Remixes are curious beasts normally found lurking on Twelve inch B-sides or as filler on deluxe editions of anniversary album re-releases. Billy Idol has reversed the trend gone for the full monty and allowed fifteen tracks to get the dance trance, synthesizer and drum beat makeover. Kicking off this curious cash in is ‘White Wedding’ (CRAY remix) which pops with hit single familiarity and a Marylin Manson cover flow before ‘Dancing With Myself’ (RAC Remix) sticks pretty close to the original with a keyboard tweak. ‘Eyes Without A Face’ (Tropkillaz Remix) always had a futuristic edge and the song fits the reworking perfectly, as does a skanky street ‘Rebel Yell’ (The Crystal Method Remix). Idol’s biggest hit gets a full-on Cyberpunk slap and it would be no surprise to find it on a Hollywood film’s futuristic soundtrack. A Lost Boys resonating ‘(Do Not) Stand In The Shadows’ (Moby Remix) fails to hold the attention before a muffled ‘Flesh For Fantasy’ (St. Francis Remix) evokes images of flashing neon, new romantic ladies and gents vogueing in a Saint Tropez nightclub so hip and cool that it’ll be out before it’s in. ‘Catch My Fall’ (Juan Maclean Remix) could be off any Breakfast Club/Some Kind Of Wonderful type movie with it’s MTV friendly Faux Punk sensibilities. The DJ big guns get drawn on ‘One Breath Away’ (Paul Oakenfield Remix) and ‘Don’t Need a Gun’ (Shiba San Remix) both land somewhere in Ibiza’s club world. ‘Hot In The City’ (Shotgun Mike Remix) is a calypso dance nightmare whereas ‘Mony Mony’ (Idol/Stevens Remix) suffers from Idol’s inclusion of the extra words “ Hey Motherfucker, get laid get fucked!”(…really?) in the original lyrical breaks. Billy Idol’s image and reputation are still intact and as his recent live shows there plenty of exploding peroxides left in the MTV Cyberpunx tank.
Live Review: Billy Idol and The Professionals at Brixton Academy
‘Revitalized’ is a fair effort but not a game changer.