Flesh for Lulu Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
Flesh for Lulu brings the noise in Plastic Fantastic to gain more fans in America, but ironically it's only the album's two most poppy love songs that found airplay in the United States. They also salvage a somewhat disappointing LP from a band who was finally able to attach hooks to their marriage of glam and goth on Long Live the New Flesh. But released in 1989, when spandex metal was dominating AOR stations, Plastic Fantastic turns up the amps. "Decline and Fall" and "House of Cards" are passable rockers; they're much slicker than anything in Flesh for Lulu's early discography, so purists should be forewarned. Hidden in the rather forgettable material on Plastic Fantastic is the romantic "Time and Space" and the sultry "Every Little Word." "Time and Space" has Nick Marsh crooning love-stricken lyrics as dreamy new wave keyboards shimmer in adoration. "Time and Space" could've been as fondly remembered as new wave ballads like Depeche Mode's "Somebody" and the Psychedelic Furs' "The Ghost in You" if it was released earlier in the decade. It's hard to chastise Flesh for Lulu for attempting to increase their audience on Plastic Fantastic; nevertheless, it's almost painful to hear gems such as "Time and Space" and "Every Little Word" surrounded by faceless guitar rock. And it flopped, too. ~ Michael Sutton, All Music Guide
'Long Live the New Flesh'
Release Date 1/1/1987
Tracks 11
Label Beggars Banquet
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Determined that an American breakthrough was now within their grasp, Flesh for Lulu gambled the farm on Long Live the New Flesh. In the short term it was a smart move and placed the band right on the verge of stardom, but in the long term it was, in retrospect, suicide. Fed up with the British press' sniping Stones' comparisons, the group severed their strongest roots, leaving their U.K. fanbase to wither away to nothingness. This drastic pruning was deemed necessary for Flesh to take hold and flourish in the U.S. In an altered reality kind of way, New and its predecessor, Big Fun City, correspond virtually track for track, with the rockers frontloaded and the softer numbers mainly in the second half. But the title tells the whole story, and indeed launched a very new Flesh upon the world. Gone were the masses of R&B riffs and punky rhythms that fired their last album; in came a new arena sound. The pop/rock melodies still remained, but were now fleshed out (so to speak) with synths, female backing vocalists, big rock guitar, and a Gary Glitter stomping beat. A quick comparison of "Siamese Twist" and Fun's "Vaguely Human" illustrates the point. The latter's a punk-fueled R&B pop/rocker; the former's a punk-fueled R&B pop/rocker laden with a thumping beat, searing lead guitar, and braying brass. Of course, the British found this new Flesh bloated to obesity, but this was what America wanted, and the band were happy to dish it up. Even the wonderful "Postcards From Paradise" (the "Baby Hurricane" of Live), is as chubby as a cherub, beefed up by the repetitive, pounding bass drum, and blend of Flesh's previous boisterousness. The U.S., of course, loved it. But even while toning done their punkier sound and R&B riffs, at least the band remained diverse. Going down Fun's genre checklist, Live also includes country & western hybrids, a bit of blues, a nod to U2 ("Sleeping Dogs"), and a closing experimental track. Oddly enough, the latter actually returns Flesh to their own post-punk roots, albeit in an extremely twisted way. So what Fun was for the Brits -- a classic pop/rock album in an indie mold -- Live was for Americans -- a classic pop/rock album in an arena mold. Pick your poison, both records are excellent, but few but the most die-hard fans will find them both equally appealing. ~ Jo-Ann Greene, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Underneath the black clothes and eyeliner, Flesh for Lulu were no more nor less than a pop/rock band, forever cursed by their post-punk past. Born a dozen years too late, the group were condemned to the corners of the indie scene and the edges of the U.S. charts, virtually neglected by the American rock masses that were their natural audience. At least the U.K. indie kids took them to heart, but Big Fun City deserved so much more than that. Having shaken off their cobwebs on Blue Sisters Swing, Flesh came to NYC (thus the new album's title) to record with producer Craig Leon. A less sympathetic producer would have destroyed this record, either by foisting a thoroughly '80s slickness into the mix, or lazily permitting the group's retro sound to run rampant. Instead, Leon respected the group's vision, creating a modern album that remains a tribute to rock's rich past. A motherlode of riffs are the song's sturdy foundation blocks, mostly mined from a rich R&B vein. The Stones are an obvious influence, although Flesh never plunder directly, instead creating the best riffs Keith Richards never played. Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground also played a major role in the members' youths, while country & western and the blues continued to make welcome appearances. Thus the band touch all the major rock roots before tossing them into their own indie blender. Perhaps Flesh were just too adventurous for the rock community, too willing to take chances, too energetic, too pop, too different. Too bad for the rockers for missing out on such a classic record. The CD also included the Blue Sisters Swing EP as an added incentive. ~ Jo-Ann Greene, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
For so long a discordant gale of noise, Flesh for Lulu finally made good in late 1983, with the quite remarkable Roman Candle EP. For the first time, their influences -- Iggy, Lou and Bowie on a daytrip to Glamland -- emerged a vibrant brew of textured, dramatic Day-Glo beauty, and even their foes were suddenly looking forward to their debut album, if only to discover whether it was all a ghastly fluke. It wasn't. Ignore the cover (which is hideous by anybody's standards) and make straight for the opening "Restless." Marred only by an implausibly obtrusive girlie chorus, "Restless" introduced a Furs-meet-Spector Wall of Sound that doesn't let up, even when the Lulus dip into the horror show hoedown of side two's epic closer, "Heavy Angel." The trip en route, meanwhile, is spellbinding: "Hyena," an incredible cover of the Stones' "Jigsaw Puzzle Girl," the raucously mesmerizing "Brainburst" and, best of all, "Subterraneans" -- still one of the all time great rock & roll street anthems, with a guitar line that Keith Richard would have been pleased to call his own. Looking back on Flesh for Lulu from a distance of 20-plus years, it's easy to see why the British weekly Melody Maker once proclaimed its makers as "[possibly] the most important band we've got." It wasn't the most fashionable thing to say, and the Lulus themselves did their best to dismantle such praise when they started chasing the Yankee dollar. For a year or two after the release of this album, though, there was a lot of truth in that declaration, and Flesh for Lulu still wears its scars proudly. ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
