The Album Review Club - Week #196 (page 1316) - Aja - Steely Dan

From 82-85 the Cocteaus were up there with New Order, The Fall and (ahem) the Icicle Works as favourites. Unlike the other 3 never saw Cocteaus live. Treasure a year after Head Over Heels was probably even better, but both are practically perfect, and unfathomable. They drifted after the two 1985 EPs.
 
Head Over Heels – Cocteau Twins

Wailing vocals and layers of electronica with little or no spaces between the notes. Repeat listens will not help in this case.

Only the acoustic guitar on “In The Gold Rush Dust” and bluesy piano on “Multifoiled” saved this from being a dead loss for me.

So I’ll accept that it's not for me, give it a 5/10, step back and let others discuss the merits.
 
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RobMCFC said:
Head Over Heels – Cocteau Twins

Wailing vocals and layers of electronica with little or no spaces between the notes. Repeat listens will not help in this case.

Only the acoustic guitar on “In The Gold Rush Dust” and bluesy piano on “Multifoiled” saved this from being a dead loss for me.

So I’ll accept that it's not for me, give it a 5/10, step back and let other discuss the merits.
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Too early to dismiss in my opinion, already spotted a few growers (sugar hiccup, Gold dust rush, musette and drums) also not many songs actually sound like each other despite it all being layered indie. Well that’s my take after a listen so far
 
BlueHammer85 said:
Too early to dismiss in my opinion, already spotted a few growers (sugar hiccup, Gold dust rush, musette and drums) also not many songs actually sound like each other despite it all being layered indie. Well that’s my take after a listen so far
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Fair enough. I generally agree that giving something more time will allow it to grow on you, but in some cases, there's nothing to work with. Without any doubts, this is one of those cases.
 
First listen points this to the 'not for me' shelf.

That said, it also points firmly towards the 'ahead of its time' drawer.
 
RobMCFC said:
Head Over Heels – Cocteau Twins

Wailing vocals and layers of electronica with little or no spaces between the notes. Repeat listens will not help in this case.

Only the acoustic guitar on “In The Gold Rush Dust” and bluesy piano on “Multifoiled” saved this from being a dead loss for me.

So I’ll accept that it's not for me, give it a 5/10, step back and let other discuss the merits.
Click to expand...

Might be flogging a dead horse here but maybe try one of the later albums which are not as dense and 'breath' a bit more.
That said if you are not into the approach that Robin Guthrie takes to processing a signal and for you Liz Fraser is wailing then you are probably a lost cause ;-)

It is interesting though in that Robin Guthrie doesn't play the guitar in the conventional sense of the word. I imagine given how much you love guitars in their more normal form it probably is quite a trial to listen to.The geeky bit of me loves hearing about how they made their sound but beyond that I'm drawn to the sound itself. I'm going to use an awful term (not ethereal) but it does fit..they are creating soundscapes as much as they are songs. But not in an airy fairy way, they are still songs some of which have a real drive to them.
 
Coatigan said:
That said, it also points firmly towards the 'ahead of its time' drawer.
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Very much so. It's not just the number of bands they've influenced but the breadth too. There are obvious bands like Sigur Ros but less obvious acts like The Weeknd too.
 
threespires said:
Might be flogging a dead horse here but maybe try one of the later albums which are not as dense and 'breath' a bit more.
That said if you are not into the approach that Robin Guthrie takes to processing a signal and for you Liz Fraser is wailing then you are probably a lost cause ;-)

It is interesting though in that Robin Guthrie doesn't play the guitar in the conventional sense of the word. I imagine given how much you love guitars in their more normal form it probably is quite a trial to listen to.The geeky bit of me loves hearing about how they made their sound but beyond that I'm drawn to the sound itself. I'm going to use an awful term (not ethereal) but it does fit..they are creating soundscapes as much as they are songs. But not in an airy fairy way, they are still songs some of which have a real drive to them.
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There is what you like, and then stuff that you wouldn’t normally listen to but are a few steps away from that, and you can see a connection. In these cases, you appreciate what is different and there’s plenty to discuss.

I’m all for soundscapes in the framework of a song - Daniel Lanois, Pink Floyd and others. But this offering is just to alien for me to appreciate.

I’m glad that an album like this was nominated because this thread is all about celebrating different styles of music. I’m sure a lot of people will enjoy it, but I don’t even feel like there’s anything positive I can add to the discussion, so I’d rather see what others say.
 
