[A Merciful Release] -- I have featured The Durutti Column in a previous Flashback, back on December 17, 2021. That was for their 1981 release, LC. And that album, their second full-length studio release, was a bit more post-punk with some aspirations to dream pop. Their fourth outing, Without Mercy, is our Flashback for this weekend. And while it may still have some elements of the dream pop featured on their prior two releases, Without Mercy is (as Wikipedia describes it) an album-length, two-part instrumental piece.
Recorded over the course of five days, and featuring classical musicians, Without Mercy has a previously recorded but unreleased track titled "Little Mercy" as its foundation and, we are told, it follows the narrative of John Keats' poem "La Belle Dame sans Merci." The entire album is anchored by a repeating and mournful piano riff, and "Without Mercy 1" really feels like a modern classical piece. "Without Mercy 2" features more guitar, as well as electronic percussion, but it still moves along ambitiously like a post-punk chamber orchestra piece.
It's just the thing, I find, for reading and relaxing. Even when the second track picks up its pace, and gets kind of busy, it is still far more reflective than rocking. As far as I can tell, there was no US release, but the album was a moderate commercial success in the UK, peaking at #8 on the UK Independent Albums Chart. And it garnered fairly positive reviews. Vini Reilly, the band's leader and primary songwriter, dislikes the record, calling it "Without Merit" in later interviews. I disagree. Perhaps you will as well.
Most releases of this album featured each of the two long-form movements divided into 12 stanzas. The A side was "Without Mercy 1," and its 12 stanzas were distributed among six individual tracks. Side B, naturally, was "Without Mercy 2," and its 12 stanzas were similarly distributed among individual tracks, but this time it was five tracks. For other countries – such as Japan, Spain, and France – each side of the album was one long, continuous track. And that is the playlist I offer you this week.
Flashback: Without Mercy (October 1, 1984)
And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.
I'll see you in seven!
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