ARCHITECTURE & MORALITY - OMD ( ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK )

Full performer name: Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark: Andrew McCluskey (vocals, guitar, reed horns, organ, Mellotron, synthesizer, bass, percussion, electronic percussion, programming); Paul Humphreys (vocals, melodica, piano, organ, Mellotron, synthesizer, percussion, electronic percussion, programming).
Additional personnel: Martin Cooper (saxophone); Michael Douglas (piano, organ, synthesizer); Malcolm Holmes (bass synthesizer, drums, percussion, electronic percussion).
Producers: Richard Manwaring, OMD, Mike Howlett.
Includes liner notes by Paul Browne.
Personnel: Andy McCluskey (vocals, guitar, reeds, organ, Mellotron, synthesizer, percussion, electronic percussion, programming); Paul Humphreys (vocals, melodica, piano, organ, Mellotron, synthesizer, percussion, electronic percussion, programming); Martin Cooper (saxophone); Michael Douglas (piano, organ, synthesizer); Malcolm Holmes (bass synthesizer, drums, percussion, electronic percussion); David Hughes (tapes).
Audio Remasterer: Simon Heyworth.
Liner Note Author: Paul Browne.
Recording information: The Gramophone Suite, Liverpool, England; The Manor.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark's eponymous debut and its follow-up, ORGANISATION, were pioneering synth-pop albums. However, some of the sonic experiments sounded forced and the band's ideas occasionally seemed to outstrip their abilities. That's definitely not the case here. Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys integrate their electronics gracefully into the format of the pop song, and Malcolm Cooper's live drums do much to keep the album from sounding too machine-made.
The album's centerpiece is the two-part "Joan of Arc"/"Maid of Orleans" suite, OMD's most memorable, as well as prettiest, achievement at that point. The single "Souvenir" is nearly the equal of those two songs, and the eight-minute atmospheric exploration "Sealand" shows the duo's experimental bent remains strong.

• Genre: Pop
• Genre: Pop
• Released: 3/18/2003
• Released: 3/18/2003
• Format: CD
• Released: 03/18/2003
• Format: CD