Orchestrial Manoeuvres in the Dark - Maid Of Orleans

Orchestrial Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) were one of a small number of electronica bands that emerged in the late seventies, experimenting with the new cheaply avaliable synthesisers to create harsh electronic sounds, reflecting the more industrial and inpersonal age of the times. OMD were never going to be Depeche Mode or The Human League, where as the other two became pop sensations by merging their electronica with pop hooks, OMD stayed true to their ideals, and focused on more  intellectual music. And so, perhaps for pretention's sake, we are treated to gems such as Maid Of Orleans.

For the A-Side, Maid Of Orleans, a series of ambiant electronic noises leads us into a familiar 80's electro beat, and a sumptious folky, almost 'celtic' melody which feels as if it would work well if played through an ensemble, infact this song would be improved I think, if played via a small-piece orchestra. I don't know. This main melody will repeat itself numerous times throughout the song, as if it was the main idea, and the Joan of Ark lyrics were second thought. Indeed while this track has some really decent sounds, and a nice effect on Andy McCluskey's vocals, the repetative nature of the track doesn't really suit the subject. It's a good listen, though kinda boring.

The B-Side, Navigation is a far more interesting track. Again with a repetative beat and melody, these are however given to us via a much more thought out structure. The lyrics are almost disturbed but an airy delay, creating a surreal atmosphere, which doubled with the simplistic melody creates an almost dreamlike feel. The beat locks us in for the journey, the music sends us to sleep (in the good stoner kind of way). The similar synthed 'celtic' sounds from the previous track feature, but sound more electronic, and to be honest, more real. I really enjoy dreamy, spacey kinda out-there tracks, and so ultimately, this track is worth the single on it's own.

This 7" is often avaliable on ebay, with prices between 50p and £2, and I would recommend picking it up, if the A-side doesn't interest you, the silver-apples-y dream of Navigation surely will. And also the glossy sleeve is a delicious marriage of 20th century graphics with oldey-style stained glass windows. Sometimes pretension is worth it (perhaps this could be the tagline for my blog?).