Nonetheless

by Pet Shop Boys

Overview

Appearing four years after Hotspot -- the longest gap between albums in Pet Shop Boys history -- Nonetheless represents something of a reset for Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, finding the duo swapping producer Stuart Price in favor of James Ford, an associate of Arctic Monkeys who recently forged a fruitful collaboration with Damon Albarn that culminated on Blur's ruminative The Ballad of Darren. Nonetheless shares some similarities with The Ballad of Darren, particularly in how it finds Pet Shop Boys settling into a familiar groove, not for nostalgia but for reflection. Tennant litters the album with elegies for a fading world, feeling out of step in hipster neighborhoods ("Like silent movie stars/in 60s Hollywood/No one knows who you are"), reminiscing about the time he hung around with his glam rock brothers, and, worst of all, lamenting that pop is "always Christmas or the sound of summer" in this future we've found ourselves in. The dissatisfaction and melancholy are palpable, but Tennant and Lowe choose to not wallow in sadness, finding resolve in the very things that used to matter to the culture at large and still matter very much to Pet Shop Boys: pop songs, disco beats, wry cynicism, bittersweet ballads and human connection that lasts, no matter how fleeting a relationship may be. The familiarity of form is an asset on Nonetheless: the lack of surprises makes it easier not only to appreciate the craft of Tennant, Lowe, and Ford, but it helps mark the passing of time, shifting the focus to what Pet Shop Boys have gained by what the pop mainstream has left behind. Their devotion to pop and belief it in its power is affecting and oddly reassuring, particularly because Nonetheless works so well as an album: there's no fat, no excess, so the craft that services the emotion is difficult to deny. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	04/26/2024
Label:	Parlophone
UPC:	5054197903649
Rank:	64

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Loneliness
2. Feel
3. Why Am I Dancing?
4. New London Boy
5. Dancing Star
6. A New Bohemia
7. The Schlager Hit Parade
8. The Secret of Happiness
9. Bullet For Narcissus
10. Love is the Law

Disc 2

11. Heart [New Psb Version]
12. Being Boring [New Psb Version]
13. Always On My Mind [New Psb Version]
14. It's a Sin [New Psb Version]

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Pet Shop Boys   Primary Artist