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After some 5 years
together the Rose finally released their first authorized studio
album of original recordings. "Never Another Sunset"
was released on 13th March 1989 on LP / MC / CD. Up until this point the
Rose had followed a similar recording strategy to The
Sisters Of Mercy, preferring to release very strong 7"/
12" singles rather than forcing out an album with sub
standard tracks padding out the playing time. The Sisters formed
in 1981 and their first studio album, "First and Last and
Always", was not released until 1985. Therefore there was a
degree of pressure on the band. All the excuses of lack of control
had gone and it was time to put their money where their collective
mouths were. Did they pull it off? Somewhat. There are some
undoubtedly great songs on the album, but I think the overall
impact is effected by the production on the record (it was self
produced by the band). The overall feel of the album is heavy and
self mesmerized, with all the songs recorded at a much slower
tempo compared to the live shows. However, this aside, the
music does break through the gloom in patches... The album opens with
arguably the two strongest tracks. "What's Going Down?"
is instantly catchy with a powerful driving guitar riff and catchy
chorus. This track opened the set during the "Groove
Collision" tour in 1989. "Nowhere To Run"
follows and is a slow paced ballad balancing out the title track
on the B side. "You Don't Belong"
is noteworthy for the white hot guitar build coming out of the
instrumental break at 2:22 "The Devil's
Embrace" is another slow paced ballad, and is probably
the most guilty of bringing down the whole mood of the A side,
suffering from the wallowing production. The title track is up next,
see previous comments. The album then
attempts to lift up the tempo with "Delusions"
which is a solid track, comparable in quality to earlier B sides
like "Who Cares". "Her Fatal Charm"
is accented by McKay's slide bass, and quirky guitar line. A
simple, straight ahead riff driven track, surprisingly not
showcased live. The album closes with two
tracks that lose their energy somewhat in the recording. "Don't
Fly Too High", and "A Romantic Vision"
where both dance floor fillers in the live show, but on the album
suffer from that lack of spontaneous live energy,
"Vision" in particular is pretty hard going for the
opening 2 minutes.
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