Beautifully Fluid Album, Full of Eddies and Flows
593564
An absolutely gorgeous, haunting album!  I recently discovered Lisa Hannigan but was ambivalent about her earlier work--it clearly showed talent, but I wasn't sure if it was "for me."  This album, though, showcases her talent as it has developed into maturity, and has me utterly hooked.  The sound is beautifully fluid, full of eddies and flows, and somehow manages to be both modern and yet reminiscent of something of the Renaissance or even middle ages, particularly stand-out songs such as "Lo."  The lyrics and Hannigan's unique voice swim, drift, and drown, so that the effect is one of lying in the current and feeling it flow around you, as clouds float overhead--the listener is both drawn down and buoyed up.  A great find, and well, well worth a listen for fans of Irish, folk, and alt-folk music.
1711782
This is one of those great albums that may suffer from oblivion, unless people who appreciated its beauty begin to share about it. The whole set of songs maintains an amazing level of realization, both lyrically and in terms of its hushed arrangements. Early on, its mood and unassuming depth of feeling, reminded me of another, recent folk jewell: Damien Rice's "O." Like Rice's, this a work profound longing and immediate tenderness. Both these CDs showed the possibilities of nuance and range that new Folk singers are exploring. Its easy access is far from announcing its lack of superficiality. It's hard to recommend songs here, given the quality of all of them, yet "Amanda's Dream," "Poetry and Aeroplanes" and "I Was Just Thinking," are particularly glorious. I love that young men, like Teitur, are willing to shudder and wonder at their lives this openly, in the context of truly wonderful songs.
279141
Some kinds of musics are perfectly to some moments of our lives,and specially this "Lost Love & Highways" is an album to be hear at that days that we took the highway to nowhere,in a good company and want to be in syntony with great musical style. And what this album comunicates is exactly this awful capacity to inebriate the air around with a mix of great blues,rock,funky,country music. What we can draw out from this album is something new and modern,mixing styles with rare competency. And what great surprise,almost all of the lyrics are of own Teddy Morgan. We feel great influences of Rolling Stones in the whole album. The track 5 "Run Down Shacks"is great influenced by the "New Beats of funky,hip-hop,techno" that invades the Mississipi Delta with sinergy of rythms. Sometimes we could hear SRV's influences and others. No matter what influenced so more,the fact is that this is a great album full of happiness!!!
1401744
WOW!

this is truely gorgeous.

the arrangements are spectacular.

seriously, this album radiates and swirls with many colours and motions.
250342
This album spans more genres than any I've ever heard, and does so fluidly and naturally. The progressive moments never get corny, the metal moments are  intense, and there are plenty of melodic moments that give this record some beauty. This album flows from start to finish very well. I never felt like skipping or cutting off any track. Definitely well worth buying.
2992150
This album covers such a broad array of genres but somehow flows very well.  Matt Johnson's lyrics are matched only by his musical arrangements.  This is a near perfect album, there are only a couple of songs I don't  thoroughly enjoy.  If you like this title, check out The The's  "Dusk", or "Infected", both of these contain equal  genius.
3199002
Amazingly well-constructed and well-performed album, albeit admittedly an album that's in places deep on the nihilistic side.  Slow and beautiful heavy metal music incorporating instruments like flute and cello not just as flourishes but as an integral part of the musical structure.  This wasn't as common an occurence in metal in 1996 as it would become over the next few years, and Decoryah was among the originators.  Unfortunately, the dismal and hopeless lyrics on tracks like "Envisioned (- Waters?)" and "Wintry Fluids (Portal)", while very well-sung, detract, for me anyway, from the awe and grandeur of the music.  It may well be the point to be this abysmally dark (a darkness born not out of malice but despair, I should point out), as alot of people look for this brand of darkness in music, perhaps as a kind of catharsis, but, though I may be in the minority on this, I've never found the actual music of bands like Decoryah and Morgion and the oddly named My Dying Bride to be depressing, I find it to be grand and powerful.  I do enjoy dark music, even sad and tragic and times, but not ultra-depressing or nihilistic, and thus some of the lyrics are a hindrance to the "Fall-Dark Waters" album as a whole.  Still, the impeccable musicianship and vocals (male and some beautiful supporting female vocals) cannot be denied, nor the establishment of a phenomenal atmosphere throughout.  Tracks like the title piece, "Endless Is The Stream" and "some Drops Beyond The Essence" are magic and the lyrics on the Fall-Dark Waters" song itself are actually bright.  Great production and mesmerising music, but perhaps the band's next album would be better served by just a smidgen less mega-gloom?
1397751
Whatever you think of Roger Waters, Pink Floyd was clearly never the same after his rather acrimonious exit.  Having won the right to continue using the band's name, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright recorded and released A Momentary Lapse of Reason in 1987.  It's a far cry from the incredibly successful concept albums largely controlled by Roger Waters (e.g., The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon), and it has its inherent imperfections, but A Momentary Lapse of Reason is still an impressive album featuring some great musical moments and awesome Gilmour guitar riffs.

