Metamatic Forums John Foxx John Foxx and Louis Gordon New versions - better than the originals?

Just as a add on to this thread.
I wasn't that impressed with the newer version of The Man Who Dies Every Day that John and Louis performed at their concerts last year, much preferring to hear the old original Ultravox version. I know there were a lot of fans that wanted to hear this song live. I wonder how, I'll pick a song out of the air, I Want To Be A Machine would sound now performed by John and Louis?

My personnel opinion is that John's Metamatic era music lends itself very well to being "updated/modernised" as opposed to his later solo albums.

So I'm looking forward to hearing Metamatic being played in it's entirety at the concerts later this year.

Peter

Yes i think thats true Peter. 'Metamatic' was very stark in its musical elements, synths and drum machines. Today John and Louis use the same updated versions of that. Albums like 'The Golden Section' etc had more of a band feel due to real drummers and of cause Robin Simon's guitar. If these tracks are reworked they tend to lack something, just as the majority of the early Foxxvox tracks do.

Talking of the Nation 12 tracks, I think it would be nice to hear new/updated/complete recordings of versions of "She Was" and "Shadow Dancing". Good potential in both songs IMHO.

I think, for me, a lot of this comes down to the age old (well, 30 year old ;-) debate about analogue-vs-digital synths.

Although John & Louis have gotten some good sounds going over the past string of albums,
some of the original sounds from Ultravox's Conny Plank sessions or Metamatic (eg a Odyssey splattering your brains against the back of the hall, or the spit and snap of the CR78, etc etc) are totally amazing and iconic, and sample-based or digital soft-synth emulations of them tend to be pants, or at best just "adequate".

I cannot say the new versions are better , but I love to listen to them too 'cause they are really well made.

I assume it have to do with the fact I grew up with the originals - so they are the best ones for me. But I love the way John & Louis made their re- work of some songs and it is great to listen to the old songs today. Especially the Ultravox songs - this is, for me, the highlight on every gig! I hope they do more of this in the future!
For me it doesn't matter some songs sounding different to the originals. They sounding different but not bad. They done a good job, though they use no guitars or drums.

GO ON JOHN & LOUIS!