Manscape is the seventh studio album by the British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 post-punk group Wire

Wire (band)

Wire are an English rock band, formed in London in October 1976 by Colin Newman , Graham Lewis , Bruce Gilbert , and Robert Gotobed...

. It was produced by David M. Allen, recorded and mixed at RAK Studios, engineered by Roy Spong, and published by Dying Art Ltd.

Manscape saw Wire exploring electronica

Electronica

Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...

 more deeply than on previous works. Bass and drums were mostly sequenced

Music sequencer

The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...

 and a 1990 UK and European tour saw the band performing live without Robert Gotobed, once again playing mostly new material from the LP and a few older songs reworked to fit the electronic instrumentation. The rise and evolution of dance music informed the record while lyrically it remained part cut-up and part obliquely referential. "The Morning Bell" is about the British public school system, while "Small Black Reptile" is about the political system. The record's centrepiece, "You Hung Your Lights In the Trees/A Craftsman's Touch", spans nearly eleven minutes.

The original vinyl release has a significantly different running order and omits "Life in the Manscape", "Stampede" and "Children Of Groceries".

Track listing

1. "Life in the Manscape"
2. "Stampede"
3. "Patterns of Behaviour"
4. "Other Moments"
5. "Small Black Reptile"
6. "Torch It"
7. "Morning Bell"
8. "Where's the Deputation?"
9. "What Do You See?"
10. "Goodbye Ploy"
11. "Sixth Sense"
12. "Children of Groceries"
13. "You Hung Your Lights in the Trees/A Craftsman's Touch"

UK Vinyl Version (Mute STUMM 80)

1. "Patterns Of Behaviour"
2. "Goodbye Ploy"
3. "Morning Bell"
4. "Small Black Reptile"
5. "Torch It"
6. "Other Moments"
7. "Sixth Sense"
8. "What Do You See? (Welcome)"
9. "Where's The Deputation?"
10. "You Hung Your Lights In The Trees / A Craftsman's Touch"