When is a comeback not a comeback? Well, first, you have to establish what you’re coming back from. For instance, say you’re a century-old electric car design, used to conceive a limited number of electric powered vehicles between 1907 and 1939. You get dug up by a couple of highfaluting money men and they want to base a new economy class car on your original plans. If you ask me, that’s the stuff of comebacks right there.

Now, let’s take the guys from 1980s post-punk, goth staple Bauhaus. After reassembling for a series of concerts back in 1998, they decide to hit the studio together to record and release their first studio album in 25 years. That’s also what I would consider to be a comeback.

Considering that, let’s say that you, the 100-year old car design, get cars into production, but it turns out nobody really tries to sell the cars. In fact, they’re mostly constructing them for a select group of people, fulfilling only but a scant number of orders, not really trying all that hard to get the word out. Kind of a letdown as far as comebacks go, wouldn’t you say?

Parallel to Bauhaus: so you get the gang together, you chunk out the studio album fans have been waiting for since 1983, and you go out and announce that it will be the final album and that the band will officially be breaking up afterwards. Not only that, but you also confirm that there will be no tour to support that album. That same album anticipated for a quarter of a century. That same album you said would be the last. Um, bit of a damper on that comeback talk, isn’t it?

But, at least the guys have the decency to leave us off with a great LP with some excellent tracks; and while they’re true to themselves musically, and within one listen successfully remind us why we loved Bauhaus in the first place, there are no nostalgia-infected Bela Lugosi Is Dead caricatures to be found. It’s logical progression and conclusion for such an influential band.

MP3: Bauhaus - Too Much 21st Century

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