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Rating: They were among the pioneers of the English punk scene, but punk was too limited for them: already in 1977, without even having the time to absorb the relative success achieved with their debut album, they had their second LP, "Music For Pleasure," produced by one Nick Mason: the album itself is entirely negligible, not to say very poor, but at the time of the famous T-shirt flaunted by "pistola" Sid Vicious, it was quite a significant gesture, reflecting the strong personality of the band led by Dave Vanian, who over the years embarked on new paths and experimented with new sounds, reaching the peak of success in 1985 with "Phantasmagoria": dark, one might instinctively think judging by the title and the cover, but it's an inaccurate and not entirely truthful label, "Phantasmagoria" is simply a mature, fascinating, and sophisticated rock album with multiple nuances.
Objectively, a voice like Dave Vanian's, baritone, warm, sensual, and masculine, was absolutely wasted on songs in the style of "New Rose", and in this context, the great vocal potential of the frontman is finally fully exploited. One of the most evident influences characterizing "Phantasmagoria" is undoubtedly that of the Doors, also due to the remarkable vocal affinity between Vanian and Jim Morrison, along with a gothic rock sound that was riding the wave at the time and glam reminiscences displayed by the frontman's look: theatrical, studied, opposed to the punk standards with which they had become known. The influence of the Doors is particularly evident in the enveloping, dark, shamanic atmosphere of "Shadow Of Love", signaled by Bryn Merrick's bass and in the more rhythmic and psychedelic "There'll Come A Day", where keyboards hold the scene, as well as in a more expansive "Street Of Dreams", an engaging journey with multiple nuances, energetic yet refined and almost baroque in its compositional richness. There is no lack of a classy and radio-friendly single like "Is It A Dream", a melancholic, reflective, and bittersweet melody that does not renounce the theatricality and energy inherent to this album, while the typical irony of the Damned is well represented by "Grimly Fiendish", a fun, dark-ish march with Beatles-like nuances showcasing the compositional flair of keyboardist Roman Jugg, who, along with Vanian, was instrumental in the Damned's gothic turn. Here Jugg worthily replaces Captain Sensible as guitarist and tries his hand (with good results) as a singer in "Edward The Bear", another light and relaxing moment of the album. The fascinating theatrical show of "Phantasmagoria" is worthily closed by "The Eight Day", another perfect example of the pop-rock sound with dark nuances developed by the Damned for this album, enhanced by a particularly successful and effective chorus, leaving room for the muffled and twilight atmospheres of the instrumental "Trojans", dominated by the melody of a trembling electric piano and a lively rock escape for the grand finale.
The magnum opus of "Phantasmagoria" is undoubtedly "Sanctum Sanctorum": aesthetics, atmospheres, and gothic theatricality embodied in music in the most immediate and vivid form: the spectral organ introducing the composition is as filmic as it gets, as well as the composition that unfolds with sinuous elegance through intense climaxes and moments of great atmosphere, in a decadent serenade where the union between Dave Vanian's masterful interpretation and the mood created by piano and orchestrations gives life to a standard of absolute perfection, a stereotype in the best sense of the term. The keystone that has determined the fortune of "Phantasmagoria," besides the wonderful cover of "Eloise", unfortunately not included in the album, is undoubtedly the theatricality: this is a rich and sophisticated album but that doesn't want to be anything more than an entertainment product, in the manner of the best Queen: the incarnation of a character, a style, an aesthetics, great music dedicated to representation and not self-referentiality, charismatic and top-level rock.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
03 There'll Come a Day (04:15)
Fear grips your heart and you fight with all your might
Into the distant light you keep your vision bright
And the torch of love is a burning flame
It burns so bright it consumes all pain
And while your hand, your head to prey
Fate deals a hand that we all must play
(chorus)
And when the stars go out
The skies have turned to grey
I'm gonna walk on out
Into a brand new day
Schemes and dreams and just a little more
To keep the wolf howling outside your door
And every night, every day
I think I'll go go go and say
That I have to win, I have to try
I have to hold my head up high
(chorus)
(repeat last 4 lines verse 1)
(chorus)
04 Sanctum Sanctorum (06:27)
I know it's late and I should goto bed
But I can't tear away from the night
It holds the seed of a memory
Its true of you
When I first saw you I realised
The fire burned deep inside your eyes
I knew a kiss would paralyse
Its true from you
Awake in the night to whisper your name
Only a silence replies it's answer a sleeping refrain
The moment dies but memory stays
Love like a run our way by
We spin and we climb
To where once islands cried
And there sometimes angels can be devils too
It's true of you
It's true of you
When shadows no longer fall
And footsteps can't be heard at all
I hear the ghost of a call
Its true from you
Awake in the night to whisper your name
Only silence replies it's answer a sleeping refrain
The moments die but memory stays
Reaching for something thats just out of reach
Lost to your lips and drowned in your kiss
The tide of your passion is now but a dream
Its but a dream
05 Is It a Dream (03:27)
Stand in a line like a parking meter
Am I all alone
A vision of mine is becoming clear
Its all so new it can't be true
Sometimes the words appear in my head
Sometimes I'm falling out of my bed
(chorus)
Oh, is it a dream , what does it mean ?
Oh is it a dream, what have I seen ?
I know a man, he's really awful nice
He isn't here
We whiled away an evening , maybe two
But what did that man really do
Sometimes I feel like walking away
Sometimes there's something I've got to say
(chorus)
Then suddenly
Like a fly in a cup of tea
I'm stirred and no longer free
To fly away
I think back to the other life
That was borrowed the other night
Could It be that it just might
Drive me wild
Oh is it a dream? (x4)
06 Grimly Fiendish (03:50)
Grimly fiendish plays the game that never plays
Sing out loud but never prayed
Grimly fiendish wears a coat thats black and long
He doesn't know that it's all wrong
Simply fiendish, a child caught in a grown up world
No lies convince the court
Once a week I could be found on the faces all the frowns
Hide and seek, tried so hard to find that crime could pay
Just for today
(chorus)
Bad bad bad boy (x8)
Let me get the story straight
You never gave me a break
It's a case of give and take
You didn't make me good you just painted me green
You made me part of your forgotten dream
Grimly fiendish, we'll send you just where you belong
Where the children can't be found
(chorus) (x2)
Hide and seek, tried so hard and just to find that crime could pay
Just for today
(chorus) (x16)
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