Violet Indiana - Roulette
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Free Music Notes for Roulette
Free Music Review: An elegantly crafted, melodic debut
Hit: 4 Stars
I was quite interested in hearing what Mono's Siobhan De Mare and Cocteau Twins' Rubin Guthrie's new project Violet Indiana was like. Was it going to be a blatant [take on] of Mono or Cocteau Twins? Well, it turned out that "Roulette" sounded like neither. Violet Indiana is an entity of its own. I'll admit I wasn't sure what to make of "Roulette" while listening to the first track "Air Kissing". Luckily I had nothing to worry when "Air Kissing" segued into "Busted", the second track of the album. In the grand tradition of trip hop music, the music is light and airy with the delicate vocals of Siobhan De Mare. The music itself isn't really innovating to be honest but I enjoyed the duo's debut album.Free Music Review: Good, but in small doses.
Hit: 3 Stars
Cocteau Twins guitarist Robin Guthrie and vocalist Siobhan de Mare have teamed up to create Roulette, an album that, for the caliber of the people who made it, doesn't really impress me that much.Guthrie's trademark swirling, dreamy guitar work is here in full force, while de Mare's vocals are passionate and immediate. When the combination of the two works, it really works well, as on the loungey opening track, "Air Kissing," with its brushed drums and simple guitar, and "Busted," a track that really evokes memories of Cocteau Twins, complete with the trademark wall of shimmering guitar sound and multitracked vocals.
However, as the album progresses, it really doesn't live up to those opening tracks. De Mare performs these songs well for the most part (aside from one moment on "Angel" where she's horribly out of tune, but I think that's deliberate), but as the disc goes on, her lyrics become very clichéd, and her voice actually becomes a bit tiring to listen to. Guthrie, meanwhile, starts to sound pretty similar as well - his production doesn't vary much from track to track, and song 7, "Poison Gorgeous," sounds much the same as "Busted." Before the CD ends, it just sounds like the duo have run out of ideas. On the plus side, though, Roulette includes a bonus video of a song previously released on their Choke EP, "Purr La Perla." Both the video and song are excellent, and they make a worthwhile inclusion.
In the end, there's nothing really _bad_ about this CD. It's just not all that innovative, and gets very repetitive when sitting through all the tracks. Listen to just a few selections at once to get the most enjoyment out of this one.
Free Music Review: It's been done before
Hit: 3 Stars
A teaming-up of members of Cocteau Twins (Robin Guthrie) and Mono (Siobhan de Mare) sounded like something I would want to hear. The only CT cd I've heard is "Heaven or Las Vegas" (which I love), and that same dreamy swirl of guitars complemented by the obligatory silky-voiced chanteuse has been attempted here. But these songs don't lift you up and take your breath away. There's nothing here we haven't heard before and this cd doesn't really try to set itself apart from the likes of Dot Allison, Air, Lamb, etc. "Sundance" and "Poison Gorgeous" strike a chord briefly, with the latter being my favourite track here. de Mare's vocals are downright frosty. She keeps it all firmly grounded, but isn't the point of listening to this type of music to feel uplifted? Mostly, I kept wishing that each track didn't sound so indistinguishable from the last. Some variety would have helped. Fans of this down-tempo dream pop will not be disappointed, but for me it just didn't offer enough freshness or memorable, distinct tunes.Free Music Review: LIZ FRASER IT'S NOT
Hit: 3 Stars
For fans of the Cocteaux looking for a quick fix since this-greatest-of-all bands called it quits, this release may be a bit of a dissapointment. While the music is the familiar dreamy,swirly guitar echo box landscape--(think Cocteau Twins "Victorialand")-- it's missing what only the fabulously original and unduplicated Liz Fraser can provide and could have done so much more with. Check out the Cocteaux catalogue for more info on Liz Fraser releases(especially "Treasure") . Nevertheless, if you are unfamiliar with the Cocteau Twins or are just fond of desperate and achy lyrics draped behind a calming surreal setting and sultry feminine drawl, landing you somewhere between Portishead and Julia Fordham--this may be just the thing. For me, it just made me wish the Cocteaux would get back together.Free Music Review: Could do better
Hit: 3 Stars
Of course it will be impossible for Robin Guthrie to ever live up to the albatross around his fleshy neck that is the grandeur of the Cocteau Twins.Violet Indiana suffers from too much of the same, and not enough that's new. Robin still sounds like Robin, Siobhan sounds kinda like Liz but her lyrics are ..., and the production sounds rushed and amateurish.
Sorry. Let's hope for better things down the track.