CD-Charts Position 1
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Messages: Greatest Hits/+DVD

by: OMD

Release Date September 29, 2008
Unpromoted which is a shame, Thanks to Amazon This Compilation is easy to obtain. As an OMD fan from thier early days this a must for all collectors. I bought this for the DVD alone but I am sure the Cd will get some use. Excellent purchase for any music fan as this Band have infuenced so many over the years. Great to see them on thier reunion Tour. And may they continue to please thier fans for years to come, Timeless.

CD-Charts Position 2
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Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark: Remastered

by: OMD

Release Date March 10, 2003
It never ceases to amaze me how in those early days Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey were able to create such incredible sounds out of such basic, rubbish equipment. But I guess that's why their music had so much appeal to me. It was inventive and creative.

For me, their self-titled debut album more than any other captured this inventiveness and creativity. Songs like Electricity, The Messerschmitt Twins and Pretending To See The Future have stood the test of time well.

Sadly, after the commercial failure of their 4th album Dazzle Ships they lost much of that inventiveness and creativity, by focussing on trying to write records that sell. Sadly, OMD will be remembered as a middle of the road, 80s pop band; let's not even ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
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The Best of OMD

by: OMD

Release Date February 29, 1988
Besides the obvious highlight, 'Enola Gay', most of this is mediocre 80's synth, grating and dated-sounding.

The synth grates after a while, and the likes of 'Messages' is repetitive and hokey, without even any lyrics to drag it above average. 'Souveneir sounds like something you would hear playing in B&Q or General George, utterly banal.

The vocals are unpleasant, and the rest of the album plays out in the same way, so inoffensive it's offensive. Droning synth-by-numbers.

CD-Charts Position 4
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Organisation: Remastered

by: OMD

Release Date March 10, 2003
Over the past 28 years, whenever I'm playing this album in the presence of someone who's never heard it before, they always say how beautiful the music is; Stanlow, in particular, comes in for much praise - no surprise there. For me, I still get the same pleasure from listening to it now as I did when I first played it all those years ago.

I just feel sorry for all those people who've never heard this album. They're missing something very special.

CD-Charts Position 5
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The Omd Singles

by: OMD

Release Date September 28, 1998
Excellent compilation though I have 1 gripe. Red Frame White Light, where is this track? For a compilation advertising itself as The OMD singles this is a striking ommision.

CD-Charts Position 6
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Junk Culture

by: OMD

Release Date August 31, 1998
By the time Junk Culture was released (1984), OMD were riding something of the crest of a wave. With a good few hits, successful tours and critically-acclaimed albums to their credit, they set about recording a set of songs which was once a departure from its more industrial predecessor Dazzle Ships but which used a familiar language.

Using the sort of album titles which journalists love to ask questions about once more - both Architecture & Morality (their masterpiece from 1981) and Dazzle Ships had both 'arty' and 'complex' reasons for their names - Junk Culture once again needed explaining!

Andy McCluskey went to some length in interviews of the time to explain that it was about popular culture and the way things fit together (or don't). That ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 7
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The Peel Sessions 1979-1983

by: OMD

Release Date April 24, 2000
Covering tracks from the first, second and fourth OMD albums (the third being omitted probably because of it's huge cross-over mainstream appeal) this compilation confirms the original creativity and experimentation that pushed OMD forward as one of the stawalarts of the early 80's pop-synth scene.

The mix of tracks is surprising & welcome - obvious numbers are overlooked in place of obscure B-Sides & album tracks (eg Annex, Dancing) but that is typically perverse of OMD! Also included is the original single version of 'Electricity'. The highlights are a frenetic version of 'Pretending to See the Future' and the wonderful 'Dancing' and 'Motion & Heart'. It's often said OMD were better live than recorded and this album confirms this - every track benefits from ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 8
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Dazzle Ships

by: OMD

Release Date April 14, 1997
...........so not a big seller. And ultimately, its lack of success pushed the band too far in the commercial direction of their subsequent albums. But as an end to end listen this is still a thrilling album that with a couple more tunes would have been the Sgt Pepper of the electro pop era... seriously

CD-Charts Position 9
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Pacific Age

by: OMD

Release Date April 10, 1989
This was the last album by the Original line up of OMD. I can't believe it was 20 years ago! Andy McClusky kept the name and produced a couple of excellent Synthpop cds in the 90s while Paul Humphries and the others formed the entirely forgetable The Listening Pool.

The Pacific Age is a huge improvement on the awful Crush, the only pointless track being the intrumental Southern. Of the singles We Love You is an excellently strong synth tune while Forever Live and Die and Shame can only be described as nice (but I still like them). Goddess of Love and the title track are also strong tracks in the same spirit as We Love You.
The Dead Girls harks back to their Architecture and Morality days though it doesn't quite recapture the feel or the mood of tracks like Sealand.
All ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 10
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Architecture & Morality

by: OMD

Release Date January 16, 1995
On this excellent album the melody is more important than the beat as OMD takes their synth-pop into serious territory on classics like the majestic Joan Of Arc, the wistful Maid Of Orleans, the somber She’s Leaving and the powerful New Stone Age. It’s all held together by evocative ethereal pieces, creating a very cohesive sound sculpture. The use of a live drummer enhances the overall sound, adding a welcome human touch to the album’s sometimes bleak and desolate textures. This is definitely their best album and a masterpiece of intelligent and moving synth-pop.