Toyah - Anthem

Toyah’s 1981 album Anthem is widely regarded as a classic of the New Wave/post-punk era, representing a peak in the band's creativity with a tighter, more confident sound. Featuring hits like "I Want to Be Free" and "It's A Mystery," the album blends pop sensibilities with eccentric, prog-rock undertones. Recent deluxe reissues have been praised for high-quality sound and extensive bonus material.

How I used to fancy this woman; flaming red hair, cute lisp, Oxfam-reject garb, what a package. But for all my youthful fantasies I found it more than a little disconcerting when Toyah re-invented herself as a television presenter fronting an adult-orientated sex education and enlightenment programme. Bit like discovering the cutest teacher in school metamorphosed into an S & M dominatrix the moment she left the school grounds.

Anthem is Toyah’s finest hour. A new wave, post punk, pulp sci-fi mix which was so easy to ridicule but nevertheless memorable. I first saw Toyah singing “It’th a Mythtery” on Top Of The Pops and it was love at first sight. The album went straight to the top of my wish list and spent weeks on my turntable. It may sound very naive and downright silly now but, boy, did it hit a spot.

As a whole this type of early eighties synth pop hasn’t aged very well – particularly with all the space rock, fantasy punk angles that Toyah seems fixated on – but, playing this today, it still sounded fresh and innovative. “Masai Boy” with its accentuated drumbeat and Toyah chanting nonsense like “Rise o sun golden one” in the background shouldn’t work but is really effective. The almost progressive rock approach of tracks like “Marionette” and “Jungles Of Jupiter” is really surprising but again just has a conviction that eradicates any misgivings. The singles “It’s A Mystery” and “I Want To Be Free” remain as infectious as ever. Yes you can laugh at this stuff but it doesn’t make it any less compelling.

Long gone are my fantasies of meeting Toyah – she’d probably have eaten me alive anyway – but listening to Anthem brings them all flooding back but, more importantly, reminds me what a very good album this is.

Ripped to MP3

1. I Want To Be Free

2. Obsolete

3. Pop Star

4. Elocution Lesson

5. Jungles Of Jupiter

6. I Am

7. It’s A Mystery (Album Mix)

8. Masai Boy

9. Marionette

10. Demolition Men

11. We Are

12. Walkie Talkie

13. Alien

14. Revelations

15. For You (Unfaded Version)

16. War Boys

17. Angels & Demons