The Carnival of the Animals conclusion of the verse for the "Fossils", for example, fits perfectly with the punchline-like first bar of the music: In 2014 the English contemporary music organisation New Music in the South West (NMSW) commissioned a set of responses to the 14 movements of "Carnival of the Animals". The pieces, collectively known as "A Modern Menagerie", were premièred by the Bristol Ensemble on 7 September 2014 at St. George’s, Bristol. The programme consisted of the original Saint-Saëns movements interleaved with the contemporary responses under the title "Carnival of the Animals" meets "A Modern Menagerie". A number of the composers have taught
Universal (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark album) to Far Away" and "If You're Still in Love with Me". Erstwhile McCluskey collaborator Karl Bartos (formerly of Kraftwerk) co-wrote "The Moon & the Sun". Stephen Thomas Erlewine in AllMusic remarked: ""Universal" is a rote collection of synth-pop and dance-pop from OMD, demonstrating only a fraction of the sophisticated craft that made its predecessor "Liberator" enjoyable, and none of the adventurous spirit of their '80s records." "Trouser Press" wrote that "the album quickly settles into the type of pop OMD has offered since [1985's] "Crush"" and is "enjoyable enough for what it is". Universal (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark album)