Strange Times
by The Chameleons

Strange Times by The Chameleons
Year: 1986
Overall rank: 2,377th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
78/100 (from 145 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1986 (32nd)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (355th)
Award Best albums of all time (2,377th)

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The Chameleons - Strange Times - Tourquise & Grey Vinyl [New Vinyl LP] Colored V
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The Chameleons - Strange Times - Poster advert. Laminated. record store display.
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The Chameleons Strange Times (CD) Remastered Album (UK IMPORT)
Condition: Brand New


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The Chameleons bestography

Strange Times is ranked 2nd best out of 13 albums by The Chameleons on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by The Chameleons is Script Of The Bridge which is ranked number 775 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 2,228.

The Chameleons album bestography « Higher ranked (775th)
Script Of The Bridge
This album (2,377th)
Strange Times
Lower ranked (3,182nd) »
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(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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Strange Times track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Strange Times rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 2,377th | 1980s rank: 355th | 1986 rank: 32nd

Strange Times collection

Strange Times ratings

Average Rating: 
78/100 (from 145 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 145 ratings for this album.

Sort Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
70/100
 
5 days ago JamesMowbray  Ratings distribution  5,38269/100
 
75/100
 
01/29/2026 10:54 Timooosterink  Ratings distribution  80872/100
 
60/100
 
01/24/2026 19:14 Hyggevinyl  Ratings distribution  4,27872/100
 
75/100
 
11/18/2025 05:17 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  7,80970/100
 
90/100
 
11/05/2025 22:36 MadhattanJack  Ratings distribution  5,66466/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 2% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 78.2/100, a mean average of 77.8/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 78.6/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.1.

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Strange Times comments

Showing all 8 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
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Rating:  
90/100
From 10/23/2022 15:31 | #290733
Very underappreciated album. Strange Times should be considered as one of the milestones of post-punk/gothic rock/new wave era. Soul in Isolation and Swamp Thing are hauntingly beautiful tracks.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 06/09/2022 15:00 | #286156
The first half of this record is simply phenomenal with it ending on the groups best ever song in Swamp Thing. It is dark and atmospheric and has some brilliant performances on every track. The vocals throughout the whole record is a massive highlight for me as it suits the style of music they are going for perfectly and the harsher, deeper tone of the vocal appeals to me massively. Instrumentally, it is fantastic with the guitar work being the peak of this. They really take tracks like Mad Jack and Soul In Isolation to another level and it gives the music an edge that is vital for it to stand out. The lyrics are smart as well and are enjoyable to dive into and explore. They deal with difficult and dark themes which suits the mood and environment the group are trying to build. The second half is a little bit weaker than the first and does drag the quality of the record down as the music slows and loses a bit of its punch. Overall, another under rated classic from The Chameleons who deserve more appreciation and this record deserves to be discussed a lot more than it is.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 08/26/2013 13:14 | #84533
i don't know if they wanted to sound like this or it's just bad production but they sound bloated and messy to me and not in a good way. still mad jack and caution are pretty good songs but the whole album starts to drag somewhere in the middle and gets repetitive.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -2 votes (0 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 12/04/2012 15:13 | #56719
Unfortunately tracks such as "Seriocity" and "I'll Remember" drag it's rating down a little. Still some other wonderful tracks on this album though. Love the guitars & lyrics!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 08/17/2012 22:17 | #48757
Truly excellent example of post-punk with sparkling guitars and intelligent lyrics featuring the epic single Swamp Thing.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 11/01/2010 18:12 | #16146
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -3 votes (0 helpful | 3 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 10/27/2009 01:37 | #6918
Shuffle brought this up - listening to it now - this is a great great under-recognized and under appreciated album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 06/20/2009 16:31 | #4889
I have been listening to this band and this album in particular for about twenty years now... i never tire of them or it... so No 1 for me.
One of the greatest underrated bands
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1986
1. The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths
2. Master Of Puppets by Metallica
3. Graceland by Paul Simon
4. So by Peter Gabriel
5. Skylarking by XTC
6. The Colour Of Spring by Talk Talk
7. Reign In Blood by Slayer
8. Lifes Rich Pageant by R.E.M.
9. Licensed To Ill by Beastie Boys
10. Black Celebration by Depeche Mode
11. Evol by Sonic Youth
12. Slippery When Wet by Bon Jovi
13. Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? by Megadeth
14. Parade by Prince And The Revolution
15. Somewhere In Time by Iron Maiden
16. Raising Hell by Run-D.M.C.
17. Invisible Touch by Genesis
18. Atomizer by Big Black
19. True Blue by Madonna
20. Infected by The The
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