Artist: THE SISTERS OF MERCY
Album: VISION THING EXPANDED & REMASTERED (DIGI)

Release date: 1990/ 2006
Media type: CD

Recorded at Puk, Denmark. The third Sisters Of Mercy album, VISION THING, makes a dramatic shift from its predecessor, introducing heavy metal riffs to the band's genre-defining goth sound. Far from signifying a fundamental change in Andrew Eldritch's sound (once again, he had a new group of musicians with him, keeping only the drum machine, Doktor Avalanche), this combination is an excellent sonic fit. The swaggering machismo of heavy metal sits nicely next to Eldritch's studiously straight-faced delivery of his colossally egocentric (and intentionally funny) lyrics. Opening with the monster riff of the title track, VISION THING is a note-perfect parody of metal, while also pushing the boundaries of goth, something the Sisters have done consistently with each of their releases. Standouts include "Ribbons," where the guitars alternately call to mind crashing waves and thunderclaps, and the caustic lyrics end in a desperate howl. "Doctor Jeep" is a jittery, caffeinated swipe at American commercialism, and "More," a masterpiece of bombast built on a big, chugging guitar riff, incorporates everything from sawing, synthesized violins and a piano fade out, to gloriously selfish lyrics and swooping backing vocals.

2006 digitally remastered edition of this Sisters classic. After scoring big time with "Floodland", frontman Andrew Eldritch changed direction once again, heading this time for a guitar-based techno-rock feel. The title track became a club hit, where the driving tempo and distorted guitars provided a perfect dancefloor atmosphere. On the single "Doctor Jeep" and on "Detonation Boulevard", the template is further elaborated. The Jim Steinman-produced "More" and the clever "I Was Wrong" are further album highlights. This edition was remastered from the original tapes and bolstered with extended mixes and a couple of additional live tracks, housed in a foldout digipack sleeve with updated liner notes.

TRACKLIST:

1. Vision Thing
2. Ribbons
3. Detonation Boulvard
4. Something Fast
5. When You Don't See Me
6. Doctor Jeep
7. More
8. I Was Wrong

9. You Could Be The One (bonus track)
10. More (Extended Version) (bonus track)
11. Doctor Jeep (Extender Version) (bonus track)
12. Ribbons (Live) (bonus track)
13. Something Fast (Live) (bonus track)

LINE-UP:

Andrew Eldritch (vocals, guitar, programming)
Tim Bricheno, Andreas Bruhn (guitar)
Tony James (bass)