Pet Shop Boys: I'm With Stupid VS Winner

Which do you prefer?


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Two relatively UNLOVED statement lead singles from the PSBs, that were both followed up with FAR BETTER singles that would have likely made much better received leads (Minimal and Leaving).

Which do you like best, or dislike least..?

The all-out political headline-wanting, Lucas & Walliams video featuring I'm With Stupid


The Olympic ANTHEM that never was :D yet strangely dour Winner
 
I've always been annoyed that Integral, a song that has similar political-statement themes to I'm With Stupid but with a classic huge fuck off Pet Shop Boys chorus was relatively sidelined. In my opinion it's one of the best things they've ever done and would have been a monster lead:



Similarly, the beautiful Leaving is one of the best songs they've ever written and got a bit glossed over by having Winner lead Elysium



I also have relatively NO recollection of Winner as a lead single, it was seemingly ignored by everybody on release :D
 
I'm With Stupid by an absolute mile, Winner is their least impressive single ever
 
I was "discovering" them around 2012, so I think I had a more positive impression of Elysium than most people
 
I don't dislike Elysium as much as the fanbase seem to.
I'm actually really pleased that before they went back to the dancefloor we got an album out of them that dissects the subject of ageing as a gay man, as it's not something VASTLY COVERED elsewhere.

The lyrics for Invisible for example are literally the gay nightmare set to song.
Leaving is obviously a PSB classic, and I really do think one of their best-written songs.
Memory Of The Future and Requiem are great too!
 
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I tried so hard with Elysium, both when it was released and when it was reissued, because god knows I'm a serial defender of unloved albums by my other fave artists. But I just couldn't get into it

Leaving, Invisible and Memory Of The Future are indeed up to the usual PSB standard in my opinion. The rest...
 
After being for so many years
The life and soul of the party
It's weird
I'm invisible
Whatever I
Have said and done
Doesn't matter in this chatter
And hum
I'm invisible :shock::shock:


TERRIFYING!

Also I was once at an art gallery a couple of years ago, and apparently stood next to Neil Tennant looking at a painting for about a minute and a half and had NO IDEA until my friend told me afterwards I'd been stood next to the guy from the Pet Shop Boys. Art well and truly became reality in that moment :(
 
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I haven’t listened to Elysium in years, but I still like Leaving and Memory of the Future

and the B-side A Certain “Je ne sais quoi”
 
Winner is just BORING. As was Elysium. And that's something that you should NEVER be able to say about the PSB
 
Winner at Eurovision would have been VERY
tenor.gif
energy :eyes:
 
I'm With Stupid is fine but Winner is a terrible PSB single, never mind a lead. Elysium is about 50% very enjoyable, with the other half pretty much a write off.
 
I don't think I'm With Stupid is as disliked as Winner is, the sense I get is most of the fanbase are quite apathetic towards it :D

The Fundamental album has to be one of the PSB's biggest budget eras. The orchestrated production on that album is insane, and sounds EXPENSIVE.
Even little-ish things like the album tracklist being made out of custom NEON LIGHTS and photographed rather than the usual text treatment would have cost QUITE A LOT MORE than you'd expect.

I think it's generally really quite a strong album too, if seemingly a little forgotten in 2021.
Had the singles run gone Integral/Minimal/whatever I think it would be better remembered.
 
This disgusting thread has inspired me to have a PSB Thursday and goodness me 'Burn' (off 'Super') is very much (and consciously) haunted by the ghost of Deborah's seminal 'Danger For Love' :disco:
 

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