Lemon Jelly - Lost Horizons
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Free Music Notes for Lost Horizons
Free Music Review: Can it be true? Non-boring "chillout"????????
Hit: 5 Stars
You must have noticed the industry "conspiracy". They have discovered yet another golden egg in the form of "chill out" music and they are bombarding us with tons upon tons of chilled music that mostly offers boredom and misused CD material.Lemon Jelly to the rescue then. This, their second album, could very possibly be even better than Lemonjelly.Ky. (their debut). Amazing when you consider how good that one was (go and discover it, go, go)..
What makes them stand out from the pack? Uhm, that would be creativity and imagination, folks. There are so many ideas used in "Lost horizons" and som many beautifully binded textures that you'll need to go through many listens to get tired of this, and i mean MANY. Which is exactly the point. What makes an album go beyond the domains of "very good" and into the ones of "great" is exactly that: that it keeps revealing itself to you the more you listen to it. I've been listening to this almost on a daily basis since i've bought it (over 2 months ago) and miraculously, i have not had the notion to quit it yet. Always something new pops up in it, always a new melody reveals itself, constantly i discover that the album's appeal is truly tremendous.
These people are either geniuses in picking their samples or have simply spend a serious load of hours working on them and discovering them. Or maybe both. This is the most creative sample work i've heard in a very long while. And the melodies that accompany them are nothing short of a nice rollercoaster ride, nothing too extreme, no rough turns but yet never predictable.
Kudos for the artwork as well. I have respect for groups that respect their buying public by putting significant effort not only in the music (duh) but in the rest of their product as well. Open the booklet when you do buy this album and check it carefully. This is greatly evil!! And gorgeous at the same time too!
Some claim that this might indeed be the best "chill out" album for the year 2002. I'm getting more and more convinced that they are right.
Free Music Review: A downright fun album
Hit: 5 Stars
As a listener new to the chill-out genre, I came across this artist by happenstance and was hooked at first song. I have since determined that if my life ever became a movie I would insist on a Lemon Jelly song to be played during the rolling credits.
People either really like the group or hate it. The appeal in Lemon Jelly is found in its creativity and drive-- all songs start with a simple premise and through a new instrument, beat, or sound, it grows into a beautiful complex array of diverse sounds. The downside is that some can perceive the slow evolution to be repetitive and it does make for a very lengthy track. Regardless, the songs invoke several different emotions in the listener:
Some of the more light-hearted tracks include 'Spacewalk and 'Nice Weather for Ducks'. 'Spacewalk' is particularly clever, incorporating Neil Armstrong's comments about landing on the moon with various instruments. 'Nice Weather for Ducks' is a personal favorite based on how playful it is (the best indicator is in the lyrics-- "all the ducks are swimming in the water, tra la la la la la" against the sound of raindrops).
Every now and then, some tracks border on creepiness. 'Experiment number 6' is one such song that gives off a vibe of worry and even intrusion. 'Homage to Patagonia' is a song that can best be described as music one would hear when walking into a chic (albeit overpriced) ethnic bar.
Essentially, Lemon Jelly is a take-it-or-leave-it group based on how eccentric the music is. Listen to some sample tracks, because should it be appealing, the listener will be hooked just as I am. Because listening to one track will tell the listener in 5 minutes what takes hours to explain in a review, go listen to a sample. It's worth a shot.
Free Music Review: Gently, hypnotically, beautifully, bonkers...
Hit: 5 Stars
Eccentricity is one of the few things that England excels at and this album captures English eccentricity in all its wistful, slightly mad beauty. From the artwork on its stunning packaging - designed by Fred Deakin, one of the two musicians behind Lemon Jelly, which perfectly encapsulates the marriage of city-beats & pastoral folk that's inside - everything about "Lost Horizons" is carefully designed to gently ease you into an English summer's "Mad Hatters tea party" of strange, controlled and in the end joyously reflective music.Chill out? possibly... electro-jazz? partly... but categorising "Lost Horizons" is pointless. Like Mike Oldfield's equally odd and quintessentially English "Tubular Bells" thirty years before or United Future Organisation's mid 90's outings (two of its closest reference points) it bends established musical formats into something totally different through hypnotically repeated loops, the use of a huge range of instruments, weird, almost comical voice-overs and, most importantly, inherently uplifting chord sequences that make you feel "happy". First time through may leave you totally bemused, but beware... this is highly addictive stuff and before you know where you are you will be playing it over & over again as Lemon Jelly draw you inexorably back into their beautifully bizarre world.
And if you like it, as you will, check out Amazon.co.uk for albums by Elephant Talk - an obscure and similarly eclectic English group whose fusions of folk, jazz & city-beats are equally addictive.
Free Music Review: I don't review much...
Hit: 5 Stars
... but this CD breaks that bad habit. When I heard "space walk" on the radio station here, I knew I had to get this cd... I may the right choice. This is the feel-good CD I have been waiting for. Hard to describe, the cd reminds me of a cross between Fatboy Slim, Groove Armada, Propellerheads, and all the other house/techno/jazzy/funky type stuff you like with mellow guitar chords and an overall ambient feel. You have the track listing above - but here's the specifics
cd starts with elements - gets you right into the mood. The "doop doo doo's" are awesome (once you hear it you will know what I mean). Nice segue to Space Walk, possibly the standout track on the CD. Ramblin' man and return to patagonia are next, which bring kind of a darker feel but flow perfectly with the rest of the songs. Nice weather for ducks is my favorite track, and it even blends in some other types of music (ala Phish's 'punch you in the eye'). Experiment number six is weird at first, but you get used to it. The CD rounds out with closer and the curse of ka'zar, two feel good tracks that leave you pressing the repeat button again and again.
I highly recommend this cd; it is the first one of the hundreds I own to merit a review to urge others to buy it. I already ordered the back-ordered lemonjelly.ky cd, and I can't wait to hear it.
I hope this was easy to read and that you all enjoy this masterpiece.
Free Music Review: Aural Sunshine
Hit: 5 Stars
It's not often i'd use the word "whimsy" to describe a disc, but it's particularly apt here. Much like the Lemonjelly.ky single compilation, Lost Horizons is filled with a laid-back sense of joy. The one-two opening punch of "Elements" and "Space Walk" is guaranteed to put a smile on your face, and "Nice Weather For Ducks" will keep it there.People who get this expecting a laid-back 'chill' or 'lounge' disc are going to be in for a big suprise. The music is actually quite complex, and stands up to close listening very well. The mixing of real insturments (accoustic guitars show up on a number of tracks) with the digital is done amazingly well. While tracks like "Rambling Man" or "Closer" might call to mind the music of Blue States, Zero 7, or Four Tet, the vocal snippets Lemon Jelly lays on top give them a feel all their own and keep the generally light and upbeat theme of the album.
In short, if you loved Lemonjelly.ky, you'll be glad to know this is at least as good as that brilliant collection. And if you don't own Lemonjelly.ky, you can't go wrong getting either of these great albums.