Anyone who dismissed a-ha as a one-hit wonder must have missed out on the band's fine debut, Hunting High and Low. Though the band spawned many further hits across the rest of the world, "Take on Me" exploded in the States and the group never cracked the top of the charts again. It's a shame, because the album contains a handful of songs that nearly match the manic energy and emotional crack of its big hit. Further, it's a cohesive album with smart pace changeups, and it rarely fails to delight or satisfy a listener's need for a synth pop fix. The opening kick is a huge one: "Take on Me" is a new wave classic laced with rushing keyboards, made emotionally resonant thanks to Morten Harket's touching vocal delicacy. It didn't hurt in the era of MTV that the song's video was a hyperkinetic blend of mind-warping animation and filmed footage with a romantic thriller's heart. Harket's hunky physique and cheekbones also didn't hurt the video's chances at heavy rotation. Getting past that video, "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." is just as thrilling. Starting as a sad ballad, it explodes into something much more, as chugging guitars and operatic synths keep pace with Harket's evocative vocal stylings. If ever a 1980s song qualified as Wall of Sound, "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." would be it. The remainder of the album sees a-ha switching deftly back and forth between dramatic overtures and classic new wave keyboard motifs. "Train of Thought" and "Love Is Reason" are reminiscent of early Depeche Mode or Camouflage, but Harket's rich voice and flair make them purely a-ha. The band explores decidedly European terrain in the theatrical "Hunting High and Low" and dances a pop waltz with the sweet "Living a Boy's Adventure Tale," coming across like a marriage between the Blue Nile and Alphaville. Delightful song snippets "The Blue Sky" and "And You Tell Me" act as frosting on the cake or as glue between the theater and the dancefloor. One can't escape the feeling that Hunting High and Low is a product of the 1980s, but with highs like "Take on Me" and "The Sun Always Shines on T.V.," and no lows in sight, a-ha's debut is a treat worth relishing.

Track List:
1 Take on Me Furuholmen, Harket, Waaktaar 3:46
2 Train of Thought Waaktaar 4:11
3 Hunting High and Low Waaktaar 3:43
4 The Blue Sky Waaktaar 2:22
5 Living a Boy's Adventure Tale Waaktaar 5:00
6 The Sun Always Shines on T.V. Waaktaar 5:06
7 And You Tell Me Waaktaar 1:51
8 Love Is Reason Waaktaar 3:04
9 I Dream Myself Alive Waaktaar 3:06
10 Here I Stand and Face the Rain Waaktaar 4:30

QUOTE:

Log: Code: EAC extraction logfile from 26. March 2003, 16:45 for CD a-ha / Hunting High and Low Used drive : LG CD-RW CED-8120B Adapter: 1 ID: 0 Read mode : Secure with NO C2, accurate stream, disable cache Read offset correction : 0 Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No Used output format : Internal WAV Routines 44.100 Hz; 16 Bit; Stereo Other options : Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No Installed external ASPI interface Track 1 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\01 - Take On Me.wav Peak level 82.3 % Track quality 100.0 % Copy CRC 7E884F3F Copy OK Track 2 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\02 - Train of Thought.wav Peak level 59.2 % Track quality 100.0 % Copy CRC 3069B1D0 Copy OK Track 3 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\03 - Hunting High and Low.wav Peak level 51.0 % Track quality 100.0 % Copy CRC 230E42BC Copy OK Track 4 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\04 - The Blue Sky.wav Peak level 56.1 % Track quality 100.0 % Copy CRC 810C6AFC Copy OK Track 5 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\05 - Living a Boy's Adventure Tale.wav Peak level 61.6 % Track quality 99.9 % Copy CRC 73B5468E Copy OK Track 6 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\06 - The Sun Always Shines on T.V..wav Peak level 75.4 % Track quality 99.9 % Copy CRC 0361B75F Copy OK Track 7 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\07 - And You Tell Me.wav Peak level 44.8 % Track quality 100.0 % Copy CRC 8C95E51E Copy OK Track 8 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\08 - Love is Reason.wav Peak level 83.9 % Track quality 100.0 % Copy CRC BE539D66 Copy OK Track 9 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\09 - I Dream Myself Alive.wav Peak level 63.0 % Track quality 99.9 % Copy CRC D7630233 Copy OK Track 10 Filename C:\tmz\A-HA - Hunting High and Low\aspi\10 - Here I Stand and Face the Rain.wav Peak level 77.1 % Track quality 99.9 % Copy CRC 513D2C45 Copy OK No errors occured End of status report