Mahavishnu Orchestra - Apocalypse
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Mahavishnu OrchestraEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown)
CD Release Date: 2008-02-01
Music Label: Sbme Special Mkts.
Soundtracks:
- Power of Love
- Vision Is a Naked Sword
- Smile of the Beyond
- Wings of Karma
- Hymn to Him
Free Music Notes for Apocalypse
Free Music Review: what happened?
Hit: 5 Stars
Update- one year later. Well, I wondered whether Apocalypse would ever grow on me, and I can finally say- it sure did! A year after I wrote this review, I now feel guilty for giving a Mahavishnu Orchestra album 3 stars, especially for an album filled to the brim with creative ideas that you honestly don't hear much these days.
Honestly, I give this album 4.5 stars. I was WRONG to focus on the supposed "cheesy strings" because I didn't realize last year how cool and unique the London Symphony Orchestra truly is, and how... what's the word I'm looking for? WHIMSICAL and breathtakingly beautiful that orchestra can make music sound, especially when combined with the styles of rock or jazz.
Plus, combining TWO magnificent orchestras together was probably a big event for Mahavishnu fans back in the day. So I apologize- it was mainly the London Symphony Orchestra that needed to grow on me in order for me to fully understand and appreciate Apocalypse.
Other than that, McLaughlin's guitar playing is, like always, played with a distinct passion and blazing speed that only HE was the master of back in the day. A truly distinct style of guitar playing if there ever WAS one!
Let me make this clear- "Hymn to Him" is a 20-minute MASTERPIECE of orchestral perfection. The scorchingly beautiful and adventurous violin jam that appears in the second half, the pretty build-up of strings thanks to the London Symphony Orchestra, and the eventual pay off of guitar jamming that seriously borders the most intense stuff from Between Nothingness and Eternity... WOW. This is a classic album. I don't know WHAT I was thinking to ignore such a great song a year ago.
There's plenty of other moments on the album that floor me as well, thanks to some truly fantastic instrumental skills on the part of the band members. Yeah, it's true there's more strings than I would have liked, but now that I understand what McLaughlin's intentions were, it's easy for me to ignore those strings and focus on 50 minutes of really good music.
This was my OLD review-
While disappointing, I can't bring myself to really give it a negative rating. John McLaughlin *is* a musical genius after all.
It's not necessarily his guitar playing that's the problem with Apocalypse- it's the dreaded amount of cheesy strings that give the entire album a soundtrack vibe that irritates me to no end. Don't get me wrong- I love Disney films, but we don't need to hear that kind of stuff from a band that was incredibly energetic, heavy, influential, and distinct just a couple years before.
Despite the heavy soundtrack vibes and ideas that dominate most of the album, I have to admit much of it is quite melodic and pleasant. It's just... not what you'd expect after the previous two albums were *insanely* vigorous.
The lineup change was quite the change alright! Now the band barely resembles what they were doing before. "Vision is a Naked Sword" features some brutally heavy parts that will probably remind you of some of the stuff Mahavishnu Orchestra was doing on the previous album. Or it might remind you of the opening track from King Crimson's "Red" album. Easily the highlight of Apocalypse.
The singing parts of "Smile of the Beyond" again goes in a much different direction than the original lineup had. I can't see how most people who loved the guitar playing on the first two albums would be able to tolerate this song. First of all, the band shouldn't have ever included vocals (IMO) because they take away from the visionary instrumental jams. Nothing like having to deal with a sudden red light on a long desert highway.
I don't think John McLaughlin knew how amazingly distinct his guitar playing was at the time. Maybe most people didn't hear it either. It would make sense since, after all, the early 70's had all sorts of highly original musical ideas. Or maybe McLaughlin secretly knew he would never be able to make something that resembles the first two albums ever again.
Still, while a disappointment, time has shown I can get used to anything, and maybe over time I will finally be able to appreciate this album the way McLaughlin intended. It's not a bad album. It's just much much different.
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