Hard-Wired Electronica Review
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Artist
Heaven 17
Title
Live at Last
Format/Cat
B00189DQCQ
Label
Cooking Vinyl
Style
Electronica
Date of review
29 August 2008
Reviewer
Anya Hastwell
Rating
7/10
The session's octopus is in full swing, the sweaty dancing crowd are raring to go, and here's some sure-fire hit dance tracks from that well-known brand name of Heaven 17.

Since forming in Sheffield in the early 80s, this band have been there, done that, bought the T-shirt and gone full-circle. And "Fascist Groove Thing" is a splendid start to the proceedings. "Come Live With Me" has no dirty socks lying about, or a laundry basket that needs seeing to. It's a picture perfect invitation to, well, invoke an angry father? "I was 37, you were 17... my friends began to talk." Well, if you fancy that sort of thing! As with most bands who've been around the block and then back again, there is the inevitable shout in there of "This is a new one!" but at least they're trying and the results aren't bad at all.

"Designing Heaven" is a celebratory track, a feel good party hit for sure. And their 80s hit gets a strip down, and is rebuilt and revamped for the noughties generation. And it's running quite nicely actually. The final track "Being Boiled" is funky and electrifried (!), an upbeat dancy way to end the proceedings. The lyrics are full of social commentary and politic, but perfectly digestible within the Heaven 17 sound.

Digestible politics you can dance to.