The Stranglers

What an out and out shock. The Stranglers have gone sensual, sounding sincere, serene, and sensitive (and philosophically introspective). And it's perfect. It took 'em nine years, but they're at their peace now…

Despite its rather cheeky title, Greatest Hits 1977-1990 is a good place to sample the entire Stranglers output. From the squalor of the late-'70s material, to the smoothed-out gloom pop of songs like "Skin Deep" and other mid- to late-'80s neo-goth rock, this is a solid anthology that values substance over style and exhaustive track selection. For sure, a well-edited Stranglers anthology is the only way to enjoy them; they recorded way too much dross to spend time searching out all of their plentiful, marginal records.

English rock band (New Wave, Punk, Rock), formed as the Guildford Stranglers on 11 September 1974 in Guildford, Surrey, UK. The Stranglers' early sound was driven by J.J. Burnel's melodic bass, but also gave prominence to Dave Greenfield's keyboards. Their early music was also characterised by the growling vocals and sometimes misanthropic lyrics of both Burnel and Hugh Cornwell.

The Stranglers release the long-awaited new album Dark Matters. Surviving Stranglers band members, JJ Burnel, Baz Warne, and newest member Jim Macaulay completed Dark Matters remotely during lockdowns, making it their first album since 2012. The album features the single 'And If You Should See Dave…', an honest tribute to their much-missed keyboard player Dave Greenfield who tragically passed away a year ago from Covid-19.

The Stranglers - Dreamtime
FLAC | EAC, LOG & CUE | Full Artwork Scan (400dpi .png) | Size: 409 MB | Hotfile & Rapidshare
Cat#: Epic 463366 2 | Country/Year: Europe 1986

Dreamtime is an album released by The Stranglers in 1986. The title track was inspired by a belief of the aboriginal peoples of Australia - called Dreamtime. This album appears to be a natural evolution from Aural Sculpture; it contains a mixture of upbeat and thoughtful tracks and includes the addition of pedal steel guitar to complement the horns. Highlights include "Always the Sun", which became a frequently-played live track and "Shaking like a Leaf", with its "Swing"-like feel.

Rattus Norvegicus is the first studio album by The Stranglers, released on 17 April 1977. The band's name was printed as "The Stranglers IV" on the sleeve. The album was originally to be entitled "Dead on Arrival" but was changed at the last minute. It was one of the highest-selling albums of the punk era in Britain, eventually achieving platinum record sales. The album's title is the taxonomic name for the common brown rat. It was produced in one week by Martin Rushent, and was basically a snapshot of the band's live set at the time. Some websites incorrectly list the title of the album as IV and the artist as Rattus Norvegicus. The first 20,000 copies of the original vinyl release included a free 7" single, containing "Peasant in the Big Shitty (live)" and "Choosie Susie".

The Stranglers - Dreamtime
FLAC | EAC, LOG & CUE | Lossless Artwork) | Size: 413 MB
Label/Cat#: Epic 463366 2 | Country/Year: Europe 1986
Genre: Rock | Hoster: Filesonic

Dreamtime is an album released by The Stranglers in 1986. The title track was inspired by a belief of the aboriginal peoples of Australia - called Dreamtime. This album appears to be a natural evolution from Aural Sculpture; it contains a mixture of upbeat and thoughtful tracks and includes the addition of pedal steel guitar to complement the horns. Highlights include "Always the Sun", which became a frequently-played live track and "Shaking like a Leaf", with its "Swing"-like feel.

The Stranglers, it’s now been almost 38 years since this band came into being. Formed by drummer Jet Black in ’74, the line-up has gone through a few changes throughout the years, finally culminating (at the time of this recording) in Jet, JJ Burnel, Dave Greenfield, Paul Roberts on vocals and ex Toy Doll Baz Warne on guitar, the latter two replacing Hugh Cornwell’s role in the band since 1990. This performance was filmed at the end of 2005 at the Shepherds Bush Empire, and although I wasn’t at this particular gig (mainly due to the terrible visibility for short-arses like me at the venue) I did spot my brother in the audience at the beginning – thoroughly enjoying himself with the plethora of other 40+ year old males that have always made up The Stranglers fan-base.