The Erasure4rum has an exclusive first reviewing the new The Rude Awakening EP ‘Under The Covers’,this latest release includes 4 all new covers featuring songs from OMD,Gary Numan,Erasure & Japan.
This feature will include the official TRA track descriptions followed by the E4M review.
THE RUDE AWAKENING consists of Johnny Normal and Bridget Gray, a synthpop song- writing/performing duo since 2018 whose debut album “Kaleidoscope” featured in The Electricity Club’s shortlist of top albums of 2019. They also have been collaborating and remixing for artists such as B-Movie, Birmingham Electric, The Livelong June, Mechanical Cabaret and Peter Godwin.
Released on 1st May 2021 on their own AbNormal label, the “Under the Covers” EP is more than a boy/girl dressing up and singing into a hairbrush... this is a collection of very thoughtfully crafted and clever interpretations of classic 80’s synth songs with the signature DNA of The Rude Awakening threaded throughout.
1- “Joan of Arc” (OMD) sees Bridget take the lead vocal role, her angelic, vulnerable verses gradually joined by Johnny, as the song builds to a rising anthemic climax.
E4M- Bridget takes the lead vocal on this cover of the classic OMD single taken from the Architecture & Morality album the great drum track behind this really drives the song along well,keeping in line with the original version. Also some great synth backing,very simple sounding yet very effective,the lush vocal sitting perfectly over the instrumentation.
2- “Bombers” (Tubeway Army/Gary Numan) has Johnny leading the vocal attack aided by a military rhythm and squadron of synths, assisted by Bridget’s calming harmonies and ambience of historic aviation.
E4M- I must admit I wasn’t familiar with this track so a quick google search for the original first just to see how they attack this cover. Bombers was the second single from Tubeway Army,the start is very reminiscent of (choose your preference) Blondie’s Heart Of Glass or Roxy Music’s Same Old Scene. All the covers here use synths to replicate the original sounds to perfection,some very clever sequencing going on here. Also ambient soundscapes overdubbed with the music to great effect,bring light to what is quite a dark song.
3- “Spiralling” (Erasure) is given The Rude Awakening treatment and sees the gentle, vulnerable lyrics interwoven vocally by Bridget and Johnny around a tapestry of beautiful synthetic fibres.
E4M- Now the ‘Erasure’ cover for which we are most interested in,Spiralling from The Circus album,quite an unusual song to cover you may think seeing as it’s really an obscure album track rather than a big hitting obvious single choice,a welcomed change from your usual ‘respects’.
The opening bars are very Similar to Alison Moyet’s ‘Weak In The Presence Of Beauty’. It’s a lot busier than the original yet still sounds really spacious and sparse in its backing. Laid back softly sung lyrics compliment it perfectly. Including the Safety In Numbers ending which is nice ending the song with a percussive trancelike end.
4- “Quiet Life” (Japan) is an insistent, sequence-driven version of a classic synth track with Johnny’s signature vocal leading the charge and Bridget’s lush harmonies and sensual spoken word softening the edge of an otherwise sharply smart rework.
E4M- Being a massive Japan fan and knowing this song like the back of my hand for 40 years the going was ‘always going to be rough’ to quote David Sylvian. Quiet Life from the album of the same name, Japan fans will know the major part in the recording of this song was the Rob Dean guitar playing with his solos and that riff throughout,here it’s totally synthetic (as you’d expect) yet it really works,totally new yet totally familiar at the same time. The guitar solo being a great synth treat,and fully encapsulating the original backing. The drum programming also is 100% spot on and faithful to the original,Steve Jansen would be proud. Bridget giving us a sultry spoken lyric over the ending section.
Conclusion
This EP has a good cross section of songs from four completely different yet unique acts,all with Synthesizer roots,Japan being well ahead of their game but not as widely praised as acts such as OMD or Gary Numan,along with this E4M mainstay Erasure the reason we are all here.
Other People’s Songs being a perfect benchmark of an album of totally different songs covered in a way that also makes them very Erasure,a feat The Rude Awakening seem to have achieved here a set of four songs that are totally transformed from well known originals to right here right now updated current sounding versions,completely fresh and modern yet warmingly familiar.
The first play of the new tracks were on 19th April from 7pm on Artefaktor Radio-
https://www.facebook.com/groups/SneakPe ... ?ref=share
Listen in at 2hrs 25mins to hear the 4 tracks-
Pre-order link-
Erasure4rum’s Little Ask ..... asked The Rude Awakening how they decided what tracks to cover.
TRA-This EP is not The Rude Awakening's first foray into the world of covers, as we did a collaboration with LorD and Master (Daniel Graham) which was a cover of The Knife's 'Marble House'
We've also done an homage to our favourite Shiny Darkness track Moments, both of which we've played live and we had been thinking about putting one or two other covers into our live set. Given that we weren't in a position to do any gigs for a while we decided to work on them anyway and the result was the EP that's coming out on 1st May called "Under The Covers". #rude.
