Originally born out of the New York punk rock scene of the mid-1970s, the band made a surprising shift toward more pop-oriented material on this album, a deft mix of new wave, pop and disco produced by Mike Chapman.
In a sense, that time has long passed: Blondie, like contemporaries such as the Cars and the UK’s earliest New Pop artists specialized in whipsmart chart music created by and for adults, a trick that has all but vanished from the pop landscape. Parallel Lines, however, is practically a blueprint for the stuff: “Picture This” and “One Way or Another” are exuberant new wave, far looser than the stiff, herky-jerky tracks that would go on to characterize that sound in the 80s; “Will Anything Happen?” and the band’s cover of the Nerves’ “Hanging on the Telephone” are headstrong rock; “11:59” does run-for-the-horizon drama, while “Sunday Girl” conveys a sense of elegance. The record’s closest thing to a ballad, the noirish “Fade Away and Radiate”, owes a heavy debt to the art-pop of Roxy Music.
Join us to experience this album as never before.
Buy the album here
Read more: Album of The Month Blondie ‘Parallel Lines’
Listen: Blondie ‘Parallel Lines’ Legacy Playlist
Listen: Blondie ‘Parallel Lines’ Musical Lead Up Playlist
London
Time & Date: Sunday 16th September 2018 16:00 – 18:30
Venue
Giant Steps, SWAN WHARF, Dace Rd, London E3 2NN
Tickets
Presenter
Kris Needs
Audio Menu
Dynavector D17D3 MC Cartridge, Rega P9 Turntable, Rega IOS Phono Stage Audio Note Jinro Integrated Amp, Chord Signature Speaker Cable, Chord Signature Tuned Aray interco
