This album came out two decades ago. Here’s what I had to say about it back then (with some minor editing):
For a band that’s repeatedly (and justifiably) referred to as a post-punk supergroup, Electronic keep a low profile.
Maybe it’s because the duo of ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr and New Order singer-guitarist Bernard Sumner are an off-again on-again affair that have only released a handful of albums in a decade; or maybe it’s that their former bands aren’t quite as big on these shores as back home. Whatever the reason, there hasn’t been much clamour over their third album Twisted Tenderness. There should be — fans of classic ’80s British new wave will find plenty to appreciate in these 14 lush tracks. A vast improvement over their 1996 album Raise the Pressure, the dance-oriented Twisted Tenderness finds Edwards tossing off moody pop hooks and singalong melodies like they bought them in bulk from the Pet Shop Boys, while Marr’s space-age, shimmering guitar lines weave hypnotically in the mix, proving yet again that he’s one of rock’s most underrated guitarists. OK, so it’s not Power, Corruption and Lies or The Queen is Dead. But it’s still worth making a little fuss over.
