JOHNSON, CALVIN What Was Me (K) cd 14.98
That Calvin Johnson is one very peculiar fella... always has been. Whether he's contorting himself like a pretzel with the funky Dub Narcotic, or crooning a bittersweet Beat Happening lo-fi luv song in his impossibly deeeeep voice, he is a distinct, unmistakable presence. His new solo album is distinct also, but in a very strange way. For some reason, the K Records kingpin has fancied himself as a blues singer from the deep south. Bizarre to say the least. It drew a chuckle or two when it was played in the store. Not sure if that's a good or bad thing, but certainly an acquired taste. If you like him, then here he is in all his glory (often without instrument accompaniment), and you'll probably enjoy this. On the other hand, if you're not a Calvin fan, this solo record will probably not win you over. And if you're completely unfamiliar with Mr. Johnson, you just might wanna check out a couple of his other records first like Beat Happening's Dreamy or Dub Narcotic's Out Of Your Mind or his collaboration with Built to Spill's Doug Martsch as the Halo Benders on God Don't Make No Junk.
RealAudio clip: "The Past Comes Back To Haunt Me"
RealAudio clip: "Nothing To Hold Us Here"

JOHNSON, CALVIN What Was Me (K) lp 11.98
That Calvin Johnson is one very peculiar fella... always has been. Whether he's contorting himself like a pretzel with the funky Dub Narcotic, or crooning a bittersweet Beat Happening lo-fi luv song in his impossibly deeeeep voice, he is a distinct, unmistakable presence. His new solo album is distinct also, but in a very strange way. For some reason, the K Records kingpin has fancied himself as a blues singer from the deep south. Bizarre to say the least. It drew a chuckle or two when it was played in the store. Not sure if that's a good or bad thing, but certainly an acquired taste. If you like him, then here he is in all his glory (often without instrument accompaniment), and you'll probably enjoy this. On the other hand, if you're not a Calvin fan, this solo record will probably not win you over. And if you're completely unfamiliar with Mr. Johnson, you just might wanna check out a couple of his other records first like Beat Happening's Dreamy or Dub Narcotic's Out Of Your Mind or his collaboration with Built to Spill's Doug Martsch as the Halo Benders on God Don't Make No Junk.
RealAudio clip: "The Past Comes Back To Haunt Me"
RealAudio clip: "Nothing To Hold Us Here"

K-RAD Deli Mood Spot (Someoddpilot) cd 14.98
The opening track for "Deli Mood Spot" is so misleading and uncharacteristic of the rest of the album that I have to question K-Rad's decision for including it on the album. K-Rad is a Chicago trio specializing in an IDM techno centered around low-sampling rate grit and faux-acid squiggliness often heard on Patrick Pulsinger's productions for Cheap Records, yet the album seductively begins with a down-tempo, trip-hop number straight outta Mo' Wax circa 1996, complete with blunted breaks, Steinski inspired samples, and DJ Shadow funk recontextualizations. Both that opening cut and the rest of the album are well-executed but certainly do not work as a paired dyptic of well-established aesthetics.
RealAudio clip: "103BR18"
RealAudio clip: "177JIF"

KANG, EYVIND Live Low To The Earth In The Iron Age (Abduction) cd 13.98
You know avant-violinist Eyvind Kang from his several discs for John Zorn's Tzadik label, and/or his work with the likes of Ikue Mori, Bill Frisell, Dying Ground, Joe McPhee, Secret Chiefs 3, and the Sun City Girls, right? Indeed, you probably recall that Kang's extended violin improvisation was a highlight of the SCG's "300,003 Crossdressers From Beyond The Rig Veda", one of their best albums. Well here's more of Kang's violin, backed by a group called the 'Neti-Neti Band' who may or may not be those selfsame Sun City Girls. Four tracks, over an hour of quiet, beautifully droning, melodic violin-based instrumental soundscapes. A bit King Crimson-ish, we'd say. Quite nice. Track three, "Highlands", gets a bit noisier than what came before, but is still quite pretty. Sure does sound like the Sun City Girls, in a trance-y mode.
RealAudio clip: "Heads On Red Lakes Return"
RealAudio clip: "Highlands"