Freed from the controlling influences of Waters, David Gilmour dominates this album - he wrote or co-wrote every track, took up the mantle of lead singer, and did much to prove himself the greatest guitarist in the business.  One can read certain things in the album title and some of the songs (e.g., Sorrow) about the whole Pink Floyd turmoil of the previous years, but the main problem with this album is its seeming lack of a unifying theme.  There is unquestionably a great deal of intensity in the words and music, but there's no real depth.  To me, the whole album has an artificial feel to it - especially compared with the Waters-dominated Pink Floyd releases.  There are no bad songs on this album (although some Pink Floyd fans don't think very much of The Dogs of War), but few seem to work up any real emotion.  One can get a feel for this in the opening instrumental track; there may be Signs of Life in the initial sounds of plodding movement through water, but these are lost in a cacophony of artificial voices speaking unintelligibly in the background.  I have to admit that I don't always understand what Gilmour and the guys are trying to do in some of these songs.

Learning to Fly is somewhat pop-oriented track that succeeds quite well, but the first real magic is to be found in the song On the Turning Away.  This track about man's lack of concern for his fellow man also features some amazing guitar work by Gilmour.  Gilmour's finger work basically carries the second half of the album, one rendered somewhat obscure by the long instrumental Terminal Frost and its musical A New Machine bookends.  The album closes out impressively, though, with Sorrow.  This is the most emotionally compelling song on the album, and it opens with David Gilmour doing what he does best.

I can see how some Pink Floyd fans don't really care for this album.  It's very different from what had come before, and the song lyrics don't really compare to those written by Roger Waters.  Still, this is Pink Floyd - maybe not the Pink Floyd we wish we still had, but Pink Floyd nonetheless.  David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright revived this group when many thought it was dead and buried, and their own distinctive musical creations introduced a new generation of fans to the magic that is, was, and always will be Pink Floyd.
4730345
This is a solid album following their five year hiatus.  The music is full and lush EV-style, with a bit of a different sound but still EV.  I like the diversity in the sound of each song.  It may or may not end up being my favorite EV album, but it certainly was worth the wait.  Piano, guitar, bass, drums, harp and strings are AWESOME on this album, as well!
2710684
Purling Hiss's previous albums, while filled with enough crushing-yet-tripped-out riffs and insane guitar wizardry to please any fan of the heavier side of garage rock, were burdened by the fact that they sounded like they were recorded in a basement with a handheld tape recorder...only the tape recorder was upstairs and the door leading down was shut. 'Water On Mars' has much higher production values, allowing the listener to fully appreciate the stellar grunge-meets-garage psych music within.

