Imaginary albums was one of the topics for many years in the blog
before the re-start early 2022. It was based on the "Debut album game"
that was making its rounds around bulletin boards and blogs over ten
years ago. The idea was to create an album cover for a fictional band
(anything that came up in the random Wikipage generator) with a
fictional title (the last four words of the very last quote of the page
generated at the Random quotations site) and a cover image found by
searching for a random Flickr Explore photograph. I have been trying to
find out who had the original idea, but so far no success.
I
made a few changes to this procedure: I opted to take any four words
(although preferably the final ones) of a random quotation to give me
the album title. Moreover, also because of copyright constraints, I
decided to choose suitable images from my own Flickr streams for the
cover. Finally, to spice things up a bit, I added a fictional review for
these fictional albums.
Death by Celebrity
It has taken the Slovakian pop group Sponvika three years to come to
terms with the tremendous success of their debut album, which sold
millions of copies all over Europe. The sudden superstar status of
singer Josip Dvorak led to severe arguments within the group, a number
of cancelled tours, and repeated postponement of the studio sessions of
their second album. Well, that album finally arrived on my desk
yesterday, and the title, obviously meant to be ironic, is unfortunately
quite to the point. Gone are the catchy rhythms and beautiful tunes,
and there is not much else that has come in its place. A pity.
Quote by Kent Nichols and Douglas Sarine: Here's
a tip to avoid death by celebrity: First off, get a life. They can't
touch you if you're out doing something interesting.
Together in the merciful dark
I had thought that Emo had by now run its course as a style of rock
music popular with a certain segment of teenage and early tween
listeners. But here we have the band Fueled by Hate, from Stockholm,
whose first album is storming up the charts all over Europe. Together in the merciful dark
is surprisingly good quality emo punk with a dash of progressive rock
sounds making a surprising and effective variation on the usual
soundscape. Perhaps not so surprising after all, considering that the
album was produced by Opeth's Mikael Akerfeldt. The title song,
available on YouTube, is a good starting point to explore this band.
Recommended.
Quote by Mary Stewart: I reached for sleep and drew it round me like a blanket muffling pain and thought together in the merciful dark.
The Basic Truths of Life
One of the best debut albums of the decade in my opinion. Singer/song
writer Arlabecca (the artist name of Simone Lipschwitz from San
Francisco) gives her comments on every day life hassles, from the banal
to the profound. Always with great lyrics and haunting melodies,
accompanied by her self on piano with a small jazz-style studio combo.
Sample the title song on her Facebook page and you'll get a good
impression of her style. Very highly recommended.
Quote by Elizabeth Goudge: Most of the basic truths of life sound absurd at first hearing.
Quote by Elizabeth Goudge: Most of the basic truths of life sound absurd at first hearing.
Suffering, nothing but suffering
Just when you thought Emo had run its course, the Belgian band Escape Clause releases their debut album Suffering, nothing but suffering. A very appropriate title for having to review this disc. It start and ends with two pretty bad covers, Joy Division's Love will tear us apart, and Bowie's Rock'n'roll suicide.
And the ten self-penned songs in between are far worse. Granted, the whole genre does not hold much appeal for me, but even so I'd
recommend you give this a miss.
Quote by Jane Austen: One does not love a place the less for having suffered in it, unless it has been all suffering, nothing but suffering.
Quote by Jane Austen: One does not love a place the less for having suffered in it, unless it has been all suffering, nothing but suffering.
No Glory in Illness
The background story is well-known by now: just after Timmy Maechler stormed the charts with the hit Automatic and the debut album So far so good,
he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Two years later he has been
pronounced cured, but the experience of course left a mark on his soul.
His sophomore album, with its wry but appropriate title, takes us
through these experiences - albeit set against similar driving beats as
on his debut album. It is not an easy listen, but very rewarding.
Quote by John Green: If you were to go [to the Rijksmuseum], and hopefully someday you will, you would see a lot of paintings of dead people. You'd see Jesus on the cross, and you'd see a dude getting stabbed in the neck, and you'd see people dying at sea and in battle and a parade of martyrs. But Not. One. Single. Cancer. Kid. Nobody biting it from the plague or smallpox or yellow fever or whatever, because there is no glory in illness. There is no meaning to it. There is no honor in dying of.
