Express (album)
Express is the second studio album by English alternative rock band Love and Rockets. It was released on 15 September 1986 on Beggars Banquet Records. An even greater departure from the band members' previous work as Bauhaus, the album's fusion of underground rock with pop stylings can be seen as an early example of alternative rock music, a genre that reached mainstream popularity in the early 1990s.
| Express | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 15 September 1986 | |||
| Recorded | Woodbine Street Studios, in the town of Leamington Spa, in Warwickshire county, England | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, gothic rock, neo-psychedelia | |||
| Length | 40:08 (original LP) 70:18 (2001 reissue) | |||
| Label | Beggars Banquet | |||
| Producer | John A. Rivers, Love and Rockets | |||
| Love and Rockets chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Express | ||||
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"Kundalini Express" was featured in the 1986 Italian horror film Demons 2 and appeared on an episode of the T.V. show Miami Vice.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Kerrang! |  |
In their retrospective review, AllMusic gave the album four-and-a-half stars out of five, writing, "rich in sonic detail, the neo-psychedelic Express offers a listening experience like no other album – guitars spiral to dizzying heights from beds of sound, arrangements swirl, songs change and mutate."[1]
Release history
In 2001, the album was remastered and expanded to include two single remixes and several contemporaneous B-sides, including a cover of Pink Floyd's "Lucifer Sam". Two short experimental pieces that had been found on the studio tape masters labelled as "B Side #1" and "B Side #2" were also added. "Ball of Confusion" was released before Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven, but since the USA mix could not be fit on the reissue of that album, it was appended to the Express reissue.
Track listings
All tracks are written by Love and Rockets, except "Ball of Confusion", written by Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It Could Be Sunshine" | Daniel Ash | 5:00 |
| 2. | "Kundalini Express" | David J | 5:47 |
| 3. | "All in My Mind" | Ash | 4:45 |
| 4. | "Life in Laralay" | J | 3:35 |
| 5. | "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man)" | Ash, J | 5:56 |
| 6. | "Love Me" | Ash | 3:54 |
| 7. | "All in My Mind (Acoustic)" | Ash | 5:08 |
| 8. | "An American Dream" | Ash | 6:04 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Angels and Devils" | 6:00 | |
| 2. | "It Could Be Sunshine" | Ash | 5:00 |
| 3. | "Kundalini Express" | J | 5:47 |
| 4. | "All in My Mind" | Ash | 4:45 |
| 5. | "Life in Laralay" | J | 3:35 |
| 6. | "Ball of Confusion (Special Mix)" | 6:16 | |
| 7. | "Holiday on the Moon" | J | 6:01 |
| 8. | "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man) (Remix)" | Ash, J | 6:06 |
| 9. | "Love Me" | Ash | 3:54 |
| 10. | "All in My Mind (Acoustic Version)" | Ash | 5:08 |
| 11. | "An American Dream" | Ash | 6:04 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It Could Be Sunshine" | Ash | 5:00 |
| 2. | "Kundalini Express" | J | 5:47 |
| 3. | "All in My Mind" | Ash | 4:45 |
| 4. | "Life in Laralay" | J | 3:35 |
| 5. | "Ball of Confusion" | 6:16 | |
| 6. | "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man) (Remix)" | Ash, J | 6:06 |
| 7. | "Love Me" | Ash | 3:54 |
| 8. | "All in My Mind (Acoustic)" | Ash | 5:08 |
| 9. | "An American Dream" | Ash | 6:04 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It Could Be Sunshine" | Ash | 5:00 |
| 2. | "Kundalini Express" | J | 5:47 |
| 3. | "All in My Mind" | Ash | 4:45 |
| 4. | "Life in Laralay" | J | 3:35 |
| 6. | "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man)" | Ash, J | 6:06 |
| 7. | "Love Me" | Ash | 3:54 |
| 8. | "All in My Mind (Acoustic)" | Ash | 5:08 |
| 9. | "Holiday on the Moon" | J | 6:01 |
| 10. | "An American Dream" | Ash | 6:04 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It Could Be Sunshine" | Ash | 4:58 |
| 2. | "Kundalini Express" | J | 5:52 |
| 3. | "All in My Mind" | Ash | 4:43 |
| 4. | "Life in Laralay" | J | 3:32 |
| 5. | "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man)" | Ash, J | 5:56 |
| 6. | "Love Me" | Ash | 3:54 |
| 7. | "All in My Mind (Acoustic)" | Ash | 5:04 |
| 8. | "An American Dream" | Ash | 6:09 |
| 9. | "Angels and Devils" | 6:10 | |
| 10. | "Holiday on the Moon" | J | 6:07 |
| 11. | "Lucifer Sam" | Syd Barrett | 3:21 |
| 12. | "B Side No. 1" | 1:16 | |
| 13. | "B Side No. 2" | 1:31 | |
| 14. | "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man) (Remix)" | Ash, J | 5:29 |
| 15. | "Ball of Confusion (USA Mix)" | 6:16 |
Personnel
- Love and Rockets
- Daniel Ash – guitar, saxophone, vocals
- David J – bass guitar, vocals
- Kevin Haskins – drums, synthesizer
- Additional personnel
- Allan Baker – choir master
- Alan Brookes – choir vocalist on "An American Dream"
- James Lowry – choir vocalist on "An American Dream"
- John A. Rivers – additional keyboards
- Robert Willey – choir vocalist on "An American Dream"
- Production
- Love and Rockets – sleeve design
- Mitch Jenkins – sleeve photography
References
- Ball, Jonathan. "Express – Love and Rockets : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards : AllMusic". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- Johnson, Howard (7 August 1986). "Love and Rockets 'Express'". Kerrang!. London, England: United Magazines Ltd. 126: 19.