Just to assist people....
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Well this takes me back to my Uni days.
Not that it was me you understand, but it did create the idea for me of trying to be that little bit different, that little bit interesting and sensitive in order to get into the knickers of some other other young 1st year at Uni.

First listen in years and it was OK but didnt grab me,. I shall give it another couple of listens tomorrow.
 
LGWIO said:
Just to assist people....
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Well this takes me back to my Uni days.
Not that it was me you understand, but it did create the idea for me of trying to be that little bit different, that little bit interesting and sensitive in order to get into the knickers of some other other young 1st year at Uni.

First listen in years and it was OK but didnt grab me,. I shall give it another couple of listens tomorrow.
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I'm pretty sure people will have feigned an interest in a lot worse acts than the Cocteau Twins in an attempt to get into someones pants.
 
Like the Cocteau twins ,got this album on cassette lol at the time. Heavier sound than their later stuff . Treasure my favourite , no idea what she's singing half the time but it sounds so good. Sure they were background music for occasional football focus pieces , can't remember which song though. Saw them at the academy and they sounded so good , I thought it would be hard to replicate that sound live . If they ever reformed I am in that queue.
I don't like marmite
 
pluto said:
Like the Cocteau twins ,got this album on cassette lol at the time. Heavier sound than their later stuff . Treasure my favourite , no idea what she's singing half the time but it sounds so good. Sure they were background music for occasional football focus pieces , can't remember which song though. Saw them at the academy and they sounded so good , I thought it would be hard to replicate that sound live . If they ever reformed I am in that queue.
I don't like marmite
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A score out of 10.
 
So its had another couple of listens.
My overall thought on many of the songs was that they offered the chance of a great intro and possibility of becomig something greater, but they just seemed to stay the same.
On a few I thought that they could have pushed Liz's vocals more to the fore rather than having them drifitng along overpowered or lost in some cases. Little hints of Sylvian/Japan in "Tinderbox" I thought and of Hooky in a few others.
Even had the idea that "Multifoiled" could be Whams "Edge of Heaven" on mogodon.
The best on the album was "Musette & Drums" & "In our Anglehood" IMO where I felt that the album woke up a little.
Taking it against the other albums I have offered a score for I would put it above PJ/Ten but not by much and is one that I am not sure I will revisit. In which case I will give it a 5 from the Derry jury.

...and I love marmite, especially with a bit of crumbly Lancashire of Cheshire
 
BlueHammer85 said:
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Kudos to BlueHammer85 for sending out that link, because that certainly helped someone like me unfamiliar with the band history or their music.

As I suspected, I hadn't heard any of the songs from this album (or any others that I'm aware of). The only "Head Over Heels" I recall from the 80's were songs that came out both 1 and 2 years later, with the latter being my favorite by far.

For full disclosure, I'm not really a fan of dream pop or ethereal wave genres, but I've given this album a few listens and really do enjoy the guitars on it from Robin. I'm not surprised the band opened up tours in the mid-80s for OMD, though some of the bands they inspired that are active now are not one's I'm listening to.

Liz's vocals sounds good, but in many cases I cannot decipher what she's saying. I understand that her vocals are a big part of their sound, and it does compliment it. In that, she does a great job. I can also understand why some might have thought she was from Scandinavia with much of the words pronounced in a different way to enhance the music.

Favorites from the album for me:
1. When Mama Was Moth - OMD sound to the start, but then that guitar comes in and that's when it takes a departure that is distinct for this band. Not a fan of the drum machine, but realize that was part of the sound at that time.

2. Five Ten Fiftyfold - enjoyed the music and its pace on this one, but the lyrics of "Sneezing and wheezing and sneezing and..." not as much, but I could make it out, it just didn't have meaning for me.

4. In Our Angelhood - really strong song with a fast paced start and great guitar licks, might be my favorite on the album.

7. The Tinderbox (of a Heart) - haunting song, enjoyed the keys - reminded me a bit of Tears For Fear's "Change" that came out the same year

10. Musette and Drums - might be my second favorite song on the album, loved how this speeds up into a great guitar frenzied ending.

While I see "Sugar Hiccup" listed on many of their compilation albums, I just couldn't get past the lyrics on that track to really enjoy it.

Overall, I was listening to much different music the year this came out being in mid-high school, but I can see how those into this genre really like this.

For me, this was a 5.5/10.

I'd be interested in hearing from those that saw Cocteau Twins live in how they sounded in concert vs. their albums. I would think much of the sound here would be tough to reproduce.
 
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