Who knew that Mike Polizze was such a good songwriter? I certainly knew he was an excellent, uniquely gifted guitarist, even through all the murky haze of both Purling Hiss's and Birds of Maya's previous releases. But songs like the heavy, Nirvana-meets-garage-psych of "Lolita," and the Dinosaur Jr.-esque first single "Mercury Retrograde" make it apparent right out of the gate that he can create a catchy hook and chorus with the best of them. Also, while recent albums like 'Hissteria' and 'Paisley Montage' were filled with ten-plus minute barnburners, only one song here surpasses the four-and-a-half minute mark--the fuzzed-out bliss of the title track, seven minutes of swirling riffs and intertwining noodling. It's the only time the album really goes to true "headphone journey" mode.

My favorite tracks, however, are three of the most laid-back here. "She Calms Me Down" and "The Harrowing Wind" are subdued, dreamy ballads that could almost be described as beautiful. The semi-acoustic "Mary Bumble Bee" closes the album on a serene, blissful note, serving as a perfect coda to this incredibly diverse album, an album that proves that Purling Hiss are capable of much more than blistering guitar solos and pummeling drums blanketed in a thick layer of fog. While 'Water On Mars' almost sounds as if it could have come out in 1992, the top-notch songwriting and psychedelic undertones are more than enough to separate them from the pack.
3879889
The Floacist's debut album, "Floetic Soul" is beautiful from all ends of the spectrum. It's clearly a carefully created LP. Here is a disclaimer, though: This is a quiet storm album. Most of the songs have that soothing vibe. It can put you to sleep, relax you, or put you and your lover in the mood for some unforgettable intimacy. As a writer myself, I am all about lyrics and lyrically, every single song is a winner. Her lyrics are real yet positive. She is great with her style, that being the spoken word style.

The Floacist did a remarkable job with this album. She brought Raheem DeVaughn, Lalah Hathoway and Musiq Soulchild along for the ride and we are glad she did. My favorite song is the one where she collaborates with  DeVaughn, "Keep It Going." The chorus caught me before anything else. I was at work singing it, jamming to myself. "What R U Looking For?" is another highlight laced with piano. It's a ballad with a nice melody. "Need You" is also especially enjoyable. The tone of this song is sexy. The production is awesome as there are plenty of instruments accompanying the Floacist's profound words.

Please give her a chance! I know she is without Marsha Ambrosious, but this album proves that she is fully capable of standing alone.

Mikeisha's Top 5

1. "Keep It Going"
2. "Need You"
3. "Alright Then"
4. "Come Over"
5. "You"
3151658
The mixture of nature sounds, new-agey instrumentals and chants meld together and flow in a way that allow the mind to just wander, beautifully. This has quickly become one of my top few meditation/journey albums.
1579555
Each listen of this album, front to back, it is like a road trip through varied terrain, all beautiful, often funny, sometimes sentimental.
The production compliments the songwriting and performances elegantly.  The blurbs and farts and honks are all there, non-autotuned, non-beatdetected... raw yet complex- like the lyrical and harmonic composition.  The honesty is an audible bonanza to the discerning ear (as well as to the casual listener).
Soon I'll have to move off of the awesome ballad, "Our Patriarch," and find a different song to listen to thirty seven consecutive times. The section on my hard drive that contains the file for "New Roomate" has probably been corrupted from overuse. Or Gourd stank.
This is good music.
4006935
The one consistent thing about Rush is that they never seem to be consistent, and Vapor Trails is a perfect example.
Old-time Rush fans (like myself) will be jarred, surprised, and a bit put-off when you first listen to this album. Gone are many of the staples that you've found in previous Rush albums, such as intricate instrumental pieces and jarring lead-guitar solos. What you find in their place though is a great complexity and variety in the music.
The guitar work is complex, rich, and has an incredible amount of variety. While Alex doesn't have the lead guitar work that he's famed for, he's wonderfully strong, gutsy and bold on this album. His sound changes so dramatically from song to song, covering so many different styles, that's it's almost mind-boggling. Geddy has some of his best bass playing to date. His work floats in the background during some pieces, acting as the rhythym component for the song, and in other pieces just comes forward with strong, complex, powerful, and sometimes haunting compositions. Neil's drumming is strong, assured, and more tightly-woven in the songs than we're normally accustomed to hearing. His drumming doesn't move to the front with incredibly complex rolls and melodies like we've heard him do in the past, but in a way is just as effective (if not more so) because he tends to blend it in better with the songs. Geddy's vocals are much more predominant in these songs, with many layers of oral orchestrations. Throughout the album, all three musicians work together equally and constantly throughout the songs, and none of them attempt to jump forward into the limelight as individuals.
The songs themselves have a lot of energy and cover a lot of different musical styles. Some songs have a definite techno, modern feel to them, others are wonderfully haunting and sublime. Favorite songs are: Ghost Rider - haunting; Vapor Trails - a wonderful piece; Nocturne - this song just rocks! I actually find myself jumping around like some teenager at a rave during this song because of all of the energy in it!; Freeze - definitely a strange song, with a grungy, electronic sound to the guitarwork. It's definitely one of the more interesting pieces.
I was surprised when I first heard it, and wasn't sure I liked it. But that's only because I'm an old-time fan and the album is nothing like you would expect. But in many ways, it's just as rewarding (if not more so) than any of their other albums.
653779
I discovered the music of Brian Eno while in college in the 80s (I was a U2 fan and had a friend that practically stood on his head to get me to give Eno a try). Ever since those days, I've been on a musical journey of sorts looking for music that might somehow bring me to the places that Eno could.  The music of Loscil, specifically "First Narrows" is one of the few albums I've encountered since then that approaches the delicate ebb and flow of those ambient marvels.

