The Sisters of Mercy didn’t release many albums, but almost all of them are perfect. The only exception is Vision Thing. While it must have fans, the only song in that captures the same mood as the rest of their work is Ribbons. Unlike Floodland or Some Girls Wander by Mistake, it doesn’t have the same dark intensity. The whole reason I love Post-Punk so much is that it doesn’t sound like rock and/or roll, so while Vision Thing isn’t bad, it doesn’t appeal to me at all. Mary Goes Round is similar, only they’ve put out a lot more music. Some songs, such as Mary Sleeps Alone, The Night, She Said, On the Sea, and The Promised Land are too perfect to exist. Many others, though, are simple rock songs, with none of the same atmosphere.
At their best, Mary Goes Round sounds a lot like Asylum Party, which isn’t surprising, since both belonged to the Touching Pop movement. It seems like Touching Pop was just another term for French Coldwave, but it describes another side of their music. The Coldwave aspect is all about their stark elegance, while Touching Pop applies to their upbeat sense of melancholy.
