Earlier this month goth legends (don’t let vocalist Andrew Eldritch hear you say that!) The Sisters Of Mercy (pictured l-r Ben Christo, Andrew Eldritch, Ravey Davey Creffield, Dylan Smith) returned for a short UK tour, before (like many others) having to postpone further European dates.
This prompted me to write a little about their albums to date.
First and Last and Always 1985
The debut Sisters album, although a few singles and EP’s had been released before which can be found on a later release – Some Girls Wander By Mistake.
The line up on First and Last and Always consists of Andrew Eldritch (vocals) Gary Marx (guitar) Wayne Hussey (guitar/vocals) Craig Adams (bass) and Doktor Avalanche (drum machine).
Use of amphetamines and Eldritch’s split with his long-term girlfriend served as subjects for the album on several songs such as No Time To Cry, A Rock And A Hard Place and Amphetamine Logic, as well as destruction of the planet can be heard on Black Planet which appears to be nuclear war / world war iii.
First and Last and Always closes with the brilliant Some Kind Of Stranger, a quite haunting sounding song of a love lost and desires of the flesh.
Standout tracks
Black Planet
Marian (Version)
Some Kind Of Stranger
Floodland 1987
After First and Last and Always, the band split, Gary Marx joined Anne Marie Hurst of Skeletal Family and formed Ghost Dance, and Wayne Hussey followed Craig Adams out the door and formed The Mission together. The Mission recorded songs which Hussey wrote for the Sisters second album which was at the time to be titled Left on Mission and Revenge (but that’s another story).
Eldritch along with vocals took on the duties of keyboards, synths, guitar and ex Gun Club bassist Patricia Morrison joined on bass and backing vocals, although the majority of the bass on Floodland was recorded by Eldritch using a synth bass.
The new line up also saw a change in style of recording with the majority of the album done on a computer and sequencer.
A re-occuring theme throughout Floodland, is water, which Eldritch states is due to the amount of water in Hamburg where he was writing the material.
The album kicks off with the track Dominion/Mother Russia a two part song, the 1st part, Dominion, based on the 1818 sonnet Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelly, with Eldritch telling MTV “The song is about erecting monuments in outrageous places to one’s own personal power and then crumbling away.” and the second part, Mother Russia, inspired by the Chernobyl disaster. Followed by Flood I and Lucretia My Reflection, which was written for new bassist Patricia Morrison – which maybe why it has a prominent bassline throughout.
1959 follows, which is I guess, a ballad with just the voice of Eldritch and a piano. Although no piano was used in the making of the song and was done on a sequencer. 1959 was the year of Eldritch’s birth and used to represent a time of innocence.
The unmistakable choir brings in the 1st single release of Floodland next with This Corrosion – a staple in goth clubs to this day where fans can be seen singing along to the chorus “Hey now, hey now now, sing This Corrosion to me.”
Before my favourite track on the album, Driven Like The Snow, is a continuation of Flood, aptly titled Flood II. I believe that Flood I+II was supposed to be one song, but the record label believed it was too long (together clock in at over 10 minutes) and therefore was broken down to two songs.
Driven Like The Snow is next, which feels like a continuation of Nine While Nine (from First and Last and Always) – there’s a debate on whether this is a love song or song about amphetamines – I think it’s a bit of both.
The final track is a Neverland – A Fragment. It is a the title suggests a shorter version of the song Neverland, which was never officially released until Floodland was re-released in 2006 with additional tracks.
Standout tracks
Dominion/Mother Russia
1959
This Corrosion
Driven Like The Snow
Vision Thing 1990
Another album, another line up. With the departure of Patricia Morrison, former Sigue Sigue Sputnik bassist Tony James is recruited. Along with relatively unknown Andreas Bruhn (guitar) who assisted Eldritch with the writing of the album, and ex All About Eve guitarist Tim Brechino join Eldritch and the ever present Doktor Avalanche to complete the line up.
The title Vision Thing comes from a frequently cited quote of George W Bush (Sr) and the album itself was an attack on Bush’s administration and policies.
The album has a more raw, rockier sound leaving the chorus laden effects for a more distorted sound which is evident from the very 1st riff of the opening song, Vision Thing. The heavier guitars continue on for fan favourite Ribbons as well as Detonation Boulevard which is followed up by the acoustic Something Fast. Vision Thing picks up the pace again with When You Don’t See Me and Doctor Jeep before the epic track More which was produced and co-written by Jim Steinman The final track of Vision Thing is another brilliant acoustic song, I Was Wrong.
Standout tracks
Ribbons
Doctor Jeep
More
Vision Thing to date is The Sisters Of Mercy last studio album. However I hold out hope of a new album soon, Andrew Eldritch was quoted “If Donald Trump actually does become President, that will be reason enough for me to release another album. I don’t think I could keep quiet if that happened.” Well, over 3 years have passed and no new album yet, however The Sisters Of Mercy official website does list a selection of new songs written by the current line up of Andrew Eldritch, Ben Christo and Dylan Smith including such titles Better Reptile, and Left On Venom And Revenge. So fingers crossed we will hear these on the upcoming tour, and maybe…. Just maybe a new Sisters album
Other albums
Some Girls Wander By Mistake (1992)
A compilation album of singles and EP’s released between 1980 to 1983 released on their own label Merciful Release. The title is taken form a Leonard Cohen song – Teachers.
Standout tracks
Alice
Valentine
Body Electric
Body and Soul
A Slight Case Of Overbombing (1993)
A collection of all A-sides of their time with Time Warner. It also includes a re-working of Temple of Love (1992) which features Israeli singer Ofra Haza on backing vocals and a new song Under The Gun, which is a cover (of sorts) of Billie Hughes song Two Worlds Apart, and featured Berlin singer Terri Nunn.
Photo by Lara Aimée
