Coldwave classic finally reissued. Be With Records does it again with a proper repress of Anna's seminal 1982 release "Systems Breaking Down." Produced by 80's disco duo Geraint Hughes and Ken Leray, "Systems Breaking Down" delivers a dark and noir feeling that is still so relevant some 35 years after the fact. Anna's vocals are a perfect match, and takes the epic synth pop vibe over the top. The original version is fantastic, but the B-side is the clear winner as the track is stripped down and given a dark disco dub-out with a minimal wave touch. As 20JazzFunkGreats so succinctly put it, this is "the sound of mascara and tears, a flood streaming black across the pale landscape of a trembling face, lovely music and, oh, so sad." Comes remastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, with full pic sleeve repro featuring that tight graphic design. Recommended.

• remastered sound by Simon Francis
• music label: Be With Records 2016

reviewed by Duke Lake 12/2016