The second instalment from Factory Records' Liverpudlian black sheep Mike Keane under his ROYAL FAMILY & THE POOR moniker, "We Love The Moon" is arguably his most approachable, linear 'pop' album, if we're to stretch a point here.
Originally recorded at Liverpool's Amazon studios in summer 1985 and released by Factory in March 1986, "We Love The Moon" was initially more of a group effort with Keane entering the studio with a full band. However, after a fit of pique normally more associated with Neil Young, he finished the record with only bassist Ambrose Reynolds remaining as a collaborator.
Nevertheless, the contents suggest Keane wasn't spending time papering over the cracks to hide the disharmony. "We Love The Moon" is another intriguing listen which hangs together pretty well almost twenty years on, with rhythmic discipline and a knack for melody again contributing to the plot every bit as much as Keane's mysterious working methods.
Like his "Temple Of The 13th Tribe" debut, "We Love The Moon" opens with a moment of sublime beauty in "Visions." Elegant, melancholy pop scarcely comes better than this and while it's hardly a blueprint for what follows there are several other tremendous things here: not least the gripping, ehco-ey self-analysis of "Pagan Way" and the hypnotic, whipcrack funk of "White Stains." Meanwhile, one can only speculate why Keane chose to leave the excellent "Someone Somewhere" off the album. Even represented in grimy bootleg form (from a Stafford Poly gig in '83) it's obviously one of his best compositions.
Which isn't to say there aren't manic headfucks here, either. Indeed, at times "We Love The Moon" descends to depths of true weirdness. To this end, witness "Sex Goddess", which veers from bizarre, "Flowers Of Romance"-era PIL to crazed "Chant"-era PIL within the space of five minutes, or - at the other end of the spectrum - the amorphous ambience of "Living Room Alchemy."
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Both of these tracks are crucial to Keane's vision on "We Love The Moon," though, and the six extra tracks are a further boon. Aside from "Someone Somewhere" we also get "Dream" and "Dominion", two under-rated solo recordings from Keane and "Art On 45", from a 1981 Factory 12" EP, which is a throwback to hardline funky polemic from the original Arthur MacDonald-era line up, with Nathan McGough funking his bass thang and the ever-nimble Donald Johnstone from A Certain Ratio behind the kit.
Despite the comfort of a decent studio, hip label and decent sales despite little press attention, it all went characteristically belly up for Keane shortly after the release of "We Love The Moon " and he left Factory. We'll be coming to what happened next shortly, but dwell a while with "We Love The Moon": an album of several, partially obscured lunar faces, all of them deserving of lengthy observation now the album's in our orbit once again.
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