BANANARAMA


ULTRA VIOLET



I FOUND LOVE


Produced by Gary Miller All tracks written by Dallin/Woodward/Miller/Barry/Torch except 8 written by Dallin/Woodward/Lee/Torch/Miller and 5 by Dallin/Woodward/Tetsuya Komuro

Album released as "Ultra Violet" in America, Australia and Europe; " I Found Love " in Japan

1.Every Shade of Blue
2.Take Me Away
3.Take Me To Your Heart
4.Time Out
5.I Found Love
6.Rhythm of Life
7.Prove Your Love
8.System
9.Maybe Next Time
10.You've Really Got Something
11.Don't Stop Me Now
12.Give In To Me

After the "Please Yourself" album, Keren and Sara broke away from London Records and began to work on new material on their own even though they did not have a new contract ready. After the album was completed, they then shopped around for a distributor. This techno-heavy album was thus released in 1995/1996 as "Ultra Violet" by different record labels in different countries: Curb in America, Dig It in Italy, Festival in Australia and ZYX in Germany; the album was released as "I Found Love" in Japan by Avex. Avex was, in fact, the first of the record companies to show interest in the album which was largely written by the girls themselves before the technical crew stepped in to shape the songs up. The album never saw a UK release.

Sadly, "Ultra Violet" proved to be a commercial disappointment although the album got some good reviews and the two singles released off the album - the haunting "Every Shade of Blue" and a remixed "Take Me To Your Heart" - saw some club / dance play in America (ESOB got to #41 on the US Dance Sales chart). A third single "Prove Your Love" was actually planned and remixes were completed ... before the release was eventually shelved. Happily, these remixes have since been made available for purchase on iTunes many years later even though there remains no official physical CD release of these tracks.

"Every Shade of Blue" also went Top 40 in Canada and Top 100 in Australia and was featured on compilation albums such as "Dance N-R-G Vol. 3" (ZYX Records), "Top Model Mix" (Blanco Y Negro), "Mega Dance 5" (Arcade Sweden) and "Muchmusic Dance Mix '95" (Quality). In Japan, the "I Found Love" album (which was preceded by a double-sided single featuring the album's title track and "Every Shade of Blue") did crack the official album chart: it peaked at #61 there, spending 4 weeks in the Top 100 and shifted about 20,000 copies.

Like Bananarama's "WOW" album, "Ultra Violet" is predominantly powered by a single sound. In both cases, it's an upbeat dance vibe, although in the case of " Ultra Violet", the sound is very much more Euro-influenced and techno-based (which, sadly, sounds very dated today). The main problems with the album were that the lyrics were daft, there was no promotion whatsoever (the three low-budget videos made during this period were especially dire), and all the songs basically gelled together into one long party track. The album can presently be found in bargain bins in a shop near you ... probably.

Which is not entirely fair. "Every Shade of Blue" was a great song, one of the girl's best work as a duo, and "Give In To Me", based around a jungle vibe and garnished with breathy, wispy vocals, was an interesting departure for the girls. I also like the ballad "Maybe The Next Time" which has a nice hook. Mostly, the songs actually mix the girls' 80's pop sensibilities with the 90's Eurodance sound quite well. Don't go looking for Radiohead-styled lyrics and you'll find this to be a fun album to put on while you're getting ready for a night about town.

Attempting a comeback after five years, Karen Woodward and Sarah Dallin turned in a set of predictable Euro-NRG dance music, courtesy of producer Gary Miller. The perky amateurishness that had made the old Bananarama fun was replaced by slick, unfeeling efficiency, and the beats just weren't that new, which may be why this album disappeared without a trace upon release.

- All Music Guide, William Ruhlmann

I Found Love / Every Shade of Blue

Every Shade of Blue

Take Me To Your Heart

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