Emily: As with most new wave artists that I actually recognize, I knew Gary Numan from various retro Vh1 shows. I think Cars was either on the One Hit Wonder list or the top songs of the '80s list. Maybe it was both, I don't actually remember. What I do remember was the super-'80s video with keyboards and weird jump cuts that totally fit with the robotic synth sounds of the song. Cars is featured on The Pleasure Principle, and the rest of the album embodies the same early new-wave vibe. It's clearly influenced by Kraftwerk, but with a more British than German sensibility. It's definitely a product of its era, but not a bad way to spend 45 minutes.
Favorite Tracks: Cars; M.E.; Observer
Zack: Gary Numan is responsible for my favorite Foo
Fighters cover songs (and one of my favorite songs off the Colour and the
Shape’s Deluxe Edition). He can add another distinction to his resume as well:
A new wave album I actually liked. That’s been a rare creature these past 4+
years (!), but Numan delivered. Part of it is I think he does a great job of
coupling the inherently isolationistic sounds of synthesizers with lyrics that
match. The album, from start to finish, felt congruous, which is not something
I can say about a lot of the album from the era we’ve come across. It’s also
short enough that the synths he uses don’t quite get repetitive. Towards the
back end, I started to have a bit of trouble distinguishing when songs ended
and started, but on the whole each song felt crisp. Overall, Pleasure Principle
is sharp and clearly stands out as a just plain good album.
Favorite Tracks: Films; Cars; M.E.
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