| Raise the Pressure | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 8 July 1996 | |||
| Recorded | 1994–1996 | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, alternative dance, house | |||
| Length | 62:25 | |||
| Label | Parlophone (United Kingdom) Virgin (Europe) Warner Bros. (Australia, Japan, United States) | |||
| Producer | Bernard Sumner, Johnny Marr | |||
| Electronic chronology | ||||
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Raise the Pressure is Electronic's second studio album, released in July 1996.
Seven of the thirteen tracks were composed by full-time members Johnny Marr and Bernard Sumner, and the other six co-written with former Kraftwerk member Karl Bartos. [1] He was recommended to Electronic via a friend of Sumner's, [2] and commuted to Manchester throughout 1995 during the recording sessions, [3] which stretched from late 1994 to late 1995.
The protracted sessions resulted in a dense, thick production that was later acknowledged by both Sumner and Marr [4] and criticised in professional reviews; [3] [5] they consequently spent much less time on their next album Twisted Tenderness . [1]
Raise the Pressure was also remarked upon for Bernard Sumner's impressionistic lyrics, which some saw as the result of his use of Prozac during this period, [1] following an appearance on the BBC 2 programme The Late Show , which explored the effects of the antidepressant on creativity. [6] According to Sumner, however, he only wrote one lyric whilst under the influence of Prozac. [3] Musically the album comprises guitar pop/rock songs ("One Day", "Out of My League") and more dance oriented tracks ("Until the End of Time", "If You've Got Love").
The album cover is a painting of a cherub by Johannes Handschin, which echoes the sleeve of New Order's 1989 album Technique . The title of the album appears on the inner inlay sleeve of most CD releases; the Australian CD and cassette editions are two which have Raise the Pressure placed on the cover. This was the last Electronic album to be released on vinyl.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [7] |
Unlike its predecessor Electronic , Raise the Pressure received mixed reviews [2] [5] [6] and did not perform as well commercially, with the first two singles "Forbidden City" and "For You" charting modestly in the UK Top 20, and the third, "Second Nature", barely making the Top 40. In the US no commercial singles were released, with "Forbidden City" and "Second Nature" issued only as promotional radio-play discs. Four mixes of "Until the End of Time" were released through the Electronic mailing list in October 1997; this item and a maxi single of "Second Nature" remixes are among the most sought-after recordings by the band.
In 2007 a download-only edition of Raise the Pressure was released on the iTunes Store, adding all five B-sides from the single releases. The remixes of "Until the End of Time" were also released on iTunes at this time.
Standard edition
| iTunes bonus tracks
|
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart [8] | 94 |
| UK Albums Chart | 8 |
| Billboard 200 | 143 [9] |
| US Top Heatseekers | 7 [9] |
New Order are an English rock band formed in 1980 by vocalist and guitarist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook, and drummer Stephen Morris. The members regrouped after the disbandment of their previous band Joy Division due to the suicide of lead singer Ian Curtis. They were joined by Gillian Gilbert on keyboards later that year. New Order's integration of post-punk with electronic and dance music made them one of the most acclaimed and influential bands of the 1980s. They were the flagship band for Manchester-based independent record label Factory Records and its nightclub The Haçienda, and they worked in long-term collaboration with graphic designer Peter Saville.
Bernard Sumner is an English musician and record producer. He is a founding member of the bands Joy Division, New Order, Electronic and Bad Lieutenant. Sumner was an early force in several areas, including the post-punk, synthpop, and techno music scenes, as well as their various related genres, and was an early influence on the Manchester music scene that presaged the Madchester movement of the late 1980s centred on Factory Records and The Haçienda club in Manchester.
Electronic were an English alternative dance supergroup formed by singer/guitarist Bernard Sumner and guitarist Johnny Marr. They co-wrote the majority of their output between 1989 and 1998, collaborating with Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, of Pet Shop Boys on three tracks in their early years, and former Kraftwerk member Karl Bartos on nine songs in 1995.
