''Commuter 23'' is the eighth studio album by British

Synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s ...

band

Blancmange Blancmange (, from french: blanc-manger ) is a sweet dessert popular throughout Europe commonly made with milk or cream and sugar thickened with rice flour, gelatin, corn starch, or Irish moss (a source of carrageenan), and often flavoured wi ...

, released in 2016. The album reached No. 38 in the UK Independent Albums Chart. In December 2016, the album was followed by the EP ''Red Shift'', which features a reworking of four tracks from ''Commuter 23'': "Red Shift", "Judge Mental", "Jack Knife" and "Last Night (I Dreamt I Had a Job)".

Critical reception

Upon release, Graeme Marsh of ''

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'' commented: "Whilst ''Nil by Mouth'' was entirely instrumental, ''Commuter 23'' walks a similar path but this time adds back in the odd vocal here and there. It dabbles in ambience and experimentation as before, as well as minimalism, synth soundscapes and occasional downright weirdness but with – in the main – a more humane feel." Paul Scott-Bates of ''

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'' wrote: "''Commuter 23'' sees Blancmange continue to mature. As Arthur continues well into his fifties, so the music develops beyond the perfect pop of the 80s and further into a more comfortable sounding, often experimental phase." Ian Shirley of ''

Record Collector ''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine. It was founded in 1980 and distributes worldwide. History The early years The first standalone issue of ''Record Collector'' was published in March 1980, though its history stretches ba ...

'' described ''Commuter 23'' as a "compelling earful ndmusically a wide-ranging collection". Thomas H Green of ''

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'' commented that the album had a "classy retro-futurism, in the same way that OMD's last album ''English Electric'' did. Blancmange now successfully mine a territory somewhere between John Foxx, Kraftwerk and 1990s post-clubbing analogue ambience."

Track listing

Chart performance

Personnel

* Neil Arthur - lead vocals, keyboards, recording, mixing, artwork * Joe Caithness - mastering ;Other * Adam Yeldham - artwork * Helen Kincaid - asteroid painting * Steve Malins - management

References

{{Authority control 2016 albums Blancmange (band) albums