It is said that the very best music transcends the boundaries of time but few could argue that the so-called "cutting edge" videos from over a decade ago can hold up to scrutiny nowadays. In the case of the - even for their time - low budget promos and studio sets on 'Umbrellas In The Sun', it's a fact that is celebrated. Granted, over two hours of material from the Factory Records and Crepuscule stables is hard to take in one sitting (a near half-hour recording of obscure Belgium act Marine can surely only appeal to die-hards of the band only) but odd curveballs are thrown in to make this journey worthwhile. The naive imagination shown by Thick Pigeon and Antena offers a contrast to the slate-grey miserablism of Crispy Amulance and Section 25. There's a rare early live recording of New Order in action with Bernard Sumner clearly having one of his off-days "singing" 'Everything's Gone Green' but the real outstanding moment is a young-looking Vini Reilly filmed in the beautiful setting of 'Marie Louise Gardens' playing through
The Durutti Column classic 'Never Known'.
Compared to the Cherry Red 'Pillows And Prayers' compilation, the lack of humour and inventiveness will make this a second choice in many people's eyes but then again this contains twenty-two chances to see some usually camera-shy post-punk acts in action; surely something that none of their fans would have thought possible until now.