How would you rate Brotherhood (1986)?

I currently do not have this album but I was wondering for those who do--what do you think of this album 1-10 and why.

thanks

Fave album,

nuff said (i've lost count of the amount of threads i've praised it on!!!)

i'd give it a seven. i don't listen to Tracks 2-5 too much, but "Paradise" is brilliant, so is "BLT".

4: because of the horrid sound quality, especially on the vocals.

8 because this was class at a great time in my life so happy memories of this album despite the poor sounding quality!

Damn, not sure what you guys mean by poor sound quality. It sounds fookin great on my Sony at home. This album has become my fav NO album only behind Get Ready. Someone posted earlier they dont listen to tracks 2-5....

I implore you, please go back and listen to them. The only song I dont care too much for, is no. 7. (forgive me, i dont know song names from any of my cds, just track numbers.) they could have only put the first 6 songs on a record and it would still be one of my all time favs. The ending guitar duel between Barney and Hooky on Broken Promise gets the stereo cranked up to 11 every time. Almost makes me cry A beautiful album. All the broken-hearted lyrics make me sometimes think this was Barneys "Disintegration" (forgive the Cure comparison) I LOVE THIS RECORD!!!

So who besides me gave it a 4?

I gave it 7 because it had the misfortune of following Low-life. It's pretty good overall.

No way that record has poor sound quality. It was recorded in state of the art studios by top notch engineers. You don't have to subjectively like the way it sounds or was mixed, I'm not saying it is a masterpiece of the art of recording, but to call it poor is wrong. It has deep bass, thumping bass drum, smooth highs for the most part (although some of the heavily layered samples are kind of harsh to me in Angel Dust and All Day Long, but that's the way those samplers sound), and a very coherent stereo image and mix. If you want to hear a poorly recorded record, try any of the early Stereolab stuff on Too Pure. I like that music, or at least some of it, but the engineer that worked on that stuff should be shot and then fired.

By the way I gave it a 4. Not enough guitar for my taste, but at least they were trying to write real songs instead of disco 12" club hits where the lyrics were an afterthought. I think they achieved that goal reasonably well, and it goes to show that they should let Steve have more of a hand in the lyrics. I rate the lyrics to be of similar quality to Get Ready, not great but not bad either. On the other hand I don't care for the singles, you couldn't pay me to listen to Shellshock or State of the Nation. I have it on LP, and the fake skip and flying needle at the end is great, it always brings a smile.

7. Not as good as Low-Life (9) or Technique (10), but pretty consistent. Lacks the variety on the other two, in my opinion.

7 for me too - LL is a 9, TN is a 10, 1981 is a 10, PC&L is a 9.5

I gave it an 8.. I would give it a ten, but I agree with the others in saying that the sound quality is a bit too hollow sounding. However, it's still my favorite NO album. I can't really say why - my favorite NO songs are on PC&L and Technique, but this album just does it for me as a whole. Weirdo is probably up there in my top 5, and the LWTUA riff at the end of Way of Life makes me gush.,.

This is the worst NO album ever, I have to say. :barf:

However, the side B (I have it in vinyl also) is so much superior to Side A, I guess the only tune "hearable" is AIIWIW...

Too pop, too comercial. And my UK copy also has "State of the Nation" as an extra track. As if it would improve something...

It earns a 4.

Originally posted by teleharmonium No way that record has poor sound quality. It was recorded in state of the art studios by top notch engineers. You don't have to subjectively like the way it sounds or was mixed, I'm not saying it is a masterpiece of the art of recording, but to call it poor is wrong. It has deep bass, thumping bass drum, smooth highs for the most part (although some of the heavily layered samples are kind of harsh to me in Angel Dust and All Day Long, but that's the way those samplers sound), and a very coherent stereo image and mix. If you want to hear a poorly recorded record, try any of the early Stereolab stuff on Too Pure. I like that music, or at least some of it, but the engineer that worked on that stuff should be shot and then fired.

I assumed most people would have seen my recent thread: "Brotherhood; Is it ruined by smothered vocals?" As I explained there, the problem for me is the way the vocals are mixed. They seem to be buried under anything and everything else. That is what I meant by horrid sound quality.

7. Not brilliant, but still good particularly when 'Weirdo' and 'Broken Promise' are turned up very loud

Originally posted by Alexandre Travassos This is the worst NO album ever, I have to say. :barf:.

You've never listened too repugnent then

......or Mudment ??

I gave it a 7 too. Angel Dust and Paradise are my favourites.

It's not my favourite but if you don't like Brotherhood then, well, you don't like New Order. Those saying it has horrid sound/mixing quality or that it's their worst effort are just exaggerating to make their point.

Low-Life was a tough act to follow. Its' songs expanded New Orders' sound with remarkable success. While not as groundbreaking, Brotherhood also showed new facets to the band. They'd never done anything as acoustic as As it is When it Was (okay, bad example, that's actually an outtake from Low-Life). Bizarre Love Triangle has been rightfully described as a symphony you can dance to. All Day Long, to me, is just as monumental as The Perfect Kiss in it's mixture of instruments, composition and subject matter.

Other tracks may not push boundaries but are enjoyable just the same. Paradise is a powerful love song with an excellent performance from Hooky. Weirdo and Way of Life reclaim the jaunty guitar pop sound that bands like The Cure were taking for their own. Every Little Counts may be a pastiche but it always makes me smile. I love the cello sounds too.

That leaves my two tracks that I don't feel were quite as successful as the others. Funny, some people count Broken Promise and Angel Dust among their favourites. I guess one persons opinion is just that. The fact that New Orders' fans have such varying tastes and opinions is just a testimony to the wide variety of people their music has affected.

...and I voted it an 8

A nice big 9 for me - equal favourites with Low-life and Technique, but significantly different to both. Angel Dust is the only track I really skip on this one, I really like Paradise, Way of Life and BLT, which sounds best on the album as opposed to the single version. I also really like the contrast of guitarry stuff with sequenced stuff - both equally important sides of the band IMHO. CTB

Gave it a 9; it's always been my favorite NO album, and I do mean vinyl, which is why SOTN doesn't enter into this query for me at all.

Just a lot of good songs that I find myself humming or singing a fair amount of the time, and when I play the album, I never skip a track, which I usually do with the others.

I'd give it an 8, becase I've grown to really appreciate it, although I've never gone through a "phase" with it like I did with LowLife, Technique or Republic. "Paradise", "BLT" and "Angel Dust" are my faves. Tracks 2-5, individually they don't hit me as good songs, but when listened to as a whole (say driving during the summer), they really sound amazing.

If I was looking for a CD to listen to, I'd pick this instead of Get Ready, but might opt for LowLife or Technique instead, depends on my mood.

As of 32 votes the average SCORE is a 7.7 out of 10. Which is pretty solid.

This the best album newOrder have ever made, check it out.

Originally posted by Martin Davies This the best album newOrder have ever made, check it out.