Religion, Revolution And Railways: Clamshell Box

Much more than just a one-hit wonders, the Dream Academy were able to construct an impressive body of work over a short span that lasted only a little more than half a decade. Of course, the buoyant, life-affirming "Life in a Northern Town" will always define them, but they released three albums and a handful of singles that shared that songs joyous melancholy, baroque arrangements, and gentle experimentalism. The Cherry Red collection Religion, Revolution & Railway gathers all three of the bands records -- 1985s self-titled debut, 1987s Remembrance Days, and 1990s A Different Kind of Weather -- adds B-sides and remixes, digs up some rarities, and adds a full albums worth of instrumental versions. There was a 2014 set titled The Morning Lasted All Day: A Retrospective that covered similar territory, but it was a mere two discs while this clocks in at seven. Someone looking for a good overview of the band might want to opt for the former if they can find it; anyone wanting the full story of one of the more interesting pop bands of the era will be better served by this set. Listening back to the early albums and singles here gives a sense of just how odd their initial idea for a band was. Taking melancholy folk a la Nick Drake and mixing it with light psychedelia, then giving it a thoroughly modern studio gloss meant that the result was a little too slick for the alternative crowd, while the melange of influences and sounds were a bit heady for the masses -- perfect for anyone who wanted a slightly weirder version of Prefab Sprout or an easier-to-digest Three OClock, though. By the time of their third album, they were drifting pretty far from the baroque beginnings of the band to the point where Kate St. Johns haunting oboe -- a huge part of what made their early work enchanting -- was barely heard in the mix. Its fascinating to be able to trace the way their sound changed over the three albums, and the discs of singles and B-sides show that the band werent hurting for good material, especially in the early days, yet they were still able to craft majestic pop as good as "Sunrising" near the end. The disc of remixes is fine, but six versions of their 1990 trip hop cover of John Lennons "Love" feels a little excessive, if true to the time it was released. The low-key treasure to be uncovered here is the disc of previously unreleased instrumental versions. Though it would have been nice to hear "Northern Town" in this format, its fun to hear how precise and well-planned the arrangements were. A set of a cappella versions that captured the lushness of the harmonies and the bleeding passion Nick Laird-Clowes emotional leads would have been just as good. That’s a minor wish unfulfilled on a set that otherwise satisfies all possible needs for Dream Academy fans. It’s taken far too long for the band’s work to be collected in this fashion -- plenty who don’t come near to matching their mix of commercial savvy and artistic quality have gone before them -- and Cherry Red does an exceedingly fine job of it. ~ Tim Sendra