as i think i have made it clear, i happen to think that propagandas 12″ single, dr. mabuse, and the bands debut album, a secret wish, are rather special. not only that, but after the collapse of the original set up of the band, claudia brucken with electro boffin thomas leer formed the ideology heavy art pop project, act, and went onto record epic wonders such as snobbery and decay so, you’d think i’d have known that in the early 90s claudia had released a solo album, love and a million other things.
the simple fact of the matter is that by 1991 my world had changed, and i was no longer keeping up with such happenings.
in fact, it wasn’t until many years later when digging through various discussion threads on a ztt fan website that i had any idea of such a release.
of course, at the time of my discovery, the cd was well out of print, and highly collectable meaning the chances of me ever getting to hear it were somewhat slim.
a multitude of ‘thank you’s then to the ever vigilant ian peel (ztt records very own indiana jones) who has persuaded cherry red records to step up to the plate and make the album available with an extra cd of b-sides and enjoyable remixes.
with the albums early 90s production done under the guidance of pascal gabirel and steve nye, (featuring extras such as terry ‘house of love‘ bickers, glenn ‘heaven 17‘ gregory) the results may not have the production excess of her times with ztt records, but there are still some lovely touches and attention to detail in the mix.
as to be expected given the history, the basis for the albums sound is time stamped electro-pop, but 20 years on, the songs and production stand up rather well in this age of rediscovery.
while there are many who would suggest that claudias vocals are an acquired taste, i would suggest that songs such as radio friendly kiss like ether, the dance floor friendly throbbing grooves of absolut(e), industrial-lite clanging noises of fanatic (the nail in my soul), and the majestic beauty of unforgivable, could easily sway naysayers.
however, all of this pails in comparison to the 6 minute closer : surprise. widescreen ambience, subtle atmospherics, and claudias drama filled treated vocals, allows connections to kate bush be applied, making this a genuinely brilliant track.
of course, there has to be an outright clunker, and i can’t deny hearing an upbeat electro track with lyrics about suicide, suicide – a song for a ghost, does make this particular listener wince somewhat. however, this track aside, the album is a cracking piece of pop history, and totally worthy of your attention if you have any time for the melodrama of ztt records era propaganda.
more detail : here – – ztt records