Cheap Singing Fish (Music) (Colin Newman) Price

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Customer Reviews of Singing Fish

Under the sky, inside the sea
After the reissue of Modern English's first three albums and Dif Juz's "Soundpool", the 4AD label continues to clean out its archives with this very worthwhile 78-minute disc which contains Newman's instrumental solo album "Singing fish" and its more vocal-oriented follow-up "Not to", both released in the early '80s. Basically, "Singing fish" was the beginning of Newman's strange fascination with fish and the living space of this species: In the '90s, he would become the owner of the 'swim' label, releasing such albums as "My pet fish", "Full immersion", or "Water communication". For all that the previous album "A-Z" was regarded as Newman's solo debut -- it was actually a Wire record without Gilbert and Lewis -- "Singing fish" is indeed the most specifically Newman-only release yet; even long-time musical collaborator and drummer Robert Gotobed appears on one track only. I knew a few things before buying this compilation and rather expected a sort of anarchic noise experiments in the style of Dome (featuring "The Other Two" of Wire), but "Singing fish" is more akin to the 4AD label's early-'80s brand of percussive goth-pop/rock, mixed with some Eno-esque layers of beautiful ambient sounds and some nods to neoclassical music. Although there are no melodic hooks per se in these sometimes relaxing, sometimes slightly menacing tracks, the music is definitely listenable and has much more to offer than New Age meanderings with a simple back-beat. In my opinion, the most important aspect about "Singing fish" is what a little focus and enough musical ideas can do for short instrumental pieces. Think "F3" and "F5" mixed with the vocals of Robert Smith, and you'll get the sound of early-'80s Cure. The gently rocking "F1" and the wonderfully floating "F4" provide some of the most beautiful moments, while the dark piano chords of "F8" and "F10" display a more disturbing power. Fragile guitar sounds broken by feedback whines appear on "F7" and "F11", while the friendly "F12" and its 1/2-minute "Reprise", both featuring a fairly funny harmonica arrangement, are unlike anything in the Newman/Wire catalog.

Anyone who has listened to Wire's rarities compilation "Document and eyewitness" and "Turns & strokes" (admittedly, not their best stuff and only palatable for devoted fans due to the questionable content and the poor audio quality) will immediately recognize that some of the tracks from the aforementioned albums were rearranged and rerecorded for "Not to". Newman's decision to recycle some of Wire's late-'70s material isn't a bad tactic, but it somehow doesn't harmonize with Wire's ethos of constantly reinventing a band's approach. Musically, the "Not to" album appears like a cross between the taut minimalism of Wire's debut "Pink flag" and the more pop-oriented format of their comeback album "The ideal copy"; thankfully, Newman ditched the theatrical vocal chants and overdose of keyboards that made "A-Z" a hard album to love. Although Newman and his band seem like the personification of British understatement and attention to etiquette, they sound tighter and less pretentious than before, mostly relying on rhythm guitars and straight drumming on such songs as "Lorries", "Safe" and "You, me..". However, it becomes clear that a few too many songs follow the same drum patterns and guitar tracks, so you many find that "Not to" sounds samey after extended listening. The slower, more reflective pieces tend to be the most successful, such as the atmospheric "Truculent yet" with its crisply strummed guitars and the moody title track. "Remove.." also manages to shine; this songs appears tightly structured with its punchy bass riffs and ringing guitars, yet its mood goes pretty deep and can become quite hypnotic. In sum, the content of both "Singing fish" and "Not to" is really good and will prove a rewarding alternative if you feel that Wire's late-'70s output was too self-indulgent and overproduced.