Quote by John Green: If you were to go [to the Rijksmuseum], and hopefully someday you will, you would see a lot of paintings of dead people. You'd see Jesus on the cross, and you'd see a dude getting stabbed in the neck, and you'd see people dying at sea and in battle and a parade of martyrs. But Not. One. Single. Cancer. Kid. Nobody biting it from the plague or smallpox or yellow fever or whatever, because there is no glory in illness. There is no meaning to it. There is no honor in dying of.
Quiet, Still and Solitary
The Estonian band Bithiasa is difficult to categorize. They are composed
of a string quartet and a wind quartet, who both had considerable
success in the contemporary classical repertoire - yet, as Bithiasa they
explore different styles altogether. Although the general feeling of
their music is soothing, it is not New Age either. So forget about
labels, and enjoy the impressive musicality that is evident in every
single note on their debut album.
Quote by Franz Kafka: You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait, be quiet, still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet.
Quote by Franz Kafka: You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait, be quiet, still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet.
At the Gates of a New City
Riff Raff Theatre Company from Aberdeen has slowly but surely come to
the attention of the prog community. Five years since their first gig,
and three albums under their belts, their latest release could be their
big breakthrough. At the gates of a new city is an exhilarating
mix of neo prog, postrock and prog metal, blended into a sound unlike
any other band. Four epics in the best prog tradition (between 10 and 15
minutes each), and the more radio-friendly (but great) song Tourniquet. Give them a spin!
Quote by Anne Michaels: Hold a book in your hand and you're a pilgrim at the gates of a new city.
Quote by Anne Michaels: Hold a book in your hand and you're a pilgrim at the gates of a new city.
Bits of Stellar Matter
When Kraftwerk hit the charts in the seventies, other groups tried to
follow suit, aiming for their own share of the electronic pop music pie.
Most were not very successful, but Damals from Freiburg did manage to
get some success with the single Metropolis and the debut double album Bits of stellar matter.
The original LP records are a rarity nowadays, but this recent reissue
on one CD makes for an interesting document. Even if it is a notch below
the level of Kraftwerk.
Quote by Sr Arthur Eddington: We are bits of stellar matter that got cold by accident, bits of a star gone wrong.
Quote by Sr Arthur Eddington: We are bits of stellar matter that got cold by accident, bits of a star gone wrong.
Memories can be Bad
This is a stunning debut album by
percussionist Marie Schölzel. She tackles a baker's dozen of
contemporary compositions, both for untuned and tuned percussion. It's a
niche genre that Evelyn Glennie has dominated for decades, but the
young Bavarian certainly appears to be ready to become a strong
competitor. Strongly recommended.
Quote by Takayuki Ikkaku, Arisa Hosaka and Toshihiro Kawabata: Memories can be bad, but sometimes they can also save you.
Quote by Takayuki Ikkaku, Arisa Hosaka and Toshihiro Kawabata: Memories can be bad, but sometimes they can also save you.
The Sacrament of Confirmation
Many prog lovers pine for the seventies, and it is fortunate that even
rather obscure acts see their old albums re-released as CD's or
downloads. Not all of them are worthwhile of course, but once in a while
one can find a real gem. A case in point is the Welsh band Girdadul
with their only album The Sacrament of Confirmation, originally
released in 1974. There is some early Genesis and Camel in their sound,
and although they do not quite reach those heights, it is an album very
much worthwhile listening to.
Quote by Voltaire: When we hear news we should always wait for the sacrament of confirmation.
Quote by Voltaire: When we hear news we should always wait for the sacrament of confirmation.
Mysteries That Challenge You
Sitting on the fence between New Age and World Music, Japan's leading shakuhachi player Katsushi Ota's latest album has already sold over a million copies in Japan, and will likely be quite successful elsewhere as well. The repertoire is a nice mixture of Japanese folk tunes, covers of Western songs like Fool on the Hill and As Tears Go By, and fascinating medleys based on Toru Takemitsu's film music. Ota manages to steer away from any cheesiness. Warmly recommended.
Quote by Meladee McCarty :
Live your life as though there is great joy to be experienced... an
abundance of goodness in each person you come in contact with, and the
knowledge that you have enough inner wisdom to answer the mysteries that
challenge you.
Stand like a RockThe third album by Integrated Product Team from Blackpool sees the band take little chances. The concept follows that of the two preceding albums, which were pretty successful: a blend of art rock, postrock, dreampop, and a dash of folk here and there. All enjoyable, but yes, we heard it all before.
Quote by Thomas Jefferson: In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Copyright statement: all imaginary album covers are based on my own photographs. Copyright Hennie Schaper.
