Wonderland

Q - 2 Stars - Average - "...unembellished electro-pop dance with uncomplicated lyrics about love and heartbreak, allied to Vince Clarke's prolific and sustained tunefulness..." Q (6/95, p.136) - 2 Stars - Average - "...unembellished electro-pop dance with uncomplicated lyrics about love and heartbreak, allied to Vince Clarke's prolific and sustained tunefulness..." Uncut - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[With] frothy thrills....WONDERLAND is embryonic Erasure..."

Originally, Erasure's first album was to have had a number of different singers, a conceit keyboardist-songwriter Vince Clarke had taken from his previous project, the Assembly. However, previously unknown singer Andy Bell was such a perfect foil for Clarke that he quickly became a full partner in the band. Breaking with the tradition of Clarke's earlier bands, Depeche Mode and Yaz, where Clarke had been the sole songwriter, Bell co-wrote most of WONDERLAND.
The album is the template for the next several Erasure releases, matching the Hi-NRG dance of "Push Me Shove Me" to the quiet lyricism of "Oh L'Amour". Bell's lyrics betray a sense of emotional turmoil, especially on "Say What", that never becomes histrionic. The album contains two instant Erasure classics, "Who Needs Love Like That", and "My Heart...So Blue". In what would quickly become an Erasure tradition, the CD contains two bonus remixes.|

The duo's full debut was a sparkling collection of synth-pop tunes that made up in enthusiasm and immediate catchiness what it lacked in overall variety or any sense of artistic progression from Clarke's past. Though the production, one of Flood's earliest high-profile efforts, is detailed and often lush, anyone who had followed Clarke's career wouldn't be surprised by anything on Wonderland. Bell's vocals merely tie the connections to the past further, his at-times too-shrill-for-comfort falsetto inevitably echoing Yaz's Alison Moyet as well as one-time Assembly vocalist Feargal Sharkey. Allowing for all these inevitable reminders, though, still means Wonderland is well worth a listen. The key reason is the smash U.K. single "Oh l'Amour," which rapidly became a staple for American modern rock stations as well. A lovely a cappella opening and instantly catchy hook, not to mention sprightly performances from Clarke and Bell both (the latter wisely undersings rather than pushing the flamboyance, letting loose more on the chorus), ensured its classic status. The two other singles, "Who Needs Love Like That" and "Heavenly Action," aren't quite as strong but work in the general formula quite well regardless. Other album cuts are a touch more scattered in quality; nothing is awful, but there are some definite highlights. The slightly slower "Cry So Easy" has a great chorus, giving Bell a chance to show his chops, while "March on Down the Line" moves with a fine positive energy, an anthem without calling attention to itself as such. "Say What" is an interesting mostly instrumental, aside from a gang shout or two of the title, letting Clarke's compositional abilities come to the fore on their own. ~ Ned Raggett