Ninth

Ninth is awesome! Peter Murphy's best album since Cascade (which is still my favorite) and right up there with his classic Deep. There are so many songs on this album that have taken hold of me and I keep playing. I had almost given up on any new Murphy releases after Dust which I'm sure has many musical merits, but which was over-my-head. I could not get into any of the songs save for the "Subway (Epilogue)" only because it was my favorite song off Cascade. I'd listen to a song and have no clue how it went once it ended and I lost interest in Murphy's new material by the time Unshattered came out. Such is definitely not the case with Ninth which sports so many memorable and catchy songs. I went to a Murphy concert in March 2011, three months before the release of Ninth, and he played several numbers from the new album ("Memory Go" being one of them) and I knew right away that this marked a return to the Peter Murphy music that made me such a fan. Ninth did not disappoint. "Velocity Bird" is an excellent beginning track as it is full of energy and rocks. "Seesaw Sway" is the second single off the album. I really like the guitar work during the verses. "Peace To Each" reminds me of "The Light Pours Out Of Me" off Should The World Fail To Fall Apart. Despite the title, this track is very hard and heavy. "I Spit Roses" was the first single off Ninth. It is a very catchy song but the first line is just grammatically strange: "The captain is sea." I like songs with nautical themes. "Never Fall Out" is a relaxing, kick back number: "If you fall in love with me, you'll never fall out" (ha, ha). "Memory Go" never left my memory after I saw Murphy perform it live in March 2011. It is the type of song that sticks in one's head, and it rocks. My favorite song off this album is "The Prince & Old Lady Shade." It was released with "I Spit Roses" as the first single. The instrumentation is wonderful and the violin at the beginning and end gives it beauty. I saw a video where Peter Murphy, guitarist Mark Thwaite, and a violinist played the song on the street, and it was terrific. "Uneven & Brittle" is a grinding rocker. "Slowdown" reminds me of something with the beginning bass rift and the guitar during the verses, I just can't put my finger on it and it drives me nuts. "Secret Silk Society" is quiet, dark, and mysterious. "Crème de la Crème" is an older song that Murphy played on the Dust tour that finally emerges here. The piano, orchestration, and build-up in intensity at the end makes it an excellent conclusion to Ninth.

I was lucky enough to see Peter Murphy twice in the last few years. Once for his covers tour, and recently for a lead up to this release. I went to the first show with low expectations as to be honest, I didn't want to be in a room full of people who have only heard Cuts you Up and I also didn't want to a legend reduced to playing in front of a crowd like that. Thankfully I was completely blown away. The set list was amazing including covers from David Bowie, Roxy Music, Nine Inch Nails, Bauhaus, and an outstanding selection of Peter Murphy tracks. To my surprise they didn't play Cuts you Up (note: I know it's a great song, it's just not what I wanted that night and apparently neither did Peter Murphy). Fantastic performance and an amazing reenergizing of my interest in Peter Murphy. Fast forward a few years later, I lowered my expectations once more as I didn't want to be let down with a less inspired encore performance of the amazing covers show. Once again, I was completely blown away. The band continued to come together as a powerful unit and played a truly inspired set of new tracks, old tracks, and some of the most unexpected Bauhaus covers ever including the almost 10 minute Burning from the Inside. Wow! So here I am again today and I see that Ninth is out. My confidence is high but I'm lowering my expectations as there's no way a new studio album is going to come close to the two amazing live shows I've seen. Once again I have been too cautious and Peter Murphy has exceeded my expectations. Fantastic album and I couldn't be happier. It's definitely more guitary and crunchy then anything since say Final Solution but that's absolutely perfect. It's the perfect album for this moment in time for me. I am extremely happy that I was able to hear many of these songs live before the studio version as to me there's nothing better then experiencing a great song live for the first time. Do yourself a favor and pick this album up. The price is incredible. The album is extremely well sequenced and in my opinion it truly captures the decades of music that has come pouring out of Peter Murphy with a fully energized and re-vitalized band. One of my favorite purchases of the year.

Come on it's Peter Murphy. You can't go wrong.

Ottimo cd di Peter Murphy, che lo legano al suo passato musicale in termini di stile. Allo stesso tempo si delinea una vena di rinnovamento musicale. Sicuramente un cd che viene apprezzata dalla audience storica dei Bauhaus legata alla musica anni 80 ma apprezzabile anche dalle nuove generazioni.

Another masterpiece from the master!

El ex vocalista de la Bauhaus Peter Murphy es único en voz y apariencia. Ninth es el álbum solista más atrevido de Peter Murphy hasta la fecha. A los 53 años, no hay señales de que se esté suavizando en este nuevo disco. Tiene una banda experimentada y probada en carretera detrás de él y un lote de material realmente bueno. Algunas canciones son inmediatamente pegadizas y accesibles: el sencillo inicial: I Spit Roses y su lado b: The Prince & Old Lady Shade. El álbum tiene sus momentos más suaves con Never Fall Out basado en acústica, y el tema final Creme de la Creme. Todo envuelto en una cálida producción de David Baron quien encuentra el equilibrio adecuado de sombras y luz.

Un vrai bonheur cet opus de PM. Certes moins world music et oriental que Dust qui accouche d'une face assez sombre de PM. On retrouve là plus le PM des origines (zut j'ai déjà cet age :-)) et même de Bauhaus dans les intonations et certains riffs. Pour ceux qui aiment la sculpture des mots et la peinture des mélodies...