Oingo Boingo: Danny Elfman (vocals, guitar); John Avila (vocals, bass); Steve Bartek (guitar); Leon Schneiderman (alto & baritone saxophones); Sam Phipps (tenor saxophone); Dale Turner (trumpet, trombone); Mike Bacich (keyboards); John Hernandez (drums, percussion). Additional personnel: Sundray Tucker, Linda Lawrence Tucker (vocals); Super Novi String Ensemble (strings); Bruce Fowler, George Bohanon (trombone). Recorded at Sunset Sound Factory, North Hollywood, California. By the mid-'80s, new wave was long dead and gone, yet somehow this didn't stop Oingo Boingo from continuing their quirky horn-rock stylings with the minimum accommodation made to commercial realities. 1985's DEAD MAN'S PARTY sounds no different from their earlier records, except that it's distinctly softer in tone; Danny Elfman's lyrics have little of the satirical bite of earlier albums like ONLY A LAD. The single "Weird Science," the title theme of a John Hughes movie, was Oingo Boingo's most commercially successful effort, but it's one of the weaker cuts here. Surprisingly emotional songs like "Stay," "Heard Somebody Cry," and "Help Me" provide unexpected new facets of Elfman's nutty-professor persona, making DEAD MAN'S PARTY one of Oingo Boingo's most satisfying records.
