My Top 1000 Songs #902: She's In Parties

[I've been writing up my Top 1000 songs on a daily basis--you can see them all in descending order by hitting the All My Favorite Songs tag.]

While my college years were dominated by shiny happy jangle, that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy indulging my inner goth on occasion. Once I'd started spending time with Joy Division, the Cure, and the early Cocteau Twins, Bauhaus seemed like the next logical step (though, like Joy Division, they had ceased to exist before I heard any of their music). Alas, that mostly felt like a bridge too far... a little too metallic around the edges, and Peter Murphy's vocals weren't really my speed. Which isn't to say there isn't a lot of Bauhaus I find rather interesting--at their best, they can sound like a post-apocalyptic Bowie (or Psychedelic Furs)--but the mood to delve into those dark places doesn't strike me very often. (Whereas the Murphy-less version of the band, Love & Rockets, at least has some hints of joy here and there.)

Nonetheless, "She's In Parties," a single off 1983's swan song Burning From The Inside, is the rare Bauhaus track I'm good with throwing onto the occasional mixtape/playlist. It's probably the closest they came to a radio-friendly (or at least college-radio-friendly) song, more shimmer than gloom, with a sing-along chorus and Murphy at his silkiest croon.

Full-length LP version:

Top of the Pops 1983:

Live: