BehaviourΒ (1990) by Pet Shop Boys
[I did a twitter thread about this too but why not share it here anyways ajkfl]
Behaviour, Pet Shop Boysβ fourth album, released on October 22, 1990. The word βbehaviourβ for the album was chosen by Chris and reflects the various themes found in the albumβs tracks. Mark Farrow brought the albumβs design back to the minimalist style of a white background and focal image that had characterized the designs of bothΒ Please (1986)Β and Actually (1987)Β that had been broken by the previous album IntrospectiveΒ (1988).Β
Behaviourβs central image is composed of four photographs taken by Eric Watson: a photo of a standing Neil and seated Chris holding bunches of long-stemmed roses; a close-up of Neilβs face; a close-up of the back of Chrisβ head; and a photo of the same composition as the first, this time without Neil or Chris, with only a bunch of roses and Chrisβ hat left.Β
The photographs are muted or grayscale, creating a sense of maturity, melancholy, and memory that is broken by the vibrancy of the roses. The red color of the roses carries over to the solid red inner sleeve of the album and the red font used for the lead single βSo Hardβ, while the black and white photography carries over toΒ βBeing Boringβ andΒ βWhere the Streets Have No Name (I Canβt Take My Eyes Off You)/How Can You Expect To Be Taken Seriously?β
The main inspiration for the roses came from Neil and Chris visiting Liza Minnelliβs apartment and seeing a photograph of Judy Garland taken by Richard Avedon:Β
Neil has reflected on the fact that the four photographs could compose a story. The main point of interest in this draws from the inherent juxtaposition of the photographs β Neil and Chris both present then absent and the frontal shot of Neilβs face contrasted to the reverse shot of the back of Chrisβ head.Β A major thematic element of Behaviour is loss and what is left in the space of that absence; the presence of the roses and Chrisβ hat in the final photograph symbolize memory and the importance of material mementos: although they are absent, their presence remains in the objects or memories left behind.
There is also a heavy emphasis on contrast between Neil and Chris themselves. They juxtapose themselves both in dress (Neil in black and Chris in white) as well as in their positioning (Neil standing and Chris sitting), which furthers this act of the elements of the photographs playing off of each other.
A juxtaposition is present in the frontal shot of Neil contrasted to Chris. The close-up portrait shot of Neil emphasizes his identity and self-expression present in multiple songs on the album whereas the reverse shot of Chris de-emphasizes his identity, leaving only the iconography of his self behind in an act of rejection of the conventions of both portraiture and self-expression.
Eric Watsonβs use of lighting creates sharp highlights and shadows on Neil and Chrisβ portraits, emphasizing aspects of their faces/heads in a very stark, realistic, and haunting way that is helped by the use of a grayscale/black and white technique. Additionally, the first photograph of Neil and Chris is expertly framed wherein they adopt a more familiar and professional portraiture style of Victorian and Edwardian photographs that is carried on with the Douglas Brothers withΒ βBeing Boringβ.
By combining the four photographs into one whole image, Mark Farrow helped set up the shiftingΒ βbefore and afterβ effect of each of the photographs in relation to one another. The photographs all give a lot but simultaneously very little, leaving just enough to posit an interpretation of the narrative each are an element of, but never suggesting a concrete or clear answer. At the very least, each have a counter to one another in the way of openness met with rejection, and how social behaviors are performed and received.
Ultimately, Behaviour was a reaction to the predominant consensus among journalists in the 80s that they wereΒ βironicβ andΒ βinsincereβ, whether citing Neilβs singing ability, or simply focusing on how to twist their songs into an ironic lens in their critiques. Pet Shop Boys fueled Behaviour to be a sad, sincere, and retro/introspective affair to counter those assertions, and which they themselves would take up head-on and adopt with Very in 1993.
Also, I just love this album a lot, and the cover is probably my favorite of their album covers. Given thereβs little about the thought process and motivations for the cover in Catalogue or the Further Listening,Β I just thought Iβd give my own two cents on the effect it has on me for its anniversary!
discoholicmusic
germansingergirl
dededos
romaincrisis
stormborns
turnnoffyourmind
yousharknotpass
pixelskylines
titsay
andulkaphoto
