Malcolm Jack wrote a damning (and in my opinion plain awful) review of Brilliant on The List website. Quite rightly he got a lot of flak from readers, but he has finally published his response to all the criticism:

Click here to read Malcolm Jack's response
(scroll to bottom of page, comment no.20)

Here's an extract from his response:

"To me, Brilliant fails to acknowledge the last 27 years of music, and I find that arrogant and lazy. It’s a record plainly aimed only at diehard fans – it might as well have been made in 1986 and locked away in a safe. Locked away for good reason, because it’s got no tunes – no great hooks, no memorable melodies, no unforgettable choruses, no unusual changes of pace, mood or direction. I can recall not one defining feature of any single song, despite listening to it on repeat for the best part of a day, and that is unimpeachably damning."

He's obviously totally unrepentant about his original review. I can only put it down to him listening to a different CD altogether.

Personally, I can't be bothered reading any of this crap from these so-called 'reviewers'. They're not going to re-educate me after 30+ years to the point where I think, "Yeah, you're right, Ultravox are crap. Why did I bother wasting over 30 years of my life on them?" P*ss off you arrogant know-it-all twat.

Sure, the album can be looked at from different angles with different tastes and preferences, but as Midge has stated, what do they expect? They are Ultravox, so who do you think they're going to sound like? Why would they re-invent themselves into sounding like whatever is the flavour of the decade, only to be referred to as out-of-date five years down the track anyway, or have some other equally meaningless dribble written about them. As we've seen, nothing much has changed over 30 years, eh?

All the stuff these reviewers tend to give rave reviews to, I tend to think of as just boring. It really is a crime that the crap these people write as reviewers might actually be responsible for persuading people not to buy the album, although you'd think that 30-second clips would enable people to make their own well-informed decisions.

Yeah, I know ... time I took some medication.

Good on you Rodney! Some reviewers have been brought up on a poor music diet of crap and dross,yeah music has moved on in the last 28 years,but moved on where it's no longer recognised as what we would call music.Thank god for the likes of Ultravox,but some folk will never get it the way all of us on this forum do.

Depressing read – he obviously hates them with a vengeance …. and then some…

“I can recall not one defining feature of any single song, despite listening to it on repeat for the best part of a day, and that is unimpeachably damning.”
“….this will at least prove to you that my review wasn’t thoughtless – I gave serious consideration to my verdict on Brilliant, as I do anything I write.

The best part of a day…serious consideration?….and you were probably writing the review while listening …. Come on..

Malcolm who????

f*ck him.

Malcolm Jack?

More like Jack Sh*t............

Go and listen to the "critically acclaimed" bands that obviously curry favour with the "cool" critics but (by and large) the music-buying public neither get (or like) but who follow like sheep and buy because people like him say its "cool"..........

We know what we like, don't we folks??

I find the vehement agression shown the in this thread distressing. So the guy didn't like Brilliant- so what? I don't like the Beatles- but plenty of others do.

A review is just that - the view of one person and one person only. Deal with it.

I think the problem is not so much "criticize," but the way he did and the "abrasive" language used.
It did not seem constructive criticism, not the argument was well founded on credible facts.
It seemed to me only that he was limited to distill a pet hate, and Ultravox as the recipient.
His answer came to emphasize that, I think.

I disagree,
I'm in no way emotional about this, a bad review is fine if it's warrented but he's clearly a prize nob, his review seems to have a personal agenda IMO and comes accross as..well.. kinda dumb.
I could spend a while explaining what he's not getting but life is too short.

All I will say is this, he reeks of pretentiousness and his points are as flawed as they are scathing.

It is not an "opinion" - it's just arrogant, self-important and, as lots of people have already said, plain lazy crap. And way below any standard for a person who calls himself a critic. And this laziness shouldn't be taken lightly. Give a proper review (however negative) or do not write a word, I say.

All right, put it this way then ... it's one thing to sit at a keyboard in the privacy of your own septic tank and write whatever untreated sewerage you think will give someone a chuckle somewhere 'out there', but what if these reviewers actually sat down at a table steering across at Midge, Billy, Chris and Warren ... what would they say to their faces about their music, musical legacy and contribution to the evolution of music since 1974?

Is it too much to expect some basic professional courtesy to a group of people who have clearly earned some respect? They've had their days of being spat-on by the audience and slagged for everything they did.