Electronic is the debut studio album by the British group Electronic, consisting of Bernard Sumner, the former guitarist and keyboardist of Joy Division and the lead singer and guitarist of New Order and Johnny Marr, the former guitarist of the Smiths. It was first released in May 1991 on the Factory label.
Karl Bartos is a German musician and composer known for his contributions to the electronic band Kraftwerk.
Twisted Tenderness is the third and final studio album by British supergroup Electronic, released in April 1999 by Parlophone in the UK and eighteen months later by Koch Records in the USA in 2000. It was re-released in 2001 as Twisted Tenderness::Deluxe by Koch with a second disc of B-sides and remixes added.
"Getting Away with It" is the first single by the English band Electronic, which comprised Bernard Sumner of New Order, ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr, and guesting vocalist Neil Tennant of Pet Shop Boys. It was first released in 1989.
"Get the Message" is a song by Electronic, the English band formed by Bernard Sumner of New Order and ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr. "Get the Message" was the second single from their 1991 debut album, Electronic, and was a commercial success around the world. It is an example of Marr and Sumner's original concept of mixing the synthesizers of New Order with the Smiths' guitar sound.
"Feel Every Beat" was the third single by the English band Electronic. It was released in the UK on 9 September 1991 by Factory Records and was a modest commercial success.
"Disappointed" is the fourth single released by English alternative dance group Electronic. Like their first single "Getting Away with It", it features Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys as well as founding members Johnny Marr and Bernard Sumner. It was released on 22 June 1992 on Parlophone soon after the demise of Factory Records. The single was assigned the Factory catalogue number FAC 348, and the logo of the label remained on the artwork.
Get the Message is a compilation album by the Johnny Marr/Bernard Sumner band Electronic, released in September 2006. It is the first career-spanning collection of the band; a 1999 Japanese compilation was cancelled just before release.
"Forbidden City" is a song by English band Electronic, comprising Bernard Sumner and Johnny Marr, with guesting co-writer Karl Bartos of Kraftwerk, released as the lead single from their second album Raise the Pressure, and their first new release in almost exactly four years, the last being the stand-alone single "Disappointed".
"For You" is a song by English band Electronic, comprising Bernard Sumner and Johnny Marr, with guesting co-writer Karl Bartos of Kraftwerk, released as the second single from their second album Raise the Pressure. "For You" reached #16 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Second Nature" is a song by Electronic, released as the group's seventh single. It has an autobiographical lyric by Sumner which concerns his youth and growing up, while the music has a groovy shuffle which contrasts with the stricter dance tracks on its parent album Raise the Pressure. "Second Nature" reached #35 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Vivid" is a song by Electronic, the eighth single released by the group. It was released in April 1999 by Parlophone in Britain and by Virgin in Germany. "Vivid" reached #17 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Until the End of Time" is a dance song by the English duo Electronic. It first appeared on their second album Raise the Pressure in 1996 and then on a fan club CD the following year. It was composed by members Johnny Marr and Bernard Sumner with guesting writer Karl Bartos.
"Make It Happen" is a dance/rock song written and performed by the Bernard Sumner/Johnny Marr band Electronic. Produced by Electronic with Arthur Baker, it is the first track on their third album Twisted Tenderness.
Electric Music was the second album by Karl Bartos' "Elektric Music" project, recorded after his collaboration with UK band Electronic on their 1996 album Raise the Pressure and released in 1998. The entire album was written by Bartos and was, according to his website, an "exploration of the sound of the sixties — guitar pop out of the computer!"
Pigs + Battleships is the only studio album released by the British, Manchester-based new wave and dance project Quando Quango. It was produced by American producer Mark Kamins at Strawberry Studios, Stockport with mixing taking place at Shakedown Studio, New York, USA and Genetik Studio, England. The artwork was designed by Alan David-Tu with photography by Kevin Cummins. Pigs + Battleships includes the majority of the group's studio output and features the singles "Go Exciting", "Genius", and on UK Cassette and US editions "Love Tempo" is also included.
Bad Lieutenant was an English alternative rock band formed following the second breakup of New Order. The band consisted of then-former New Order members Bernard Sumner and Phil Cunningham as well as Rambo & Leroy's Jake Evans.
