Unsolved Mystery Club: Ancient Astronauts Collector's Edition

Footloose was a throwback to '50s rock & roll movies, with a silly plot about a town where it was illegal to dance. It was a major hit, as was its soundtrack, which spent a grand total of ten weeks at number one and sold over seven million copies. It's easy to see why – the album delivers its mainstream pop, anthemic rock, and light dance-pop with style and an abundance of hooks. Six of the nine tracks became Top 40 hits, and three – Kenny Loggins' bouncy title song, the excellent power ballad "Almost Paradise" (a duet between Loverboy's Mike Reno and Heart's Ann Wilson), and Deniece Williams' frothy, charming "Let's Hear It for the Boy" – shot into the Top Ten. The sound and production of Footloose has dated badly – there is a reliance on synthesizers and drum machines that instantly announces that the record was made in 1984 – but that isn't necessarily a weakness. Not only does it function as a time capsule of a certain moment in pop music history, but many of the songs are catchy enough to transcend their production. There's nothing of substance on the Footloose soundtrack, but it's a light, entertaining listen. Sometimes, that can be better than something substantial.

Formed in 1967 at the height of the UK psychedelic scene, Uriel consisted of Steve Hillage (guitar/vocals), Dave Stewart (organ), Mont Campbell (bass/vocals) and Clive Brooks (drums). When Hillage left the band Uriel continued as an organ trio, later changing their name to Egg. Arzachel ~ Collectors Edition is a re-mastered version of the legendary 1969 psychedelic album recorded under a pseudonym by Uriel, featuring the amazing 17-year old Steve Hillage on guitar throughout. The CD also contains four unreleased, ultra-rare Uriel studio demos, a spoken-word message from the past and a live snippet recorded in 1968. Steve Hillage plays on two of these bonus tracks.

Depeche Mode - Songs Of Faith And Devotion (1993) {2006 Collectors Edition}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC+CUE+LOG -> 308 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 106 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 95 Mb
© 2006 Demilune / Mute | DMCD8/0094637006726
Rock / Synth Pop / Alternative

SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION finds the band reinventing itself somewhat via lyirics that largely abandon the bleakness of the band's previous forays in favor of cautious optimism and spiritual questions.

Depeche Mode's tenth album, SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION, finds the band reinventing itself somewhat. Not that it'd been exactly treading water, but its last several albums had explored and refined a particular aesthetic of dark lyrical themes and minor-key synthesizer atmospherics.

However, in 1993's grunge era, lyrical mopeyness was endemic and keyboards were rapidly becoming out of date. Wisely, Depeche Mode sought to change both elements of its music, not just one. Incorporating guitars–most notably on the oddly blues-derived "I Feel You"–and other instruments into its songs was a canny move, but the stroke of genius is in Martin Gore's lyrics, which largely abandon the bleakness of the band's more recent work in favor of cautious optimism and spiritual questions. In an age of irony, the real surprise was that this album's title was not particularly ironic.

Depeche Mode - Speak & Spell (1981) {2006 Collectors Edition}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC+CUE+LOG -> 265 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 100 Mb
Full Artwork @ 400 dpi (jpg) -> 35 Mb
© 2006 Mute Records Ltd. | DMCDX1 / 5099969432521
Rock / Synth Pop / Alternative / New Wave

A vastly important and influential album, SPEAK & SPELL is virtually ground zero for British synth-pop.

Though probably nobody fully appreciated it at the time — perhaps least of all the band! — Depeche Mode's debut is at once both a conservative, functional pop record and a groundbreaking release. While various synth pioneers had come before — Gary Numan, early Human League, late-'70s Euro-disco, and above all Kraftwerk all had clear influence on Speak & Spell — Depeche became the undisputed founder of straight-up synth pop with the album's 11 songs, light, hooky, and danceable numbers about love, life, and clubs. For all the claims about "dated" '80s sounds from rock purists, it should be noted that the basic guitar/bass/drums lineup of rock is almost 25 years older than the catchy keyboard lines and electronic drums making the music here.