We've chosen these artists to cover because they were particularly influential to us in our formative years and we are still both huge fans of them. As for the songs, the choices were down to different factors really. Some of them are really famous, some not so much and maybe just known to the fans, so it's not as if we were just going for the hits or not hits route when choosing which tracks to cover.
OMD-Joan Of Arc
We love OMD and were gutted to be at the ill-fated Watford gig (that wasn't a gig) on the last tour (we're hoping to get to see them later this year, though fingers crossed it all goes ahead). Anyway, we had done a backing track for Joan of Arc and we were going to play live at the Artefkator Live 4 events that were cancelled last year so we decided to record it with the vocals. Following an interview with Andy McCluskey for Johnny’s radio show, we sent him a copy and he immediately sent back a message saying It's a really cool version of JoA. Always good to hear a different interpretation". With that in mind, we decided to release it.
Gary Numan-Bombers
Numan’s Bombers is brilliant live; the TRA'd up version is kind of a mish mash of the live one, the album one, and a whole lot more with so many layers of instruments, vocals, and effects it's a real auditory experience.
Erasure-Spiralling
The Erasure track was chosen because we both love the album The Circus and Spiralling is not a song you hear that often, and hardly ever in a live Erasure set anymore although it was many years ago. And you could go bonkers with it and mess with the speed and time signature, and we like bonkers. Johnny said of Spiralling that he loved the track but wished it were longer and progressed more, with drums and another set of vocals so we did that.
Japan-Quiet Life
Quiet Life was an opportunity to move away from where you would expect a cover to go (fretless bass) and bring something different to it that isn't in the original - the vocal harmonies for example. Bridget thinks that song in particular also really shows how amazing and great Johnny is vocally.
A big thank you to Johnny & Bridget for making this feature that little bit more rude.
Thank you. E4M.
The original versions.
OMD- ‘Joan Of Arc’
Little Catholic girl is falling in love
A face on a page, gift from above
She should have known better than to give her heart
She should have known better than to ever part
Without me
Without me
I gave her everything that I ever owned
I think she understood but she never spoke
She should have not tried to be that way
She shouldn't have to go there ever again
Without me
Without me
Now listen to us good, and listen well
Listen to the song, everything we tell
We should have known better than to give her away
We should have known better to this very day
Without me
Without me
Listen, Joan of Arc, all you got to do
Say the right words and I'll be coming through
Hold you in my arms and take you right away
Now she's on her away to another land
We never understood why she gave her hand
She shouldn't ought to promise, cause it's just pretend
I know she doesn't mean it and she'll leave again
Without me
Without me
Without me
Without me
Gary Numan- ‘Bombers’
Look up I hear the scream of sirens on the wall
I see a policeman crying in the backseat of a dying Ford
Hotel waiters leave the bedrooms of stars who are far too old
And no-one ever told me that I could be so cold
Bombers fly at zero
Bombers fly at zero feet
I see an old man knocked to the ground and beaten by the vicar's wife
And no one stops to help they're far too busy trying to save their own lives
A tiny girl screams for mother and wanders out into the street
I saw her going down underneath a thousand people's running feet
Bombers fly at zero
Bombers fly at zero feet
Bombers fly at zero
Bombers fly at zero feet
All the junkies pulling needles from their arms hope it lasts all night
And all the soldiers curse the day they joined the army and prepare to fight
In silent bars, in silent rooms, in silent cars you hide where you can
And me I know just where you are, you see I'm a bomber man
Bombers fly at zero
Bombers fly at zero feet
Bombers fly at zero
Bombers fly at zero feet
Erasure- ‘Spiralling’
I try hard
To put you out of mind
Every night alone
I'm thinking 'bout you
How can I avoid this
Pain without you
I won't cry
I won't be sorry no more
I know that this is something I'll get over
Maybe I can learn to love another
It's just a matter of time
A matter of time
Just because I lock myself in my room
It doesn't mean that I'm afraid to talk to
Those people I know that might have you seen you
No return
I keep reminding myself
I won't look back
Won't regret a single moment
I gonna mend this heart inside you've broken
It's just a matter of time
A matter of time
It's just a matter of time
A matter of time
Show me the way
They say safety in numbers
I lift up my eyes to the sky
And imagine a crowd
Of hearts that surround me
And give the me courage to die
Were you to weep
And lie at my feet
Then you'd wash all
My troubles away
And imagine the host
Of angels around me
That give me the courage to die
Japan- ‘Quiet Life’
Boys, now the times are changing
The going could get rough
Boys, would that ever cross your mind
Boys, are you contemplating
Moving out somewhere
Boys, will you ever find the time?
Here we are stranded
Somehow it seems the same, beware
Here comes the quiet life again?
Boys, now the country's only miles away from here
Boys, do you recognise the signs?
Boys, when those driving hands push against the tracks
Boys, it's too late to wonder why
Here we are stranded
Somehow it seems the same, beware
Here comes the quiet life…