LEGEND, THE The Everett True Connection (3 Acre Floor) cd 9.98
Everett True happened to get a rather sweet journalism assignment for NME and Melody Maker in 1989 to write about the up and coming record label Sub Pop and their cozy collection of albums from Nirvana, Screaming Trees, Dwarves, Soundgarden, etc. He stuck around Seattle during the early '90s and became what some have called "rock-crit godfather of grunge," after hobnobbing with the 'stars' of Sub Pop. Occasionally, True was known to break out into song, opening for a number of these groups as The Legend and landing a 7" on Sub Pop. Nearly a decade later, True who now resides in his native England returns as The Legend with an album on 3 Acre Floor run by the Jewelled Antler eccentric Jason Honea.
Musically, The Legend has very little in common with the Northwest sound that he wrote about in the early '90s, rather choosing the instantly urgent jangle of the Go-Betweens, the Terminals, and the general C86 sound of British indie-pop (albeit far grittier). The liner-notes written by True get the gist of the music: "After about 10 attempts we found it best not to change any rhythm or melody too rapidly, and I stumbled across a new approach to making up words. Up to that point, I'd be trying to pull random lines from old soul songs from my memory, and shout them out over the scratchy guitar."
RealAudio clip: "Spokane"
RealAudio clip: "Tacoma"

LMO, VON Tranceformer (Future Language 2.001) (Munster) cd 15.98
The reissue of this bizarre figure's collected sonic disturbances comes by way of Munster Records in Spain - licensed from the man himself. It includes the 1981 album "Future Lenguage" (or "Future Languaje" or "Future Language" depending on which edition you're looking at, previously available on Flemish Masters) as well as "Tranceformer" which was his compilation of demos, rarities and live stuff. The electrifying packaging is chock full of slogans ("Advance Yourself!"), info tidbits (this group is "from the future" and this music was "recorded in space"), not to mention mad mad silver spacesuits and huge red moonboots! Von Lmo's impassioned singing style often brings to mind the untethered energy of Jello Biafra, Tomata Du Plenty, and Lux Interior. And when he chants "Leave your body!", look out! It's absolute frenzy. The music is just as frantic. Propulsive sax a la James Chance over raw garage punk guitar, bass and drums. There are a few songs where the group slows it down somewhat, but it seems that it's then that things get even more tense, eccentric and strange. The aforementioned packaging includes a fold-out filled with extensive, entertaining liner notes written by Von Lmo.
RealAudio clip: "Leave Your Body"
RealAudio clip: "This Is Pop Rock"
RealAudio clip: "Black Noise Toys"
RealAudio clip: "We're Not Crazy"

MAGIC CARPATHIANS PROJECT Ethnocore 3: Vak (Tamizdat) cd 14.98
Ecological and feminist-minded avant-hippie Polish ethno-drone-folk-rock outfit the Magic Carpathians are back with, I think, their fifth album. We've been fans of these Terrastock-style sonic explorers since their days as Atman, and even had 'em play in in-store here at Aquarius a year or two ago, which was very cool. This new disc is more of their experimental Eastern European psychedelic "rock" music: dark and primal, with lots of repetition and drone. The Carpathians really mix things up as usual bringing in jazz bass, cello, gongs, squeaking baby toys, acoustic guitar, signalling trumpet, and more. And it's quite an international production, with portions recorded live in Varanasi India, others in galleries in Poland, with some remixes done here in California by the rhBand.
All songs of course feature the voice of Anna Nacher, who really gets wild on some of this, giving this a bit of a Bjork-gone-bonkers-gone-Balkan flavor...indeed her dramatic 20th century classical style shrieking sometimes sounds like someone from a Luigi Nono composition -- or even Keiji Haino!! Haunting stuff, even when she sounds like the Knights Who Say Ni on the track "/dark/". But she can be mellow and melodic as well. Still, this disc might be the creepiest and most 'difficult' of the Carpathian's albums yet.
RealAudio clip: "fish/wish"
RealAudio clip: "/dark/"
RealAudio clip: "n'est-ce pas?"

