Heaven 17, an electronic dance act, may share musical roots with The Human League, but while Philip Oakey & Co. went about “feeling fascination” for romantic issues, Heaven 17 had more social/political lyrical concerns. This disc opens with a dance groove dedicated to labor struggles titled “Crushed By The Wheels Of Industry” that is what Woody Guthrie might have sounded like had he arrived at the genesis of MTV. The Luxury Gap dropped in 1983, a time when scads of British groups were giving synthesizer music a more human face. You can still hear hints of Krafwerk’s musical science in early The Human League recordings, but a track like Heaven 17’s “Key To The World” is nothing if not the electrified soul of Earth, Wind & Fire. This song’s real horns, including a wailing trumpet solo to make jazzer Maynard Ferguson proud, reveal Heaven 17 as more than mere computer nerds. In addition to creating R&B inspired sonics, Heaven 17 was also blessed with soulful vocalist Glenn Gregory who fills “Let Me Go” with sincere longing. This re-mastered and expanded edition includes extra variations of four original album tracks, but nothing completely new. There is a flock of artists we’d all love to forget from the ‘80s, but Heaven 17 does not fly among them.
~ Dan MacIntosh
Release date: August 8, 2006
