Opium - Under A Daylight Moon

Alright, you might guess my excuses for writing the first post of the year by half March, so I better not give any. Right to the subject of the post, which is a forgotten gem of the Opium discography, their debut album which was released back in 1995, already on the Neuropa label. Now you can rediscover it by catching one of the few copies which are still left directly from the core of the project, Alex Macpherson (formerly a bassist of The Wake, a great Factory band). Just write him here: neuropa@talk21.com
You can bet it's really worth it, the quality of this early release is amazing. The first two tracks will be re-released on the Atlantean single in 2003 (reviewed here almost one year ago), with Mirage being retitled TranSaharan.


But it's the following Nocturne the best song on the album, and probably Opium's best song ever, the one that should definitely get a re-release on the next Opium album we hope to see soon as 11 years is quite a long wait, though there have been some excellent singles in the meantime... This song is extremely emotional, with touching vocals from Jane Jardin Love and a wonderful deep bass which somehow reminds New Order's Peter Hook's best works when he plays the rhythm bass. You could almost think it's Vini Reilly from the Durutti Column playing that delicate guitar solo in the middle...
Macpherson shows almost a classical sensitivity in songs like Morpheus, graced by a piano which could have been composed by a romantic artist of the 19th century, like Chopin or Liszt.
It's the dub of Monsoon and Slowlove which brings us back to the modernity, though there's always a dreamy atmosphere which goes from the ethnic to the esoteric.
The modern and yet mysterious beauty of the woman on the artwork of the cover is a good metaphor for Opium's sound.
The eclectic and original inspiration from this album is shown once again at the end, when the surreal glockenspiel Ostraloid introduces a fabulous cover of Wild Is The Wind, a song brought to success by such artists as Nina Simone and David Bowie.
You find much of what the current music scene is missing on this album (which is closed by the hidden extra of the instrumental of Atlantean), the experimental attitude of bringing the most various influences to make modern music which is looking forward, mantaining the accessibility and the emotional power of the music. You'll wonder where this album has been all these years while you bought a lot of disappointing records and you didn't know it existed. Well, now you know it does, so get it while you still can.

Opium - Clarisse

After the re-issues of the classics of his past (both reviewed here) with The Cat Club (One Last Kiss) and Opium (Atlantean), Alex Macpherson (former bassist of The Wake, one of the best bands at Factory in the golden age of new wave) is back with a couple of fresh songs in the same vein of perfect pop traced by his previous singles, with the same amazing quality.
Clarisse (which also appears on another version with an alternative acoustic intro) just shows Alex's talent for a flawless tune for a delicious female voice (and you can't resist when she whispers 'yeah' at the end of the track) over a sophisticated instrumentation is still intact. He also can find some powerful and infectious basslines.


There's a wonderful keyboard which recalls The Wake, and a fantastic guitar which could have been on New Order's Low Life, but the whole sound and attitude just make me think of Saint Etienne if they didn't care too much about being cool and cared more for passion and had better tastes in music. The overall feeling is of a band which actually sounds more contemporary than the very most of the other bands around today... and also of a pop tune which should work enough to top the charts.
Envious is the track which was originally planned as the A side for a summer release, but we find it here and we also find why Alex thought it could have been the leading track. Some emotional keyboard chords bring the chorus, while a fabulous saxophone enriches the track.
I was lucky enough to hear the tracks before the release, but the single will be available from November 5th.
For more info you can write Opium: neuropa@talk21.com

Opium - Atlantean / One Last Kiss

When bassist Bobby Gillespie left The Wake, one of the best Factory bands, to join The Jesus And Mary Chain as drummer before launching his new band Primal Scream, Alex Macpherson replaced him on bass in 1983-1984, the period many believe to be the best of the band's history, with the release of the Talk About The Past single and the recordings of the Here Comes Everybody album.

After leaving The Wake, Alex joined The Cat Club which released the cult house classic One Last Kiss in 1987.


In the 90s Alex launched a new project, Opium, and released the single Atlantean in 1995, excellent keyboards, fabulous rhythm and divine female vocals by Jane Jardin Love. Basically it sounds like Saint Etienne at their best if they were produced by New Order's Bernard Sumner and remixed by Soul II Soul. We're lucky Opium re-released the single last year on the smartly named Neuropa label. The B sides are TransSaharan (a beautiful instrumental with more fantastic keyboards and a slightly exotic feel) and Olympian, which is actually the instrumental of Atlantean.

Opium are back this year with a new single, it's a re-working of The Cat Club's One Last Kiss. No more JJ Love on vocals, but it seems Alex can always find excellent female vocalists as Katrina Docherty's voice is equally splendid. The single is made of four different mixes of One Last Kiss (the best being The Last Days Of Disco), which is as good as Atlantean. 90 seconds into the song a solemn and touching keyboard appears, and you hear echoes of not only The Wake, but New Order at the heighth of Your Silent Face as well. A magnificent piano duets with Katrina's voice for the whole song.
Opium are about to release their new single, Envious, this summer.
For more info you can write Opium: neuropa@talk21.com
Also check the Opium pages on the Cerysmatic Factory site, from which the scans of the covers were taken.

New releases from Section 25 and The Wake

FROM THE HIP - IN THE FLESH (LTMCD 2325) is an 11 track live recording from SECTION 25's legendary North American tour in January and February 1985, digitally mastered from newly-discovered original soundboard tapes. The 74 minute CD includes the entire set from the Cotillion Ballroom (University of Louisiana), Baton Rouge set on February 2nd, and three tracks from the earlier show at Club Lingerie in Hollywood on January 31st. To pre-order contact James Nice at LTM on (fax) 44 (0)1362 861009, or by e-mail: jnice@ltmpub.freeserve.co.uk 
COMING SOON! THE WAKE - "Harmony + Singles" (LTMCD 2323) 74 minute CD reissue of the classic 1982 Factory mini album by the Scots Factory band, featuring a host of bonus tracks including the debut single On Our Honeymoon, the Factory Benelux 12" Something Outside and the first BBC radio session for John Peel from July 1983. Check out the webpage at:www.ltmpub.freeserve.co.uk/newrelease.html