MAGMA Theusz Hamtaahk: Trilogie au Trianon (Seventh) dvd 27.00
Perhaps we can give this 2 hour, 43 minute dvd a fuller review sometime, but as they've been blowing out of here fast, here's a brief description as we wanted to list it this time before we run out (again) -- never fear, though, 'cause we will be able to get more in the event they're gone when you ask for yours.
It's our favorite beyond "prog" band Magma, live in concert for their 30th anniversary in Paris, May 13th and 14th 2000. This concert dvd is a total pro job, with great sound and of course out-of-this-world music, as the one and only Christian Vander and his (mostly much younger) current incarnation of Magma play the entire "Theusz Hamtaahk" trilogy: "Theusz Hamtaahk", "Wurdah Itah", and "Mekanik Destruktiw Kommandoh". Vander is older and grayer and burlier, still totally in command of his drum kit and his band, his majestic and bizarre musical vision undiminished, and in fine voice as well. Dramatically lit and well shot (with multiple cameras), it's the next best thing to actually seeing them live -- and not everyone is that lucky.
The bonus material on this all-region NTSC DVD includes interviews (in French) and additional live footage of a cute little kid playing drums on stage with Vander, who I'd guess is the proud dad. That chapter is called "Fabien, cadet de la Zeuhl".

MORCHEEBA Charango (Reprise) cd 17.98

NIGEL PEPPERCOCK The New Way (Life Is Abuse) cd 10.98
This silly local metal band, featuring members or ex-members of Fuckface, Dystopia and other Bay Area punk and grind outfits, shows us the way with their debut. Notorious for their (ironic?) usage of 1970's homoerotic imagery in flyers and now, on this release -- though that really doesn't relate to the music in particular. They call it sci-fi sex rock, and I guess that's a good (as any) description for their music. The guitars and drums are definitely in a hardcore or metal style, as are the screamy vox (with lotsa "fuck" and "whore" in the lyrics), but the pomp keyboards are as new wave as they are black metal. The songs are about things like drugs, robot girlfriends, and even "OJ's Wild Ride" (some topical humor kinda past its sell by date, there). Several are intended as parodies of various underground punk genres. Definitely kinda stupid, but lots of people like stupid stuff like this. Fun for fans of the Dwarves, the Accused, Antiseen, Crom, uh, and of course Rick the Desert Dick! (The star of several of the photos you'll find and enjoy in this cd package.)
RealAudio clip: "Cherry 2000"

NIGEL PEPPERCOCK The New Way (Life Is Abuse) lp 8.98
This silly local metal band, featuring members or ex-members of Fuckface, Dystopia and other Bay Area punk and grind outfits, shows us the way with their debut. Notorious for their (ironic?) usage of 1970's homoerotic imagery in flyers and now, on this release -- though that really doesn't relate to the music in particular. They call it sci-fi sex rock, and I guess that's a good (as any) description for their music. The guitars and drums are definitely in a hardcore or metal style, as are the screamy vox (with lotsa "fuck" and "whore" in the lyrics), but the pomp keyboards are as new wave as they are black metal. The songs are about things like drugs, robot girlfriends, and even "OJ's Wild Ride" (some topical humor kinda past its sell by date, there). Several are intended as parodies of various underground punk genres. Definitely kinda stupid, but lots of people like stupid stuff like this. Fun for fans of the Dwarves, the Accused, Antiseen, Crom, uh, and of course Rick the Desert Dick! (The star of several of the photos you'll find and enjoy in this cd package.)

NOTWIST, THE Neon Golden (City Slang) cd 18.98
If you're a regular AQ customer you already know that we're all huge fans of Village of Savoonga, the darkest and most dramatically experimental of the many musical outfits hailing from the loose collective of musicians based in Bavaria, Germany. Another group from this incredibly fertile scene, The Notwist started out as a punk band but have gotten better and more different with each release (reflecting the Acher brothers' growing musical smarts and proficiency), culminating in this nice rock album. But not just any indie rock, this music is wistful, lyrical, softly flowing music that's *extremely* well executed, no filler, and brings in all kinds of non-rock elements -- in sort of the same way that the Beta Band does -- *casually*, not making a big deal out of it. Cos electronic keyboards and programming and stuff (courtesy Martin Gretschmann of the solo electronic act Console) are merely one facet of The Notwist's sound, which also includes very catchy minor key hooks, attractively textural cracklings and wooden clop clops, plucked strings (cello?), machine made gurgles and squishies, even out-of-place (-but-not-really) breakbeats that actually work.
In addition to the guy from Console, The Notwist personnel includes the abovementioned Acher brothers Micha (Village of Savoonga, Tied+Tickled Trio) and Markus (VoS, T+TT, Lali Puna).
Highly recommended! This is a grower.
RealAudio clip: "One Step Inside Doesn't Mean You Understand"
RealAudio clip: "Consequence"

