VHS or Beta : Night On Fire

What would happen if Robert Smith of the Cure decided to cut an album with Duran Duran back in '82? You'd probably end up with something that sounded suspiciously like VHS or Beta's Night On Fire. Seriously, the lead singer is a dead ringer for Robert, emitting a strangled bark that emulates almost exactly the way the gothic frontman sings. I think he might even might even be affecting a bit of an English accent, which is odd considering they're from Louisville, Kentucky.

And the band on this album... The bass work is a dead ringer for John Taylor's from "Rio" or even "Girls On Film". The guitar work also sounds eerily familiar, echoing songs from the same period. It's kind of spooky actually. Anyway, it's thrown over a nice dance rock beat, and suddenly you've got a club-worthy release that pays homage to that early MTV sound while still being grounded firmly in the 21st century.

"Night On Fire" can be found on VHS or Beta's 2004 release Night On Fire. Night On Fire is a great album, one of my favorite finds in 2009, especially if you like the Cure or Duran Duran. The band gets away from that formula on some of the other tracks, including some extended instrumental jams, which was a bit surprising, but they're well done. I've listened to some of the other stuff VHS or Beta has done, but it's more dance-oriented, almost to the level of, say, Daft Punk, and not really my bag.

As of this writing, Night On Fire is 0.01 dollars for a used copy at Amazon (plus shipping & handling). How can you pass that up?

[You can listen to VHS or Beta's "Night On Fire" by navigating to the post "Song030" and clicking or right-clicking on the title or the link.]

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