On December 13, 2024, the British new wave band A Flock of Seagulls released the album Some Dreams. It’s their first album of completely new material since their 1995 album The Light at the End of The World.
If you’re a fan of popular music from the 1980s, you’re very likely familiar with the band. In the first half of that decade, they released multiple popular singles, including the worldwide hit “I Ran,” which came from their 1982 debut album A Flock of Seagulls.
I was a teenager at the time and bought that album shortly after it was released. To say that I liked it back then would be a major, major understatement. I listened to it nearly every day for several months.
Although I liked “I Ran” a lot, my favorite song on A Flock of Seagulls was (and still is) “Space Age Love Song,” which was also a huge hit for the band.
I was a huge fan of A Flock of Seagulls and saw them multiple times in concert back then. I practically idolized the original band members: Mike Score (lead vocals, keyboards, and guitar), Ali Score (drums), Paul Reynolds (lead guitar), and Frank Maudsley (bass).
Later hit singles released after the first album included “Wishing (If I Had A Photograph of You” from their 1983 album Listen and “The More You Live, The More You Love” from their 1984 album The Story of a Young Heart. Unfortunately, the latter song was their last international hit before the original lineup of the band split up in 1986.
Frontman Mike Score reformed A Flock of Seagulls with an entirely new group of musicians in the late 1980s. Since then, they’ve gone through multiple lineups and have primarily been a touring band.
The original lineup of the band has had a few brief reunions over the years, the most recent ones being for two new albums of re-recordings, with orchestras, of several of their old songs from the 1980s.
While I thought it was nice that they did that and I enjoyed what I heard of the re-recordings, it wasn’t exactly what I wanted.
I wanted brand-new songs by A Flock of Seagulls.
And now I’ve got them.
Even though I was excited when I first learned about the new Some Dreams album, part of me was hesitant to listen to it. After all, this wasn’t the same lineup of A Flock of Seagulls I fell in love with over 40 years ago. Other than their leader Mike Score, I was completely unfamiliar with the rest of the band members.
Would I like this new version of the group? Would their new music sound anything like the old music I was a big fan of?
Here is the current lineup of A Flock of Seagulls that plays on the new album:
Mike Score — vocals, keyboards, guitars
Pando — bass
Gordon Deppe — guitars
Kevin Rankin — drums
As soon I put on the album, my concerns quickly began to disappear. Not only do I love it, but it’s now one of my top favorite albums by the band.
Below are some of my favorite songs from it.
Some Dreams
The title track is the first song on the album and I think it was a perfect choice to kick off the album with. Right from the start, it has the classic sound of A Flock of Seagulls. To me, it sounds like it would have fit in very nicely on the band’s first album. However, it doesn’t at all feel dated. It has a fresh and very ‘new’ sound to it.
Mike Score’s very distinctive keyboard playing is fantastic here.
Him
Despite this song seemingly being about a man’s lover cheating on him with another man, it’s a surprisingly fun song to listen to — and even sing along with.
The vocals and music in it are wonderful. I especially like the guitar work in it.
Unfortunately, the above two songs are the only ones that the band currently has videos for on their official YouTube page. Therefore, for the remaining songs, I’m using clips from the Spotify version of the album.
You’re A Fool
This is another song that deals with bad times in a romantic relationship. The lyrics tell the story of a man who is seemingly miserable with his lover over the troubles they’ve been having.
But who exactly is the ‘fool’ mentioned in the song title? Is it her for causing him frustration or is it actually him? Is he a fool for causing the troubles himself or is he a fool for wanting the bad relationship to continue?
I think it’s the latter but it really doesn’t matter. All that matters is that it’s a good song — which it most definitely is.
Got To Get To You
This is currently my favorite song on the album. The music and vocals in it are totally awesome.
And yes, I know that ‘totally awesome’ is a somewhat dated phrase. However, I used it regularly to describe A Flock of Seagulls’ music in the 1980s and it still applies perfectly to their music now.
Perfect
Even though this is a fairly laid-back-sounding song, it’s got some great rocking guitar parts in it. Plus, I love Mike Score’s vocals here.
It’s the last song on the album and I think it was…wait for it…a ‘perfect’ choice to close the album with.
This album was a very nice surprise to me. There are no songs on it that I don’t like. I first heard it just over one week ago and I’ve already listened to it at least a dozen times since then.
In addition to Some Dreams quickly becoming one of my favorite albums by A Flock of Seagulls, it’s also become one of my top favorite albums released in 2024.
Whether or not you were ever a fan of this band in the past, I highly recommend the Some Dreams album to you.
This review was originally published in the Rock n’ Heavy publication on Medium.
NOTE: The source for the image at the top of this piece that shows the front cover of the Some Dreams album is August Day Recordings. To learn more about the album and how to purchase multiple different versions of it, please visit the band’s website here.
Buddy Gott 