OPETH Blackwater Park (Koch) 2cd 17.98
Reissued yet again! This time with an extra disc, featuring 2 previously unreleased tracks and a video! Not sure if it's worth buying again (although it probably is for Allan and Andee) but if you haven't got this yet (WHY NOT?!?!?) then now's the time. And you can also get yourself all psyched up for the fall release of not one, but TWO brand new Opeth albums (Use Your Illusion style!). The bonus tracks are cool, but we're not sure they're essential, both are gorgeous and simple, finger picked acoustic guitar workouts with plaintive vocals. Really nice but definitely NOT HEAVY. The video is cool though, lots of Opeth-in-the-studio footage. But here's what we had to say about the disc last time:
Opeth are GODS. The Swedish gods of progressive death/black metal, that is. And by progessive, yes, we mean full on '70s style prog-rock, mixed with the heaviest, most crushing metal attack you can imagine. The many many local SF fans of Weakling should be aware: this band was one of the big influences on Weakling's trance-inducing compositions. Opeth's songs can be equally epic and hypnotic, but of course incorporate a wider, dare we say lovlier array of musical elements. In Opeth's arsenal, there's vocals both growled and clean, acoustic guitar, an incredible sense of dynamics, and inspired melodicism. Blackwater Park (inexplicably named after an obscure krautrock boogie band? we can't figure it out) follows their awesome Still Life album, making for the fifth entry in the Opeth pantheon. While it would be hard to be much better than that album (and that's what we thought about Still Life's predecessor, My Arms Your Hearse too), Opeth continue to perfect perfection, I guess. While the nine-minute plus song lengths found here don't push past earlier excesses, Blackwater Park does see Opeth progressing into even more, uh, progressive areas. Being Pink Floyd fans, they even got Steve Wilson of UK young Floyd proggers Porcupine Tree to produce! So, the mellow parts are mellower, the metal parts cleaner and more precise. If you've never heard them before, we might suggest starting with their more psychedelically murky masterpiece My Arms Your Hearse, but Blackwater Park should also be on your list. Pure art from the masters. All that drool was justified.
RealAudio clip: "The Leper Affinity"
RealAudio clip: "Harvest"
RealAudio clip: "The Funeral Portrait"

PERRY, LEE Compiler Vol. 1 (Rectangle) cd 14.98
Mixed bag collection of Lee Perry productions and bogus (ie: non-Perry cuts). The tracks date as far back as 1966 and as recent as 1990 (with the bulk of the actual Perry tracks residing in the early Black Ark era around 197 to 1975) to our knowledge -- the fellers who compiled this anthology chose not to include any information about their choices (hmmm... I wonder why?) The material is primarily instrumentals and dubs, with a couple of Perry vocals thrown in for kicks. Among the more familiar Perry tracks: Flames of the Dragon, Django Shoots First, Enter the Dragon and Clint Eastwood Rides Again. For what it's worth, some of the bogus tracks (not even David Katz's thorough Perry discography has any record of them) like "Army Dub" and a dub of Johnny Clarke's "Every Knee Shall Bow" are quite nice even if they aren't the work of Lee Perry.
RealAudio clip: "Django Shoots First"
RealAudio clip: "Supersonic Man"

PERRY, LEE Compiler Vol. 1 (Rectangle) lp 14.98
Mixed bag collection of Lee Perry productions and bogus (ie: non-Perry cuts). The tracks date as far back as 1966 and as recent as 1990 (with the bulk of the actual Perry tracks residing in the early Black Ark era around 197 to 1975) to our knowledge -- the fellers who compiled this anthology chose not to include any information about their choices (hmmm... I wonder why?) The material is primarily instrumentals and dubs, with a couple of Perry vocals thrown in for kicks. Among the more familiar Perry tracks: Flames of the Dragon, Django Shoots First, Enter the Dragon and Clint Eastwood Rides Again. For what it's worth, some of the bogus tracks (not even David Katz's thorough Perry discography has any record of them) like "Army Dub" and a dub of Johnny Clarke's "Every Knee Shall Bow" are quite nice even if they aren't the work of Lee Perry.
RealAudio clip: "Django Shoots First"
RealAudio clip: "Supersonic Man"

