Wonderful, clean sounding pressing. I bought this before the MOV version came out, so I don't know how that compares. I also don't know what this was sourced from (going to assume master tapes), but the sound is very dynamic + detailed regardless. The bass in "The Electrician" hits at such a perfect frequency + with a delightfully more precise amount of punch compared to my digital copy. Gary's 2 songs in particular are super well-balanced. The overall levels are also fairly loud while avoiding any noticeable clipping or distortion. Unfortunately no gatefold artwork, but that's a relatively minor thing considering how pleased I've been with this copy over the past several years.

Does anyone have any explanation as to why this release goes for so much in the marketplace? It isn't the original pressing (which goes for less) and it's one I found for $12.

Anyone have a copy they are willing to sell?

Yes, up for sale now...

Unbelievably weird artifact. I'm not sure what else to call it. The Walker Brothers had moved on so forcefully from their easily-digestible AOR past that they no longer resembled anything marketable, and they obviously didn't much care. The resulting album is jarring, alienating, and individualist to the point of confusion. At times airless and claustrophobic, other times skronking and sleazy—and seemingly at the mercy of pure dream (il)logic. There's not much love to be had here, it's all creepy urban noise and upset stomachs. The nightmarish narrative of "The Electrician", about torture/interrogation, is a high point, and its pitch black exploratory vibe would accurately predict the arc of Scott's later career. There are certainly kernels of what he was to later become in his earlier, torchier solo material, but this moment is when the expression of that true Scott Walker-ness began to bloom. To get a sense of how different this output was from the trio's previous releases, read the lyrics to the four Scott songs. A sample, from "Shutout": "There is crouching and wailing on stones down here / We must freeze off this ratmosphere".The album is divided into three sections: the first four songs are Scott Walker songs, the next two are Gary, then the last four are John. The other Walker fellows follow Scott's bold avant garde tendencies to a somewhat lesser extent with their contributions, but there's an amiable unity of purpose expressed here that suggests they were willing accomplices to him following his weirder inclincations by this point. It's been about fifteen years since I first heard this album, and I only just realized I can't even quite say what type of music it is. There are a few rock elements, but...

I love it, myself. There are a few songs that aren't really necessary, but it's mostly fantastic!

Scott Walker's avant-garde tendencies took root on this album, that's for sure. As for its rarity, it's incredible that it is universally agreed by every seller to overprice this album to an absurd level. Even secondhand sellers - arguably people who don't care for the post-Walker Brothers stuff - jump on the chance to earn a mint with this resell. Amazing record, nonetheless.