Joy Electric

Item: The Art and Craft of Popular Music
Author: Matt Modrich

The Art and Craft of Popular Music

(2002)

Reviewed by Matt Modrich

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Music

Label Tooth & Nail RecordsDecapolisAugust 2002

electronica synth pop

Tooth and Nail's king of electronic pop, Ronnie Martin, is back with "The Art and Craft of Popular Music" a double disc set of unreleased songs and greatest hits.

If you've been living on the moon and haven't heard Joy Electric, then you need to because there really is nothing like it. Initially some will find Ronnie's music to be "weird" or "eccentric," but with enough time he's bound to pull the most skeptical listener out of the water singing with his pop hooks and lovable melodies. Even now, Joy Electric continues to be one of the most prolific bands that with each passing album seems to change everything about their sound, except for the consistent songwriting and hum-able music.

Disc one of "The Art and Craft of Popular Music" has 15 tracks of bonus Joy Electric. Some of the best tracks are: "The Matterhorn," "Dance to Moroder," "Apples of Gold," "We'll Last So Long," "Weep in the Sunshine" and "Every Nook and Cranny." The only down side to the disc is the three remixes of "We Are Rock," which was three remixes too many. However, overall it's better than most B-side CDs you hear.

Disc two of "The Art and Craft of Popular Music" features 19 tracks of mostly quintessential Joy Electric. For the most part the songs are well chosen, but an argument could be made to leave out: "Keep Him in Your Thoughts," "Five Stars For Failure," "Monosyth," "The Robot Beat," "Disco for a Ride" and "I Sing Electric" and replacing them with: "Happiness and Life," "The Girl from Rosewood Lane," "Courage," "I'm Your Boy," "Storybook Love" and "Make My Life a Prayer." Still, 13 likeable tracks out of 19 is quite high, even for a greatest hits disc.

Besides just the music on the box set, there's also a 20-page insert with lots of cool pictures, an essay and Ronnie Martin doing an album-by-album discussion of his work. Yet, the most incredible thing was Joy Electric was selling "The Art and Craft of Popular Music" for $15 at Cornerstone, which is cheaper than the cost of one CD in some stores. If you like Joy Electric, then this will be a welcome addition to your discography and if you are still in the dark about them, then this is a good place to shed some light on the dark side of the moon.

A-