Madness – 7
welcome back to the Skaject folks! this week we’re taking a look at the third Madness record, released in 1981, it’s 7!
Cardiac Arrest is our opening track – this one’s a bit grim but the tone cultivated by the music’s fantastic. really dig this track. plus the bass drum slowing down in the outro like a heartbeat, that’s a great touch. Shut Up is a funner, light-hearted track. the hook here’s p good, and this one’s a good time. a real slapstick song. i really like how Sign of the Times starts – i think this song suffers from some weaker verses, but there’s quite a bit to like here. no strong feelings about Missing You. Mrs. Hutchinson’s… a pretty cynical track, all things considered. Tomorrow’s Dream’s got some neat parts to it. Grey Day was the lead single for this release cycle. it’s fine. i get wanting to express that kinda malaise but the track ends up channeling a bit too much of it, personally. Pac-a-mac’s fine. Promises Promises is fun and a little weird – nice track. Benny Bullfrog’s a blast of a track, if a little dumb, plus that sax solo is great, haha. When Dawn Arrives is aight. The Opium Eaters is an instrumental track – this one honestly doesn’t do a ton for me. v pleasant but not a lot of staying power. Day on the Town is our closer – another dull kinda track, though i feel like this one’s got a little extra to say about London, haha.
as a side note, i’m going to mention a single that never made it onto an album here: i got exposed to House of Fun, released shortly after this record, due to a Dark Souls 1 meme video, and damn that track slaps really fucking hard. one of their best tracks ever. def going on some playlists, haha.
faves – Cardiac Arrest, Shut Up, Benny Bullfrog, House of Fun
yeah this was fine. there’s some fun musical explorations on here, but outside the singles very little hear leapt out and blew me away – several of the tracks held on with really strong choruses but kinda dropped the ball on the verses, which is a bummer. def check it out if you like Madness’s specific style, as while there’s still a lot of ska vibes generally you can def hear them moving away from it, but this is definitely not their strongest record.
7 – 5/10
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