The Human League – Travelogue

THE Art work...ummm.
Less said the better.
Patchy album that throws in a B side and the reworked Being Boiled and both tracks should be taken off but One assumes they struggled for material as Phil was holding back for HM Mark 2.
Input Studio, Sheffield 21 Devonshire Lane lots of early Sheffield groups used this space Com Sat Angels Pulp etc

Two side 2 labels. Anyone else? Nothing else to say.

One of the best sounding early 80s electronic albums you can buy that doesn't sound out of date and cheesy.

Whereas Reproduction was more or less the same, travelogue plays itself with the same instrumental sets and patch notes used on reproduction, but with more of a focus on commercial accessibility than their debut ever maintained. While this is true it is still far more different from what mainstream listeners would experience with the new lineup's next album, which by comparison doesn't sound as good or doesn't hold up as well.

Just like the last album, there's a mix of pop songs and more experimental / instrumental songs which compliment each other nicely, and then there's in-betweens like 'Dreams of Leaving' and 'Crow and a Baby' which mix both experimental and popular rhythym styles. I'm 100% certain that the drum patterns for 'Crow and a Baby' are well used in modern Electronic Dance Music, which makes this album rather prophetic for certain styles of music which would emerge.

But as for the actual legacy this album this album left on the popular music crowd, I would say that there is unfortunately not much to see. Most people who grew up in the 80s Dare or Hysteria as the League's best work for the time, which while true doesn't necessarily mean it's their best for their full career. It has however (as well as a large number of earlier Human League works) left a large impact on the alternative music scene, with people like Trent Reznor and New Order citing them as influences.

I've loved Dare for 10 years (23 years old, so not as long as most of you). Only discovered the first two albums this week. Travelogue isn't as good as Reproduction and Dare, but satisfying enough. I love The Touchables. It's upbeat and a damn fun tune in general.

As some of the reviews point out here, "Travelogue" sure is a mixed bag. Revered as influential, yes, but at the other end of its synth spectrum, it's a downright mess sadly marred with compromise, where it should have been a stunning second album.

Along with its amazing cover art, the interesting side to "Travelogue" is in its "acoustic" approach and pleasant experimental/cinematic touches the group kept throughout the album; "Dreams Of Leaving" is a stunning example in reconciling experimental and pop tendencies within a song, and as such would have been the perfect opener to an album. "Toyota City" is a beautiful soothing piece of night music, ideal for wandering through the quiet city streets wrapped in neon glow.

On the downside, the very choice of songs just doesn't jell; some of which sound like forced into the whole - "Only After Dark", albeit effectively taking on from "The Black Hit Of Space", this rather sinister take on Mick Ronson's original already appeared on the flipside of one of the group's 7" singles prior to the LP (along with "WXJL Tonight"), while "Being Boiled" indeed should have been better off and left alone. This updated album version is so overproduced, it's unlistenable - maybe we can thank it for all the future "Sensorias" and "Let The Music Play's" but in itself, the album version's scattering rhythm has no focus, with horrific synth horns only adding insult to injury, completely ruining the song that originally, and forever, sounds so icily cool.

The grooves are more evident in the synths' bass lines than drum programs. Some songs just yearn for, but lack a punchier kick in the teeth ("The Crow And A Baby", "The Touchables", "Life Kills" and the aforementioned "WXJL Tonight"), a promise cast aside sounding like a wasted opportunity.

In total, "Travelogue" has documentary value and as such has its deserved place in synth-pop's history, but had the group focused on a different setlist (many rightfully point out "Marianne" (and I'd also like to add the amazing "Dancevision"), which is super ironic such a good song was left off the very album in favour of some other, much weaker songs), the album very probably wouldn't sound as clumsy as it actually does. Considering The Human League's first line-up history, here the group sound fragmented, everyone pulling in different direction, packing it in, and in that the album sadly suffered as a result.

This is a great pressing. I bought it second hand in an auction pile and it's apparent there is some surface wear, but not a single crackle or pop. I am amazed or very lucky on this one.

Shame they never released an instrumental LP version of this stunning piece of work! Oakey's voice and psychobabble ruins yet another impressive album (again)! Proto Techno Sheffield style...

How strange that they had to record such a weak album in-between two classics of the genre. Only a couple of the songs are top notch - The Black Hit of Space and Life Kills. Some are good but not great, beset by clumsiness and not-yet-great skills - Dreams of Living and Crow & A Baby. Weakly overblown re-recording of Being Boiled is just laughable and quickly pales into insignificance before the mighty original. The other half of the LP is pure filler - needless covers and instrumentals (the latter are strictly B-side material, needlessly given an album track status), boring and unmemorable originals.

Overall, a strange hotch-potch of very differing material, with classics sitting uncomfortably alongside some of the weakest songs they ever recorded. Therefore it's unconvincing and only just that it didn't make them stars as they so desperately hoped.

To think they had a great song in Marianne - and shunned it in favour of tripe like Only After Dark and The Touchables... So much for the pioneering status.

their best one!

Travelogue seems like the crucible of music yet to come! Every time, I dig up this cold, sterile treasure, I discover references to (of course earlier artists as well) later artists/tracks. Seems like, this one is successfully trying to console the industrial- and the mainstream-electronic world. What an epiphany! To me Travelogue will always be the most influential album of 1980! Black Hit Of Space was, is and always will be a KILLER! Dreams Of Leaving still kind of scares the living crap out of me! Holy Mackerel!