PITA Get Down (Mego) lp 14.98
Peter Rehberg, best known to the world as Pita, has rerouted himself in an unexpected new direction of dissonance. Rather than shoveling a fistful of sonic crud down your proverbial throat, Pita opts for a more roundabout approach, this time using only a finger or two and jiggling them around and slapping your cheeks before jamming a knuckle sandwich through your nose. His trademark onslaught of hard disk explosion has been restrained to wandering digital abstraction and heavy filtering and time lag processing. Not terribly exciting, though there are high expectations of a maverick leader in power electronics and twenty first century noise. Dare we flip the vinyl-only release to side two, we are rewarded with washes of rhythmic tones and pseudo-melodies -- however, at close examination, we speculate that the same processes are applied here as on the first side, though with an outcome more acid-drenched and dynamic. Are the outcomes of these pieces -- or more appropriately, experiments -- predetermined, or merely the result of algorithmic randomizations and mathematical surprises unforseen by their instigator? Whatever the case, "Get Down" is a fine listen in itself, potent in its exploration of sound, though we are weary of the artistic validity and intent of the approach and process. Good, but not great.

POLMO POLPO The Science Of Breath (Substractif) cd 14.98
When working in such a restrictive environment as Chain Reactive microhouse, the success and failure of a piece of music usually comes down to the basics of writing good music in generating a punchy rhythm out of Reactor and filtering ghostly remnants of melody out of synthetic / metallic atmospheres. Microhouse pioneers like Vladislav Delay have faltered when trying to get too clever in their textural programming while forgetting that the core to heroin house is dance music. But like Plastikman and Gas before him, Toronto producer Sandro Perri (aka Polmo Polpo) understands where minimalist techno has succeeded with an unrelentingly throbbing, Kompakt-monophunk rhythms and slowly filtered aerated reverberations. The murky hiss and thick white noise common to the early Chain Reaction records are present in Polmo Polpo's exceptional debut "The Science Of Breath," but have been sculpted out of heavily digitized lap steel, cello, and slide guitar. Very nicely done!
RealAudio clip: "Acqua"
RealAudio clip: "Rottura"
RealAudio clip: "Riva"

PROM, THE Under The Same Stars (Barsuk) cd 13.98
Lovely! The entrance of The Prom is one of grand descending orchestral processions. Would make the perfect soundtrack to a '70s film of doomed romance and drama. Sumptuous chamber pop instrumentation with the piano leading the way. Beautiful, heartrending lyrical tales from the graceful pen of Mr. James Mendenhall - quite reminiscent of Elliott Smith and XTC's Andy Partridge. The third song's piano beginning really made me think of a Journey ballad (uh-oh!) until the vocals came in, then it felt much more in line with Quasi (whew, a good thing!). This album finds itself on Barsuk Records, home to the likeminded intelligent pop of John Vanderslice, The Long Winters and of course Death Cab For Cutie, but it fits just as comfortably in the finely crafted company of lush Brit bands like Doves or Coldplay. A very very impressive debut!
RealAudio clip: "Guarantees Aren't Easy"
RealAudio clip: "The Same Complaints "

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS By The Way (Warner Bros.) cd 17.98
Even reviewing this is a guilty pleasure. Yes, unfortunately, I must admit -- a pleasure. First I reveal my D&D playing lifestyle, now I'm admitting to sort of liking the Red Hot Chili Peppers. It's like I'm the star of Aquarius Records' very own conceptual version of Jackass. All I can say is, I used to like the Chili Peppers, years ago, in college. C'mon, you did too. Uplift Mofo Party Plan, Mother's Milk, y'know, those were good. Then they did that "Under The Bridge" song. Suddenly they're all about MTV ballads, crooning, cloying stuff. Ugh. Plus who told that guy he could sing?? But then, I was repeatedly exposed to Californication (I know, it's kinda embarrrassing even typing that word) while in Europe a few years ago. That broke down my resistance I guess. I liked it. And what's weird, now, is that I like the Chili Pepper's pretty, sing-songy stuff, it's the slap bass funk-punk stuff that sounds really corny and stupid. Fortunately they mostly stick to the ballads on this record, and leave all that funkery to the rap-rock bands like Linkin Bizkit to whom the old Chili Peppers must have been such an inspiration. And I like Anthony Kiedis' voice, now, too. You can always tell it's him, he's got his own style. Ok, so it's not like I'm telling you to buy this. I didn't -- but, if I got a promo I wouldn't necessarily trade it in... Objectively, I'd have to say this is a bad record. Cheesy, wimpy, and dumb, with some truly cringe-worthy moments. But I haven't turned it off yet, while writing this. So I'm just telling you to try to understand if someone you know, a friend or family member likes it. Or if you do.

