Album of the week: OMD punish prosperity with "The Punishment of Luxury"

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark are Eighties pop legends who combine catchy melodies with insidious, meaningful lyrics. In "Enola Gay" in 1980, they sang about a nuclear bomb, now they're giving luxury a beating.

"Punishment of Luxury" is OMD's thirteenth album - released on September 1, 2017.

The band

Inspired by the German electro pioneers Kraftwerk, Liverpool natives Andy McCluskey (now 58) and Paul Humphreys (57) founded the pop band "Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark" (OMD for short) in 1978. With "Enola Gay" and "Joan of Arc", they reached the top of the European charts in the New Wave heyday of the early 1980s, and then also in the USA with "If you Leave" in 1986. Then they thought they had to switch to a guitar sound. It didn't go down well. At the end of the nineties, the two split up and fought over rights; Andy continued solo and was successful until 1998 - and then invented the globally successful girl group "Atomic Kitten". In 2005, Paul and Andy were invited by RTL to appear on the "Ultimate Chartshow" and were thus reunited. In their next two albums, "History of Modern" (2010) and "English Electric" (2013), they returned to their electronic roots.

That's how it sounded in their early days: OMD with "Enola Gay" in 1980.

The new album

The title of the new album is as curious as the band's name: "The Punishment of Luxury". It comes from a painting by the Italian painter Giovanni Segantini from 1891.

The lyrics of the song of the same name criticize consumerism, which is also illustrated in brilliant minimalist graphics in the accompanying video:

The clip for the title track "The Punishment of Luxury".

This and some of the other 12 tracks deal ironically or very directly with the problems of luxury in modern life. At the same time, they are streamlined, melodic earworms.

Recommended tracks

"Isotype": A children's song about graphic symbols, an anthem for the emoticon generation - only OMD can do that! There is also a video to go with it.

"Art eats Art": What the DJ Ötzi song "Burger Dance" about McDonalds and Pizza Hut is for kindergarten tots, this song is for intellectuals and hipsters: the lyrics consist of a name-dropping of well-known artists of the modern era.

"The Punishment Of Luxury": Quite simply one of the best OMD songs ever. Eighties sound, but still ultra-modern and fresh - or even timeless. Hit potential - will not only delight their old fans.

Verdict

Anyone who, like OMD, manages to "go one better" on their thirteenth album deserves respect and praise. But it only works for listeners who also sense the irony - with their overly banal melodies, OMD run the risk of being misunderstood by some as the amigos of electropop.

The band on their album

Paul Humphreys: "We wanted to stay true to our style, but we also tried to be even more minimal than in our earlier albums.
Andy McCluskey: "We've tried to be more angular and edgy. But we just can't get rid of our love for catchy melodies."

OMD live

Currently on tour in Europe - hopefully we'll see them again soon.

OMD
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