Search - Various Artists :: Factory Records: Communications 1978-92

Missed Opportunity

Paul Ess. | Holywell, N.Wales,UK. | 06/07/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The compilers of this often brilliant but ultimately frustrating collection have - considering the magnificent back-catalogue they've access to - made the fatal mistake of cowing to ill-conceived, well dodgy ideas of commercialism.

Ie: including 7 tracks by the awful Happy Mondays; the completely worthless (and insulting!) 'World in Motion'; another re-mix that we just don't need of the over-rated 'Confusion'...

This level of laziness/pandering is inexcusable.



I'm not getting lost in Factory myth, or in its designs of structural gothic and framework modernism; both subjects are either a/ slightly painful and b/ extensively discussed elsewhere.

For once your objectified scribe has his attention on the product...



Briefly: CD 1 is the finest series of music thus far committed to disc. CD 2; ditto but slightly less so. CD 3 sees an alarming drop in quality but still contains a few gems. CD 4 is a stinker.

Major good things: finally the superb 12" 'Temptation' on disc, 'Hymn From A Village', 'Ceremony', Section 25's 'Looking From A Hilltop', the Distractions 'Time Goes By So Slow'.

Major bad things: all of CD 4, too much Mondays (one representative track would've been more than adequate), nowhere near enough critical perspective (compiler Jon Savage is usually reliable - he's obviously been caught on a bad day), and the usual Paul Morley contributions, which are now unfortunately - in relation to Factory Records anyway - morosely repetitive and meandering.

Morley's own epic: 'North By Northwest' suffered identical faults to this set only was a worse offender; he had a much bigger pond over which to cast his net.

I like Morley a lot but enough already; his seemingly inevitable outpourings have become as predictable as the label instinctively and resolutely wasn't.



Baddest bad in the world: with all the Crispy Ambulance to choose from - they have to pick 'Deaf' - their worst song.

Bestest best in the world: 'Tell Me' by Life. The most beautiful, energetic recording ever on Factory Records; this, by all that's good in the world, is the crucial reason why '1978 - 1992' SHOULD exist.



'Communications' should be the greatest compilation of music ever released (the Zoo compilation: 'Uncaged' currently holds that noble distinction). The first two discs comfortably achieve this, but an overall lack of objectivity and lazy over-reliance on their most profitable but artistically suspect turns, designate it (hurtfully) a middle of the field also-ran."

A perfect imperfection...

onsenkuma | Toronto, Ontario Canada | 01/28/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It's been pointed out elsewhere, but this shares far too many tracks with 'Palatine' to earn a fifth star. Personally, I would have loved to have seen a few more Benelux or other oddities (e.g. ACR's 'Brazilia'). Still, it's pretty hard to knock this compilation based on what it DOES include. If you don't already own 'Palatine' then this will give you a taste of what the label was all about, from the beer & skunk sounds of Joy Division's 'An Ideal for Living' ep through to the beer & ecstasy days of New Order' 'Fine Time' through to the beer & crack funky gasps of the Happy Mondays. The Factory 'sound' spiked simple pop and dance-rock with liberal doses of chaos and shambolic post-punk amateurism. Perfectly imperfect. Tony Wilson was a visionary. When you're done listening to this go out and buy Section 25's 'Always Now', ACR's 'To Each', the Durutti Column's 'Another Setting', New Order's 'Movement', the Happy Mondays' 'Thrills Pills & Bellyaches' and (no brainer) Joy Division's 'Closer'. The LTM label (UK) is doing a nice job of re-releases from the Factory catalogue..."