When Wire began to record again in 1986--after a six-year layoff--they picked up right where they left off. This CD, which includes both the "Snakedrill" ep from '86 and the "Ideal Copy" album from '87(plus some bonus live tracks), has the same lush, cool, frequently unsettling sound that the band first exhibited on "154"(well, there were hints of it on "Chairs Missing", too).

'Ahead' is a masterpiece and a fan favorite; it rocks with utter conviction, but in a "cold" way that no other band could ever hope to imitate. 'Feed Me' is my favorite Wire track sung by bassist Graham Lewis--it's a scary, desperate song that conjures mental pictures of a frozen wasteland. 'Ambitious' is a great, dance-y rock song from which the album derives its title("The ideal copy is what you want/When you aren't, it makes you am"). 'Cheeking Tongues' is a nice, accelerated short piece. 'Still Shows' slows things down with a lovely clean guitar progression, but--like the rest of the album--has a chilly atmosphere.

By now, you might have noticed that my impression of this album is cold, wintry, remote. And yet "The Ideal Copy" has intensity to spare. It's very heavy on synthesizers and the guitars don't often sound like guitars, so if you've got "Pink Flag" on the brain you're going to be disappointed. However, if you want to hear an album with an atmosphere all its own--or just a collection of damned good songs--then this is for you. Thanks to Messrs. Newman, Lewis, Gilbert and Gotobed for all the great music over the years.

I rediscovered this album, which somehow quietly snuck past me when it was released, back in 1990. "Ahead" was still being played on the then-still-decent Live 105 in San Francisco, but that song just scratches the surface of this wonderful album. Standouts on this artsy and technically savvy album include the beautifully written "Madman's Honey" and the dark and driving "Ambitious". For some reason, though, my favorite has always been "A Serious of Snakes", which captures more of the raw underbelly of the mid to late 80's darkwave movement. And the live version of "Ambulance Chasers" is great -- raw, stark, and it brings back many fond memories of bands of the era. I highly recommend this album - you won't be disappointed.

A Bell is a Cup is clearly Wire's most accessible album. Chock full of pop ditties with danceable rhythms and shimmering guitars, it roughly fit the late eighties landscape of pop music in the UK.

There are no assaultative guitars, no punk-propelled drums on ABIAC. The songs are pop sugar, but not so simple. The lyrics are often bizarre and obtuse (of course!), and even the themes are hard to discern. Just as angular, weird, and incomprehensible as their first 4 full-length albums, ABIAC is a smoother listen, and very enjoyable at the same time.

A few of these tracks you may have heard on other Wire albums. A warning-- "The Finest Drops" herein is outshone many times over by the version on the IBTABA album a few years later. "Come Back in Two Halves" is one of the quartet's finest few minutes, and the magnificent single "Kidney Bingoes" is perhaps their best known song, and one of their best. The bonus tracks, such as the live version of "Drill" (the best, in my opinion) and the remarkable "Pieta" are not jetsam from wasted studio time, but marvelous tracks that help balance out the work as a whole.

With only a few disappointing tracks, such as "The Finest Drops" and "The Queen of Ur" (you might need amphetamines to stay awake during this one, folks), A Bell is a Cup (ABIAC) is one of Wire's finest albums, and worth more than a few listens.

Also, fans of Wire-- if you haven't seen a CD called WHORE, which is a 21-song tribute to Wire, you really should. It's worth it... Wire songs interpreted by various rock and pop bands in many styles. Only one of the songs from ABIAC is on WHORE, but for fans of both Wire's early period in the late 1970s and their smoother pop period in the 1980s, WHORE is a good bet to please.

ken32

At first notice, Bell Is A Cup is quickly Wire's most light, pop-oriented record. Many would agree that this is the case when talking about such songs like "Kidney Bingos" and "Queen Of Ur...". Most of the songs here are extremely catchy and don't seem to have the nihilistic or melodramatic vibe that their other alubms have. Yet, their lyrics are still pretty schizophrenic "Money spines, paper lung" "Lies fly in-formation".

Funny how the music in Bell is so catchy and even your basic pop addict could get hooked to this cd. Yet the lyrics will change all that, most likely throwing them off just as quick. Despite that notion, Bell still remains Wire's most easy-listening record to date.

"AB.." is Wire's most pop-oriented and accessible record, due to the fact that the band abandoned its arty tendencies in favor of atmospheric, melodic songs. More than any other Wire album, "AB.." is based on the personality of singer Colin Newman, and it's quite similar to his 1988 solo record "It seems". As a result, guitarist Bruce and bass player Graham didn't like "AB.." much, saying it was too commercial and slick. Influenced by the evolving Manchester dance scene, this album comes up with electronica rhythms, subdued keyboards, and Wire's typically ringing guitar lines. The bright "Kidney Bingos" is one of Wire's best songs ever, and there are a couple of other tracks, like the mysterious "Free falling divisions" and the dark "Follow the locust", which have their own unique timbre. The 7 1/2-minute "Pieta" foreshadows the purely electronic sound of 1990's "Manscape", and the two live cuts, "Over theirs" and "Drill" are pretty listenable, too. But over the course of a whole disc, there are many songs which are too similar in sound and structure. Also, the first half of this album tends to float by without making any real impact. As long as you take "AB.." as brainy, pleasant pop music, it's a good purchase, if you want to have an experimental album by Wire's second incarnation, try "The ideal copy" or "The first letter" instead.