Well, I did specifically reject the simplistic assessment that Bruce = noise. He brought the least conventional approach to the music—sounds over what we would normally call music; often noisy but, yes, also subtle, tho rarely what we'd regard as conventional music—and that often made the results so remarkable. This isn't to shit on the other three at all or on RBT, only to emphasize that BG's contributions were absolutely vital to making Wire such an unsettling and bizarre pleasure. I love huge swaths of CN's, GL's, and BG's solo material and in combination, but rarely does and of that work as well as the stuff the four of them together.

Having witnessed Wire/Wir in both rehearsal and in the studio I can say that the harmony vs. noise argument leads nowhere.
Colin and Graham were/are equally capable of creating the noisiest noise or the sweetest harmony if required. Bruce did not hold the monopoly on noise and some of Wire's sweetest moments have been Bruce's.
I suppose that the dynamic has changed from four men in a room to three men in a room and that's bound to have an affect on the final aural evidence.

Wire is a completely different kind of beast without Bruce. But the fact they are still on the scene may we all be truly thankful. Even the fans with mixed feelings about RBT (which I still can't work out) must agree with that.

And you're spot on Keith: O47 had some dazzling moments – and if RBT doesn't feature in the end-of-year critical round-ups then the game really is bent.

I bet Q put Liam Gallagher and his lame Beady Eye in their best of 2011 list and ignore the ever-immense Wire. Just watch!

OMG, Bruce isn't on the new album!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So what?

The album is brilliant - this is Wire at their best (with or without Bruce).

I know this is just my opinion, but I really can't see/hear what people are moaning for - to me this is the most awesome thing that Wire could possibly have done - this album is closer to the original sound of the band that we have had since 1979 - the sound they were originally looking for!!

Please forgive me if I have annoyed you, but... ...this is WIRE.

Just to clarify here, I'm not suggesting that CN or GL are incapable of abstract noise or subtle textures—their solo work demonstrates otherwise. Likewise, I'm not suggesting that BG was incapable of coming up with a fine melody, conventional or otherwise. But I think we run the risk of heading into a corner that says that each man is the same as the rest—they're all melody, they're all noise, they're interchangeable, where BG's departure fundamentally means nothing because the others have got it all covered. My original point was about the inclination of each man, and if you're forced to come up with a simple grouping, I don't think it's outrageous to say that BG was more about odd sounds and structures than about melodies. His solo work, I think, demonstrates where his inclinations lie. I'm not talking absolutes or exclusivity here, where you can pull this song or that to refute the general statement. Nor is it about hierarchies, where noise is better than melody, rhythm is less interesting that arrangement, etc. It's just about where each element's dominant contributions tend to fall. I mean, seriously, when we found out that BG had left but the other three were soldiering on, did anyone really think that the sound would become more abstract or that it would have zero change at all? It's no insult to suggest that each man brings their own strengths and agenda to the project, and that these aspects differ.

We're probably not as far apart in our interpretation as what might seem—a matter of emphases, perhaps. For example, I wholeheartedly agree that "Wire seems to be more about overall intention than individual contribution," but my concern is that by arguing that CN and GL are capable of some fantastic fucked up noise—Pre>He is an excellent example, btw—or that BG could do melody, it does limit the notion of individual strength, perspective, and contribution. Yes, the three-piece does still sound like Wire, whatever that actually means (that is, we know it when we hear it, but nailing it down is probably impossible), and I have no doubt that they don't second-guess themselves and seek to add faux Bruce-ism to the mix to be more "authentic." But I'm reluctant to somehow assess each of their inclinations so similarly—each with a similar proportion and ability and agenda towards one form of music/sound as the other. It's about the tension—that, too, has been a common theme in any histories of and interviews with the group—and to have tension there has to be internal competition and compromises. So there are different strengths and ideas about how to go about things, and I have no problem resting on the belief that, of a band that is quite unconventional in vision and approach, BG is the least conventional and least frequently drawn to a straight-forward song that the others. Again, not some kind of slam at the others at all because a fair chunk of BG's solo stuff (Ab Ovo and In Esse come to mind) are flat-out unappealing to me. But whereas both CN and GL have released albums that have had pop ambitions or accessibility to the non-Wire aficionado, there's nothing in BG's catalogue that suggests pop leanings or an easy listen. Can anyone imagine him recording a pop record on his own? In concert with others, definitely—Wire is exhibit A. Once again, I'm just talking about inclinations, not absolutes.

edit: My question, I think, would be to ask what, specifically, did BG bring to the group more so than the others? Likewise, what do the others brings to the group that is not easily replicated?

Suffered on O47, imo, tho Bruce or no is an unanswerable question; it's just a generally uninteresting effort based on what I expect of Wire. But, oh yeah, RBT is one solid album from start to finish, and that's coming from someone who regards Send (hell, Send Ultimate, because there's more of it) as his favourite Wire album. In some respects, my disappointment with O47 makes RBT all the more satisfying, proving that they can still generate something so damn good, even minus a key member.

my unmoaned question would be similar to Dr. Medulla's second one: given how good RBT is (and granted that it's in its honeymoon phase right now for many of us), what happened on O47? And as a way of possibly answering that, I would want to return to the recent intriguing q&a: Colin said that the remaining 3 agreed that "a plan" was necessary to make O47: What was it?

RE STRAYS EP .....................what a cool ep, that version of boiling boy is superb

7jlong : I agree with you wholeheartedly. I'd also like to stress that RBT is a great album. So is O47 & Send. I like all 3 albums. I'm also glad they happen to be by Wire, irrespective of whoever plays on the album. All this chin stroking is doing my head in.