By-the-way, twat, if you had bothered to check, since clearly you don't know all that you think you do about music history, you might have 'discovered' that Ultravox pre-dates the other artists that are frequently referred to as the so-called 'pioneers'. It's unfortunate that often the true innovators are the ones who gain the least recognition for what they achieved.

Oh, and Becca, please accept my sincerest apologies for any offence caused on my part from reading these comments (and that goes to anyone else too, of course). But after 30+ years of this sort of nonsense, doesn't Ultravox deserve a friggin' break?

All I can say is I got my copy of Brilliant today - thanks kids - and as soon as I stuck on the car CD it was like being transported back to being 17 again - I'm 50 this year - and I'd the same reaction as I had when Astradyne first burst out from the family stereo! I'd already got the first 3 albumns and was also into John Foxx. Brilliant was everything I expected and hoped for - pure Ultravox at their best, music by muscians who can write and play, not a bunch of boys put together to mime other peoples mediorce rubbish!! I'm in the car all day tomorrow and you can bet what I'm going to be playing very very loudly! As far as critics go - I'm too old to take notice of other peoples opinion on something as personal as musical taste. I'm sure there won't be a One Direction release in 30 or so years!!!

Yeah...who really gives a fcuk, anyway? Certainly not me.

I know what you mean...I'm 51 on Wednesday.

Brilliant is classic Ultravox. I'm 46 in just over a month's time: come on the lads!

Jeeeeesus, Phil! Really? Well, mate, happy fcuking birthday in advance for Wednesday then, my friend!

It must be about time for you to take up bowls, you old prcik!

Cheers, Phil ... seriously, have a good one, mate.

Nah...that sounds too much like hard work, maate!

I agree - look at how some of our own compadres on this site & twitter have commented on the album.

To be fair to him, I like his final response: it's his opinion and I think that was relatively well argued.

AWS

I'm not sure what mr Jack expected to hear when reviewing a new Ultravox album ,the North Korean military brass band ? Critics who give a great album a bad review are not important ,it's the fans who decide with their own ears and go out and buy the album that are and Jack ,like most critics probably got his copy of Brilliant for nothing .

You've hit the nail on the head. Another 'Becca' post with pure balls!

Nah disagree 100%.

The "balls" come from the people who are standing up for something they believe in and have a strong passion for.

Plus the fact that this tit has written the biggest a pile of ill- informed and factually incorrect sh*t simlpy gets everyones back up.

YES everyone should have an opinion but this fool got his facts wrong in so many areas that he should not be allowed to write for a living or have an opinion.

Plus he just seems to have a beef with Midge over John Foxx, I mean ffs move on

His responce was ever worse so f*ck him.

I think the original review is very one sided and I don't agree with it (personally)
Being rude about it is just as bad.

I respectfully disagree.

If you are a songwriter and someone gives your art an unwarrented verbal beatdown like that they might just as well have walked into your living room and slapped your wife, in short it hurts.

Yet he goes further and beyond the music and then chooses to specualte on what level their friendship is at? I mean wtf?? it's clearly a biased bitter review.

He's a knowledgeless fool.

Oh dear!
I too have a 'Strong passion' regarding Ultravox, but I wouldn't get myself worked up over a bad review like you have, judging by your reaction here. You need to get some real worries in your life pal. Chill out and accept it for what it is. Life goes on . . .

'Slapped your wife'
'It hurts'

My goodness, you need a hug today, old son.
Having a bad day or summat?
Maybe you've just realised your avatar pic looks like a headshot from the one and only 'Johnny Hates Jazz' album!

Get one like mine, kidda
You can't beat a fat owld pig.

Well you can - at least until the RSPCA find out.

Agree with Conny - "ffs move on" pretty much sums it up please everyone.

'slapped your wife' is commonly used in this type of instance, quite a few of my mates say it in fact.
The other one (that I think Sting or maybe Midge used) was if someone says they dont like your song its just the same as saying your birds a dog!

As for my pic? ""I'm just as god me me sir":-)
yeah its an old one, I will try to change it to something less 'Jonny hates jizz'

Hows that?

Oh dear!Long time no post for me but, seeing the angst on this thread, I had to give in.

I actually agree with some of the points made by the reviewer, but vehemently disagree with others. He won me over with his laudation of Foxx and GN and his lambasting of Coldplay, surely the most vile incarnation of AOR since....well...ever.

At least he had the guts to reply, so fair play.