The Verlaines - Hallelujah All the Way Home (1985)

Since I've been posting the albums that succeeded it, it seems fitting to upload this orchestral gem as well. And really, the Verlaines' entire eighties output is essential listening. This is their first full-length LP, released in 1985, and many of its songs are easily the equal of its successor's, the masterful 'Bird Dog.' The positively epic constructions of "It was Raining," "The Lady and the Lizard," and the intensity of "Lying in State" are among the best work of a band that consistently pushed the boundaries of the conventional pop song throughout their career. As an interesting aside, this album was part of a composition project that Graeme Downes submitted as he pursued his degree in music; he got an "A." - Ariel

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Enjoy the videos as well!



"Death and the Maiden"



"Doomsday"

The Verlaines - Some Disenchanted Evening (1990)

Though living in the shadow of its predecessor's brilliance, 'Some Disenchanted Evening' is a commendable album, continuing the string of artistic successes that began with 'Hallelujah All the Way Home' in 1985. And that's not even mentioning the band's brilliant early singles, all of which are conveniently collected on 'Juvenilia' for your listening pleasure! Less reliant on the classical orchestrations that dominated much of 'Bird Dog,' 'Some Disenchanted Evening,' tends to dwell in more conventional musical avenues than one is normally accustomed to hearing from the Verlaines. But with Graeme Downes at the helm, even the most straightforward tracks on the album take interesting and unexpected turns. Unfortunately, the album was somewhat lost in the shuffle of fantastic kiwi music that was released in 1990, appearing shortly before the Chills' 'Submarine Bells.' - Ariel

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The Verlaines - Bird Dog (1987)

'Bird Dog' is undoubtedly the apex of the Verlaines' career. Far more assured than their debut full-length, 'Hallelujah All the Way Home,' 'Bird Dog' finds master craftsman Graeme Downes fully in command of these elegant and classically derived compositions. For this listener, the highlights of the album are too many to mention, though special note must be given to the pieces which bookend the album, "Makes No Difference" and "C.D. Jimmy Jazz and Me," and the heart and soul at the center of it, "Slow Sad Love Song." - Ariel

Crafty New Zealand pop group lead by song craftsman Graham Downes that leaned heavily toward Baroque classicism on this exquisite collection of tales from 1987. Their art was in the subtlety of arrangements, and the group was pivotal in defining the complex simplicity of the Flying Nun sound alongside the Clean and the Chills. The Verlaines were certainly the first of the family in the '80s to embrace truly classical modality in their delicate pop sound, and the result is Bird Dog, as a sophisticated and glorious album of Downes' distinct genius, whose only peers would be Robert Forster and Martin Phillips. Although his craft may be fastidious, the Verlaines have mastery of rendering it effortless on Bird Dog. Later their sound may have become a little more stilted, but for a group so ahead of their time, anything is forgivable, although many fans of this character and eccentricity displayed here may believe the edge was lost in the '90s when they pursued a straighter MOR sound. With Hallelujah All the Way Home and Some Disenchanted Evening on either side of this release, it is difficult to think of another group who made three albums of this quality in five years.

[Martin Walters, allmusic.com]

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The Verlaines - Juvenilia (1987)

"Do you like Paul Verlaine?"

And now back to New Zealand for an album from one of my most treasured Flying Nun bands--and, by extension, a favorite of the entire decade--the magnificently moody Verlaines. This is a collection of their early EPs and singles, including the fabulous kiwi classics "Death and the Maiden," "Doomsday," and "Pyromaniac." Enjoy these elegant, classical, and always literate compositions courtesy of Dr. Graeme Downes, now the senior lecturer of contemporary rock music at the University of Otago in Dunedin.

- Ariel

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"Pyromaniac"