The Sisters of Mercy First And Last And Always

Numbered, Limited Edition! Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI!
Sisters of Mercy First And Last And Always on Numbered Limited Edition LP from Mobile Fidelity Silver Label!
Paint It Black: 1985 Debut Is Penultimate Goth-Rock Album!
Andrew Eldritch's Ghostly Vocals, Static Beats, Melodic Guitar Jangle Create Hauntingly Atmospheric Soundscapes!
Mastered on Mobile Fidelity’s World-Renowned Mastering System and Pressed at RTI (Best Record Plant in America): First time any Sisters of Mercy record has been given audiophile treatment on LP!
The 1985 album by Sisters of Mercy was to become the benchmark by which all later gothic rock albums must be measured. The dark psychedelic rock sound accompanied by the grave voice of Andrew Eldritch and a drum machine, which began a life of its own in an eerie way, was style-defining for a whole generation of gothic rock bands and is still part of the standard repertoire of every gothic party today. The band, on the other hand, did not benefit from the success of the album and disbanded soon after its release.
Legend has it that Eldritch was so heavily drugged during the recordings that he ran into walls and had to be stopped several times. Astonishingly, however, the album is very well done as an MFSL re-issue. While the gloom of the music gets under your skin through the now even deeper basses, previously hidden fine details in the keyboards shine like never before. Even the German lyrics in Marian suddenly become more understandable.
The template for all goth-rock records that followed, Sisters of Mercy's First And Last And Always stands as one of the "if not the most" influential albums of its kind ever released. Distinguished by Andrew Eldritch's ghostly singing, which gives the impression of hearing a forlorn ghoul croon from a foggy English graveyard, the 1985 set is drenched in gloom, claustrophobia, black humor, and dance-ready beats that provide exhilarating contrasts. Fans of the Cure, Depeche Mode, Love and Rockets, Peter Murphy, mid-period Nick Cave, and Joy Division will find it to be a new favorite record.
Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's world-renowned mastering system and pressed at RTI (the best record plant in North America), Silver Label numbered limited edition LP presents First And Last And Always with a fuller, richer sound that positively obliterates the thin, feeble sonic perspectives that have limited the music until now. Every aspect from Eldritch's haunting singing to the group's jangling guitars and prancing bass lines finally gain genuine definition. Yet what's most improved is the sense of atmosphere: Sisters of Mercy revel in painting tone poems, where the feel and effect are as essential as the notes that are played. This is now an atmospheric tour de force.
Ever since it's release, First And Last And Always has been aptly shrouded in mythology. Eldritch pushed the envelope during the recording sessions, literally walking into walls and repeatedly unable to maintain his focus. Strung out on amphetamines, dazed by days of no sleep, upset by a recent breakup, and eating little, the vocalist channeled his discord into somber lyrics and brooding singing. He's framed by pulsing albeit lean, spare rhythms, patient tempos, and the clatter of a programmed drum machine that, in spite of its mechanical operation, sounds strangely organic. The songs evoke wet dungeons, walls-closing-in paranoia, and late-night strolls amidst the U.K.’s mysterious underground.
Despite its overall dark character, the record's arrangements value spaciousness, putting a premium on room and minimalism that makes each note count. As a result, twinkling pianos and keyboards parallel steel-cutting guitars and low-tuned bass lines that, in combination with Eldrtich's baritone, suggest glimmers of hope among the decay. Songs such as the shaking "Possession", dramatic "Some Kind of Stranger", and desperate "Marian" remain models of the gothic and post-punk disciplines more than 25 years after their debut. It's no surprise that, given all of the tension and personality that infuse the album, Sisters of Mercy disbanded just months after its release.
It's unlikely that any goth-rock album has ever sounded this good. This MoFi Silver Label LP will turn your room into rainy, dreary England, circa 1985, and expose you to one of the most harrowing vocal performances on record.
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab Silver Label
Since the beginning of 2011, MFSL has been releasing a new series of LPs under the product name Silver Label. These will be remastered and cut at Mobile Fidelity on the mastering chain designed by Tim de Paravicini and pressed on 140g vinyl at RTI in Los Angeles. With a lined rice paper inner sleeve, a protective intermediate sleeve and a sequential serial number on the outer cover, the packaging meets the same high standards as the well-known Original Master Recording series. Mobile Fidelity is planning a series of experimental releases, and is willing to make do with a copy of the master tape if the original tape cannot be made available. All LPs will be released as limited editions and are likely to become sought-after collector's items.

Features:

• Limited Edition
• Numbered
• MoFi Silver Label Vinyl Series
• Mastered and Cut on the famous MoFi Sound Lab state-of-the-art Tim de Paravacini-designed mastering system.
• Pressed at RTI on Audiophile-Grade Standard Vinyl
  

Selections:

Side A
1. Black Planet
2. Walk Away
3. No Time to Cry
4. A Rock And A Hard Place
5. Marian (Version)
Side B
1. First And Last And Always
2. Possession
3. Nine While Nine
4. Amphetamine Logic
5. Some Kind Of Stranger