On the Road to Nashville - Erasure

If you made it to 2007 with a fat wallet then you probably aren't a true Erasure fan. Since 2003 the group has been responsible for a slew of sideline releases -- remix albums, acoustic albums, and big stack of limited-edition, souvenir live albums -- with only the 2005 effort Nightbird offering something entirely new. On the Road to Nashville is another live album and the hook here is that the usually electronic, club-oriented act is backed by a live band, which makes for some interesting arrangements. Seeing as how they're performing at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium -- once home to the Grand Ole Opry -- "Blue Savannah" becomes a rollicking hoedown while "Victim of Love" sways in a rustic style, lap steel guitar and all. While these are clever, cute, and fun, seriously delivered tracks like Nightbird's "Breathe" and the chestnut "A Little Respect" are more rewarding with performances that breathe new life into these fan favorites. If you haven't checked in on the boys since the millennium turned, you're better off checking the well-built Nightbird and picking some tracks off the acoustic effort Union Street before venturing here. This is for the hardcore fans, the ones who have endured a mountain of stopgap releases and somehow still beg for more. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide