Erasure – Total Pop! Deluxe Box (Rhino/3 CD + 1
DVD Box Set)
Picture:
B- Sound: B
Extras: B- Music: B-
Erasure
is a band, much like Depeche Mode, that never remained as strong in mainstream
music when compared to how well the band continued on in Europe and around the
world. For some, Erasure is almost like
a happier version of Depeche Mode, which this new box set called Total Pop! will quickly demonstrate
through 40 of their hits just how much material this band has stretched across
25 years and counting.
We
covered their release of Union Street
when it arrives a few years ago, you can read that review here.
This box
set includes everything that a true Erasure fan could really want, including
the first two discs, which contain their 40 hits, plus the 2009 remix of the
song Always. These have been remastered from the
original tapes, so we have to assume that this is the best version of these
songs in one location, the hits include Who
Needs Love Like That, Oh L’ Amour, Chains of Love, Take a Chance on Me, Always,
Rock Me Gently, Solsbury Hill, In My Arms, and several other of their most
memorable pieces of work. In addition
though we have a third disc, which contains all live recordings taken from
1987-2007 and showcases the band through 2 decades on various tours, the song
list here includes tracks like Am I
Right? Piano Song, Oh L’ Amour, and is a good sampling of the
transformation of the band not only in their stage presence, style, and
delivery, but also in their maturity of material and ability to execute songs
in different arrangements based on the venue and the era.
This is
further evident in the DVD bonus disc, which contains Erasure at the BBC from
1986-2005, plus recordings from the Top
of the Pops in 1988, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2003, and 2005, each time we get a
more evolved look for the band, which demonstrates that while time may move on
and change the physical appearance of the band, the sound is still unique to
them and the professionalism of the band has evolved to newer heights as the
formation found it’s overall bearing.
There are a few other bonus appearances on this as well, all of the
recordings are solid performances, but are of course dated accordingly and both
the video and sound quality change accordingly, but never too drastic.
In
addition to an already packed box set full of three great CDs and a awesome
bonus disc, there is also a great colorful booklet inserted into the set that
features information about the band, and interview section, and great
photography work through the years capturing the band all around the world,
which makes for a formidable extra and certainly justifies getting this set
along with the great content on the discs.
The only thing missing here would be the bands music videos!
From a
technical point of view, the set is newly remastered and the PCM CD sound is on
par with any remastering that we have heard to date on CD, although we’d love
to get our hands on an SACD recording of the band at some point in time, a few
years ago Depeche Mode released their catalog in Europe on SACD and greatly
improved the sonic vibrancy of their older masters and brought forth a new
dimension to their music. The DVD and live
CD fare a bit different as we experience a bit of variance in the overall
recording since we are talking about 2 decades worth, the live material doesn’t
detract too much from the intended nature of the songs, but fullness and warmth
of the studio recordings are clearly the way to hear the band, the quality on
the video is also up and down, the older Top of the Pops is more washed out and
feels degraded, the newer material looks better, but is still hindered by the
standards of DVD.
Fans will
enjoy this set regardless, new and curious consumers may find that this is a
great way to catch up on a band that has been around much longer than most
would assume and have more material out there than the U.S. radiowaves would
allow us to believe. Catch up now!
For even
more Erasure, try this link to their Live
In Cologne DVD:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3114/The+Erasure+Show+-+Live+In+Cologn
- Nate Goss
