The Snow, and it made them world famous and secured their place in popular music history. Very listenable pop that signaled the band's musical direction going forward. It was also released as a single and used in the 1983 romantic comedy Valley Girl. This comedy, among others, launched the career of Nicolas Cage.
Modern English - Not My Leader
The song is from the latest album 1 2 3 4 from this year, and the live performance is from the KEXP radio. As we can see, they are getting older but they are still releasing nice pop songs, so the question is, are they like a good wine? :)
Well, let's have a bonus :)
Modern English - Someone's Calling
A live recording from KFOG radio (2012). The song is the opening track of the After The Snow album and was also released as a single.
That's all for today, thank you for your attention. I hope today's selection was interesting and put you in a relaxed mood like it did me :)
This is my 38th post for #threetunetuesday, which was started by @ablaze. I hope what I'm sharing is interesting for others too, because then it makes sense.
If you're curious about the latest music, follow me on #newtunes, or take a look at my rare recordings at 3speak channel - video, or Seckorama's Music Podcast - audio.
If you like jazz, I recommend Jazz-Matinee regular Sunday blog by @w74.
More #ttt posts? Take a look at The Dandy Warhols, Seasick Steve, Echo And Bunnymen, Morphine, The God Machine, Modern Lovers, New Model Army, Wishbone Ash, Brian Setzer, King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard.
The front image is mine, created in Night Cafe Studio and edited in Photoshop.
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Excellent choices! I was a teenager in the eighties and these guy were awesome. I Melt With You of course was their iconic song, but the whole album was good, I had it on vinyl. Your first pick was a great song too. Three very classic songs and the fourth I honestly hadn't heard until today. Not bad!
Thanks for a great TTT! I'm still deciding on my picks for the day, but it's early here still!
!DHEDGE
Thanks for stopping by! Glad you like the band. Few people remember them now, but this last song is from this year's new album and as you said, it's not bad. There's still some life in them.
I love those songs
They are really nice!
Time to really enjoy some cool music
After almost 45 years, can we still speak of "Modern English" (in both senses of the word) with a clear conscience?
From a musical point of view you can say yes, as the guys still sound pretty much the same as they did in the early years.
The lyrics may have been given a moderate dose of serenity — typical of their advanced age — but the resemblance to "Simple Minds" will probably stick with them until the end of time.
In my ear, "Not My Leader" will most likely win the race. 😎
I was surprised to hear Not my leader. I didn't expect such a crisp and fresh sound from them because I had forgotten them for the last ten years...
The lyrics bring them right up to the front.
You can replace the political misguided “leaders” all over the world - and it doesn't get any better! 😉
Hahah, universal truth about political leaders :)