Review:
Berlin landed a #1 pop song in 1986 with “Take My Breath Away,” featured on the Top Gun soundtrack. Rather than lift Berlin’s next album, Count Three and Pray, it seemed to be their end. The band “broke up not long after. Terri Nunn managed to put out one solo album, but, for the most part, she and the rest of Berlin stayed relatively mum” (Harris).
“It wasn't until 1998 that Nunn finally reformed the band for some live dates…the band released Greatest Hits Remixed in 2000…followed later in the year by…Live: Sacred & Profane” (Harris). “In addition to showing that Nunn’s voice was still strong, the album also included three new studio tracks…The first, …‘Shayla,’ tried to meld rap to Berlin’s signature synth-pop style…Thankfully, the other two, ‘Angel’s Wings’ and ‘XGirl,’ were better, showing the band’s fascination with the modern dance scene without having to desecrate old Berlin songs in the process” (Harris).
“To Berlin’s credit, Voyeur, their first full-length reunion album, doesn’t recycle any of those three tracks. The album contains 11 brand new songs” (Harris) and “schmaltz is completely absent from this album; even the ballads contain a feeling of gloom. (Apparently, Nunn’s work with the Sisters of Mercy rubbed off on her)” (Harris).
“The dance influences remain on Voyeur; in fact, the first two tracks, Blink of an Eye and Shiny, are both potential floor-fillers. It isn’t until the third song, Lost My Mind, when a fan of the band’s earlier work might actually say, ‘Hey, is that Berlin?’; on this song, as well as the next, The World Is Waiting, Nunn's voice is placed in more familiar surroundings” (Harris).
“But if you want to talk familiar, Drug is the best early ‘80s Berlin single you’ve never heard. It’s arguably the best song on the album” (Harris).
“Nipping at its heels for the honor of top track is Stranger on the Bus, which is unquestionably the most successful blend of the band's former sound with its new musical interests” (Harris).
Elsewhere, there’s “Sacred and Profane, [which] was co-written with former Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan” (Harris). There’s also a live hidden track of Berlin’s 1983 song “Pleasure Victim,” which “is a very nice way of bringing the album full circle, making you want to investigate Berlin's back catalog for all the right reasons” (Harris).
“In the ever-growing field of '80s artists making a bid for a return to the charts, Berlin has just leapt to the front of the pack of those who legitimately deserve to succeed. If Voyeur doesn't bring them back to prominence, blame it on anyone but the band; this could well be the best work they've ever produced” (Harris).
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