REINDEER SECTION Son of Evil Reindeer (Bright Star Recordings) cd 16.98
The predominantly Scottish supergroup returns with another album of dreamy mellowness and an expanded roster which now includes members of Teenage Fanclub and Idlewild. The recognizable sounds of the participants' individual bands (Arab Strap, Belle & Sebastian and Mogwai to name a few) are much less obvious this time around - seeming much less like a compilation than a collaborative effort. Last time, we could really proclaim, "That song sounds just like Arab Strap." On Son of Evil Reindeer, The 'Section sounds much more cohesive although still keeping within the wistful, melancholic territory of the bands mentioned above. Comforting blankets of folky pop tunes to wrap yourself in and a few peppier numbers to liven things up a bit. Very recommended for fans of the pretty and bittersweet. Warm hugs and pints for all!
RealAudio clip: "Your Sweet Voice"
RealAudio clip: "You Are My Joy"

RILEY, TERRY In C (Wergo) cd 18.98
What with the near critical mass of "In C" renditions currently available at this point, every new addition to the pile must contain a better gimmick in their arrangement in order to stand out from the pack. This brand new version on Germany's Wergo label teams up a respected performance ensemble (European Music Project) with an electronic duo (Zignorii++) with the hopes of bridging the gap between the minimalism of academia with its bastard child, electronic dance music. 29 pages of well written liner notes (neatly interspersed with the 53 cells that make up Riley's score for In C) convincingly argue the importance of this work in the canon of European art music and minimalism's connection to the populist form of the modern club music. If only the execution was as seductive as the liner notes' rhetoric. The first few minutes are tolerable enough, competently performed by EMP, but as the "electronic" component begins to creep in, our stomachs begin to turn. Though the notes claim that the computer brain behind Zignorii++ has written his own sequencing software, he might as well be using an 808 to create his acid house synth noodlings. And yet, in the end, the performace fails not by the inclusion of an electronic (dance) music element, but in its tepid pussyfooting with the genre by merely tossing in some synth elements. Now if they had chosen to replace the obbligato piano pulse with a fat 4/4 beat tuned to a low C they would at least give us a reason to drop some X. But I guess that would have been a violation of the composer's specific, and already liberal, instructions.
RealAudio clip: "In C [excerpt 1]"
RealAudio clip: "In C [excerpt 2]"

ROLLERBALL Long Walk for Ice Cream (Cochon Records) cd 14.98
Rollerball scares up all sorts of psychologically charged demons within their cabaret theatrics, not unlike the atmospheres that saturate the works of Barry Adamson and to a lesser extent Tom Waits and Nick Cave (due to the fact that Rollerball's vocal duets / croons are engaging, but not as engrossingly powerful as either Waits or Cave, but the accompaniments remain similar). The slow patter of brushed drums, a minor chord on a piano, and melody lines from clarinet, accordion, and trumpet fix a darkened mood upon their jazz-decay creakiness. Occasionally, Rollerball dissolves the structures into epic free-jazz spaciousness that recalls their Portland comrades Jackie-O Motherfucker. "Long Walk For Ice Cream" collects the "Sam Donaldson" 7" single and the "Zapatos" 10" previously released through Cochon as well as four new tracks.
RealAudio clip: "Theme From A Movie With Characters"
RealAudio clip: "Blu Lu"

ROTHKO A Continual Search For Origins (Too Pure) cd 16.98
Once a trio of bassists gently interweaving painterly melodies, Rothko is now under the sole governance of Mark Beazley, as the other two members Jon Meade and Crawford Blair have left to pursue other projects (Lomax and Geiger Counter, respectively). The new Rothko is not dissimilar to the Rothko which produced such masterful albums as "A Negative For Francis" or "In The Pulse Of An Artery;" though Beazley does flush out the two missing bassists with a baroque application of additional instruments. Guitars, bells, vocals, drums, field recordings, trumpets, and keyboards make themselves known as the supporting cast to the Rothko sound which continues to promote the richness of basslines that spiral through somber melodic repetitions and cascading washes of sustained drones. The vocals from Caroline Ross recall the Celtic siren calls from Enya, and thus renders the possibility of Rothko delving into the drivel of New Age. Fortunately, her presence only on the opening track is an aberration to the rest of Beazley's otherwise exceptional re-incarnation of Rothko. The LP is missing two tracks featured on the CD.
RealAudio clip: "This Lake Of Hope"
RealAudio clip: "St. Giorgio"
RealAudio clip: "I Sense You Fading Away"