Gary Numan - Hybrid

I had no idea!

The recharged Me! I Disconnect From You is by itself worth the purchase. There are some very good mixes on these discs. Everything has been given a facelift with new synths and contemporary beats. If you like industrial and/or electronic dub...you will find this quite complex and satisfying. A lot of work went into these tracks. Very impressive. February 29, 2008

DO NOT BUY THIS CD!

This CD is horrible. It is mostly industrial remixes of classic Gary songs, but NONE of the remixes are as good as the originals they are using. Maybe if you are a fan of some of the "artists", like Sulfur or Coil, you might find this interesting. I'm not, so I don't.

This CD bills itself as having 3 "new" songs, which is why I bought it. The first is the self titled track Hybrid. This is NOT a new song, it is a deconstruction remix of the song Pure by Sulfur. See above for what I think of that. The other 2 are Ancients and Crazier, both co-written by Gary with other people. Ancients is horrible. If you really MUST hear this song, buy RESONATOR, which has this song, plus a much better remix of it called "All I Know". Crazier is O.K. but instead of buying this CD to hear it, once again, buy RESONATOR. It has the much better "Slide Mix" of the song from the Crazier Single. Don't waste your money on this CD. January 23, 2008

Gary Meets Industrial

As usual, an awesome cd of Gary Numan. The rebirth of an influentual artist to a new generation of adoring fans. June 14, 2007

Powerful mixes modernize classics, offer interesting alternatives to more recent work

I bought my first Gary Numan album, The Pleasure Principle, when I was 14 years old and formed a lasting impression that the artist was capable of producing brilliant music but that aside from a few standouts the bulk of his library was not something that would appeal to me. I tried to keep an eye on him over the years but lost him in the shuffle of other interests until Nine Inch Nail's cover of "Metal" on Things Falling Apart in 2000 reminded me how much I liked the original and sparked a new interest in Numan's classics. But it was the combination of "Are 'Friends' Electric" and Adina Howard's "Freak Like Me" on the Sugababes' hit "Freak Like Me" that inspired my interest in Newman's more recent releases. I just had one of those goose-bump raising moments where I recognized Numan's sublime melody and loved the combination of the two. When "Freak Like Me" recently popped up on random on my MP3 player, I just had to see what else had been done with "Are 'Friends' Electric." That's how I discovered this mix album.

Hybrid seems to draw its material from the late 70s and late 90s primarily (if we can squeeze the 90s a bit and include 2000's Pure). There are also two strong original songs, "Crazier" and "Ancient," the latter of which is particularly powerful with its menacing beat and obscurely mournful lyrics. Not unexpectly, the songs selected are pretty dark overall--especially "A Prayer for the Unborn," a nihilistic message to an uncaring God after the death of a child. Many of Numan's songs deal with issues of disconnection, alienation & isolation. (Perhaps these relate to the artist's asperger's syndrome. Numan discusses the impact of this on his relationships in a November 2005 interview with Trackitdown, currently available at http://www.trackitdown.net/news/928.html.) The darkness of Numan's lyrics have sometimes been disguised by his cold, reedy voice (which work to such good effect in his technological nightmares), but for the most part these mixers have worked to bring it to the fore. The songs here lean heavily towards the industrial, aggro or darkwave. Fans of Numan's classics may enjoy hearing how such hits as "Cars" and "Down in the Park" have been updated. Those who prefer more recent works like Pure, which I've come to consider one of his best and most cohesive works, might find new appreciation for those old hits in these more modern versions.

I expect this album to get a lot of playtime in my house--and not just when the MP3 player is on "random." As for the song that drew me here, the mix of "Are 'Friends' Electric" by Oakenfeld collaborator Andy Gray, I'm sorry to say that it obscures everything I liked about the original song. Not that it's a bad song in its own right, but that sublime melody almost completely disappears. I'm sure it'll grow on me, but I doubt it will ever move me like the Sugababes "Freak Like Me." December 1, 2005

Not a greatest hits album!

After initially reading the track listing, I assumed that this album was just a greatest hits album, seeing as it has his greatest hits on it, Dark, Cars, Are Friend Electric, oh the list goes on, everything on this CD in its original form is truly amazing.

However, these are all different mixes (I refrain from remix because these tracks aren't turned into techno). "This Wreckage" takes the medal for best new mix on the album. Also the new tracks, Hybrid, Everyday I Die, and Crazier are worth a Numan Fan's time. I deeply reccommend this for hardcore Gary Numan fans, and I reccommend it also for anyone interested in this album.

If the price makes you iffy, I reccommend the Dominion Day [EP], which is cheaper, and the 20th Anniverssary Versions of Metal, Cars, and Voix are much better than the mixes on Hybrid (Voix and Metal are not on Hybrid). Down in the Park is great on both albums. January 5, 2005

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