Chris and Cosey - Songs of Love and Lust (1984)

Chris & Cosey, was a duo consisting of Chris Carter and Cosey Fanni Tutti (interesting name, eh?). Their music had a pinch of darkwave, a pinch of synth pop, and a little pinch of industrial leftover from their days with Throbbing Gristle. Midway through they change their tone a bit with the inclusion of “Lament” which is a rather gentle, melodic song and then followed by “Talk to Me” which sounds kind of like minimal wave funk and is actually peculiarly similar to modern revivalists such as Glass Candy. This sound was kind of a trend in certain circles during the early to mid 80s, but Chris and Cosey do it a little better than others, as they had seasoned experience (with TG) and more ambition than most (even creating their own label, Creative Technology Institute).

I’m posting this album today in commemoration of the recent re-release of both Exotica and Songs of Love and Lust. I actually haven’t heard Exotica, so I can’t comment on the quality of that, but Songs of Love and Lust is a pretty darn good record for what it was trying to accomplish. It’s not something I’m always inclined to listen to, but there are times when the mood strikes.

Once again with this genre, we see the early half of the album being more accessible and the latter half more avant-garde and experimental, outside of the instrumental "Chiron" which is one the better tracks on this LP. I can safely say that this album is not for everyone, but if you’re interested in checking out some of the pioneers of dark wave, this is a good starting point. To conclude, not the most employable music out there, but the two were definitely musical savants tackling new horizons that had an impact on electronic music to come.

Rating: 7.5/10

Link removed per request. Support the artist and buy the album!