Those not accustomed to the "flavors" of modern electronic music, specifically what is today called minimal or dub, might initially be put off by "First Narrows," perhaps thinking that the rhythms have no place in an ambient landscape.  However, with time the gentle rhythms simply melt into landscapes of warm Rhodes electric piano, echoed/wash guitars, and softened, treated synth washes.

The ambient feel, and album and song titles at times conjure images of bays or coastal areas, and the gentle rhythms pulse like ripples on a quiet body of water.

The mood is not so downbeat or depressing, but rather pensive with a slightly optimistic, driven quality.

I've owned this album for just over three months now and simply cannot stop listening.  I also strongly recommend the prior album, the 2002 "submers" also on the Kranky label.
2000673
Animals is a lovely and sprawling meditation.  In my opinion, it must be listened to from start to finish.  Skipping around to songs like "Dogs" and "Sheep" (which are both amazing songs, mind  you) doesn't offer the same fluidity and emotional intensity that the  segues do.  Pick up this album and let it run behind a small get together  at your house.  It's an intimate yet grand record.  Highly Recommended.
2424949
As a huge fan of the band, I feel that Coldplay's Ghost Stories compares very favorably to the band's fantastic history of amazing albums. This album, mellow and varying in tone from light to somber, strikes all the right "notes": meaningful lyrics, captivating music, and skillful displays of a range of vocal abilities by the band's frontman Chris Martin.

Unlike the band's last album (which is my least favorite), Ghost Stories consists of largely placid, heartfelt songs that have really enamored me. Happily, every song is immensely enjoyable, and none should be avoided. Some standout tracks include "Another's Arms," "Magic," and "O." Further, the sounds of the album seem to hearken back to previous albums by the band. For instance, the track "Oceans" seems like it could easily have fit in with Coldplay's first album Parachutes.

To describe the messages within the songs, I turn to reference the Classical Roman poet Catullus. Catullus (apparently from his own perspective) writes about the highs and lows of his romantic interest, Clodia. At times, she returns his fervor, while at others she is content with pursuing the attention of other men, prompting Catullus to try his best to condemn her, which he halfheartedly and begrudgingly does. Throughout the album, one encounters songs capturing the arc of such a relationship, such as "Magic" and "Another's Arms."

Commenting on the title of the album, I feel its name shines through at different points. The tracks "Midnight," "Always in My Head," and the hidden track following "O" truly underscore this notion.

Overall, I highly recommend this album, but I encourage anyone who's interested in it to buy it from Target, which is selling the album with three additional worthwhile songs.