Post Description

Not often, but once in a great while, a truly fabulous work of art is created. 
It is not a feat that is only achieved by artists who are known to be great; as evidenced by The The's "Mind Bomb", 
it is sometimes done by artists who are little known at all.
Ranking very near, if not at the top, of the greatest albums of the Modern Rock era, 1989's "Mind Bomb" is not merely a collection of eight songs, 
but a seamless, flowing journey through the darkness and light of the human condition. Matt Johnson, an emotive vocalist and lyricist at his worst, 
shows here that he can reach deep into his own soul to retrieve and give voice to sentiments and suspicions that are rarely touched upon in polite company, 
but are commonly held by many. The objective of the album, achieved completely, is the taboo act of tearing away the shrouds that guard religeon, race, sex, society, and love. 
The whole world is laid bare at your feet in "Mind Bomb", a testimony to the desperation and cynicism that people enforce upon themselves in order to rise above nature. 
It is at first not an easy listen, but one which will eventually become a part of the listener's being; that is, if he or she is sympathetic 
to the cause of finding some shred of meaning in life.
While the star of this show might not be a household name among those who were fortunate enough to grow up in the amazing alternative rock culture 
of the late eighties and early nineties, one of the supporting actors certainly is. Johnny Marr, former guitarist of The Smiths, 
is far more in the background here than in the places we know him best, even appropriately adding background vocals to his repertoire of enormous musical talent. 
Only in the one song co-written by Johnson and himself, "Gravitate to Me", is any sign of Marr's signature guitar style obvious and near the forefront. 
That is not to take anything away from his contributions to the work as a whole - quite to the contrary; they are ever present, only very different from what we have come to expect. 
Moreover, the music of "Mind Bomb" is symphonic in nature, and not centered on the guitar-as-primary-instrument. 
Far more prominent are sounds which do not typify the everyday music of that time, or in truth, anytime.
Point in fact, Mark Feltham's harmonica and Wix's piano and organ contributions create the ambience that defines this album's feel. 
There are also horns and strings, shadowy vocals both evil and ethereal, odd percussions... all special and necessary, lent by almost innumerable guest artists. 
David Palmer's drums are as polished and perfect as could be, not generally dictating the meter of the music - but instead adding punctuation to the poetry of the arrangements. 
James Eller's bass brings elements of warmth and simplicity which balance well against the occasional harshness of both the music and the message. 
Together, they all speak as one.
Of course, it cannot go without mention that Sinead O'Connor performs a haunting duet with Mr. Johnson in "Kingdom of Rain", which is the last scene in the first act of a two act play; 
meaning it is the song that would in another time have been called "the last song on side one". A gentle comedown from the fear and anger of the first three tracks, 
it is our resigned introduction to sadness through the broken dream of dying love. The song though, excellent as it is, is not the standout. All tracks are standouts here; 
all are equal to the album, and form together the essence of a story.
After over a decade of consideration, I am still grappling to understand exactly what that story is; that is, in my opinion, the true genius of "Mind Bomb", beyond the music itself. 
After listening to it in it's entirety what I would estimate to be about 3500 times, I am still fascinated by it. It is aptly named. Perhaps there is nothing more than essence, 
maybe no story to tell at all. But few albums make the listener perceive one in the way this one does. I won't make any suggestions regarding what I believe that story to be 
- every person should be entitled to their own. But do listen, and find it. It is life changing and profound, while still sounding new after fourteen years.
In summary, The The's "Mind Bomb" to me represents one of music's finest hours. Standing shoulder to shoulder with the towering Modern Rock works of that period, like U2's "The Joshua Tree", 
The Cure's "Disintegration", The Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Blood Sugar Sex Magick" or Nine Inch Nails' "Pretty Hate Machine", it is one of those albums you simply MUST own. 
When ultimately I die, it will be one of the CD's(?) that play in perpetuity in my mausoleum; I could never find peace without this music.

Artist...............: The The
Album................: Mind Bomb
Genre................: Electronic, Rock 
Style................: Pop Rock, Synth-pop 
Source...............: CD-Original
Year.................: 1989 (June 11)
Label................: ® 1989 CBS Records Inc./Epic
Catalog..............: # 463319 2
Ripper...............: Exact Audio Copy v.1.0b3 (Secure T&C) & Accurate Rip & Plextor DVDR PX-650US
Codec................: Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC)
Version..............: reference libFLAC 1.3.0 20130526
Quality..............: Lossless, (avg. compression: 54 %)
Channels.............: Stereo / 44100 HZ / 16 Bit
Tags.................: VorbisComment + Discogs {Properly tagged by: BigSmurf2}
Information..........: http://www.thethe.com/
                       http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_The
                       http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_Bomb
                       http://www.discogs.com/The-The-Mind-Bomb/release/380796 {Buy}
                       http://www.amazon.com/Mind-Bomb/dp/B0012GMYW8/ref=tmm_acd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=1-1&qid=1423744495 {Buy}
                       http://tinyurl.com/l6jeym3 {PreView + PreListen complete album on YouTube}

   1. The The - Good Morning Beautiful                        [07:31]
   2. The The - Armageddon Days Are Here (Again)              [05:40]
   3. The The - The Violence Of Truth                         [05:41]
   4. The The - Kingdom Of Rain                               [05:53]
   5. The The - The Beat(en) Generation                       [03:06]
   6. The The - August & September                            [05:46]
   7. The The - Gravitate To Me                               [08:10]
   8. The The - Beyond Love                                   [04:21]

AR....: None of the tracks are present in the AccurateRip database
AccRip: [accuraterip ID: 000eb0ee-0060a4dd-610ad308]
        disk not present in database.
        [ctdb TOCID: jrgewLdftLGppkbAZSxVkeGmQp0-] 
        disk not present in database.

Playing Time.........: 00:46:11
Total Size...........: 253,63 MB in FLAC 
                       466,31 MB in WAV