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| Electronic |
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| "It was in that Manchester hot spot [Hacienda] that Sumner,
lead vocalist, guitarist and songwriter of New
Order and Marr, guitarist and co-writer with The
Smiths, resolved in 1988 to form a new group -- Electronic. Pooling their
songwriting prowess, the core duo of Sumner and Marr would bring in outside
collaborators whenever they so desired. Electronic would give the two creative
freedom to work outside the confines of a rigid group format. (...) In
September of 1989, the Pet Shop Boys caught wind
of Electronic. Neil Tennant, another modern-day pop visionary, became the first
outside artist to join the fold. The First incarnation of Electronic proved
quite fruitful. Tennant and fellow Shop-er Chris
Lowe commuted to Manchester for the recording sessions. Tennant wrote some of
the lyrics and sang some back-up's on the bittersweet, lifting tune entitled
Getting Away With It -- Electronic's debut single. In 1990, in America's
decidedly album-oriented climate, Getting Away With It hit the Top 40,
selling over 350,000 copies. The single rose to #11 in England and met with
much critical kudos, including many a "Single Of The Year" mentions
on both sides of the Atlantic. The four also wrote another song, Patience Of
A Saint, during the evening's sessions, which appears on Electronic's
eponymous debut EP. With American anticipation for Electronic piqued by their
debut single, Depeche Mode invited the group to play
two Dodger Stadium dates, August 4th and 5th, on DM's 1990 megatour of the U.S.
"
-- worldinmotion.net
 ½ 1991: Electronic "This two-man Manchester supergroup--New Order's Bernard Sumner and the Smith's Johnny Marr--made one of the best debuts of the '90s with Electronic. More New Order than Smiths, the album was a blend of plangent fretwork and frenetic sequencing, with bleak lyrics intoned in Sumner's clean, boyish tenor. Get the Message was orthodox '80s pop, but the heartbreaking Gangster was an electro-rock masterpiece. The album featured engaging cameos from the Pet Shop Boys on Getting Away with It and The Patience of a Saint. "
-- Barney Hoskyns, amazon.com
¾ 1996:
Raise the Pressure "... what happened? How can a song as forced and trite as Second Nature for example, manage to get past the discerning ears of agents, label executives, lawyers, friends and John Peel? Why does the album immediately run out of steam after the first two cuts? An exciting new direction is hinted at and then crumbles to dust, replaced by factory-preset synthesizers and the overbearing diva-on-ether vocals of Primal Scream alumnus Denise Johnson."
-- David W. Jackson, penduluminc.com
1999: Twisted Tenderness
"Quietly released in 2000, the third longplayer from Electronic is a better effort than the second, 'Raise The Pressure.' That is primarily due to the fact that Johnny Marr keeps his profile higher than Bernard Sumner, so 'Twisted Tenderness' is more a guitar album than the previous two. You might be forgiven into thinking this is a Johnny Marr solo album with help from Bernard Summer, and appreciate it a bit more. But the whole point behind the appeal to Electronic's debut album was that all the contributors perfectly balanced, and brought out the best in, each other. To this album's credit, the title track is fantastic. The remaining songs are too long and overproduced. Stick with the debut."
-- Tim Brough, amazon customer review, 3/05
½ 2006: Get the Message: the Best of Electronic
"... musically, Electronic came on the tail-end of eighties synth-pop, and as if to underscore their credibility in that genre, Pet Shop Boy Neil Tennant crops up on the first single Getting Away With It and the tracks Patience Of A Saint and Disappointed (the latter also a single and featured here). The debut album 'Electronic' (1991) was critically acclaimed and spawned several hit singles. By the time of their final album, 1999's 'Twisted Tenderness', there was a greater element of indie rock in the mix, produced by Arthur Baker. This latest compilation is really a best of their singles... this immaculate collection is a really good place to start exploring the sometimes maligned genre of electro pop. And out from the shadow of their previous bands, Sumner and Marr are seen to be a fantastic partnership with a masterly grasp of classic, uncomplicated pop."
-- David Randall, getreadytorock.com
"Our initial idea was to do some low key 12" releases for clubs and fans and maybe work with other people we liked and to get away from the rigid structure and politics of the four piece group. We had a lot in common, a lot more than anyone realized, and we were both buzzed about the new times and our new situations . We were a bit naive in thinking that we could put out white label tracks and pretend we were an obscure acid house outfit."
-- Johnny Marr, from CD liner notes
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