Visitations

1. Zurvan Akara

2. Aion

Visitations,Jonah Sharp,Subharmonic,Ambient,Electronica,Rock

Average customer rating: A Mildly Disappointing Visit to the Clinic the future of rock Visitating More of the same, which is great

Visitations Clinic Manufacturer: Domino ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: The Good, the Bad & the Queen New Magnetic Wonder Sound of Silver We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank Favourite Worst Nightmare ASIN: B000LP5FT0 Release Date: 2007-01-23

Tracks:

1. Family
2. Animal
3. Gideon
4. Harvest (Within You)
5. Tusk
6. Paradise
7. Children Of Kellogg
8. If You Could Read Your Mind
9. Jigsaw Man
10. Interlude
11. The New Seeker
12. Visitations

Amazon.com

Few contemporary rock bands have the sonic vision of this Liverpool quartet, who blend a stylistic propulsion akin to Joy Division with the ambitious scope of Ennio Morricone, complete with the Italian film composer's penchant for melodica and fuzzy surf guitars. The results are both agitating and oddly comforting. Their loveliest tunes, like the vocal-choir ditty "Animal/Human," pulse with dark keyboard undertones and dischordant clangs of autoharp. Even at their most rigorously experimental Clinic cling to '60s roots. In "Children of Kellogg" they contrast sandblasting guitar and jittery cymbal smacks with blithe melodica, and an easy-listening interlude (think Mantovani) gets shattered by the sound of sawing wood. If that's not enough to signal their sense of humor, consider titles like "If You Could Read Your Mind" and their habit of playing gigs in surgical scrubs. Although not quite as towering an achievement as 2002's Grammy-nominated Walking with Thee, Visitations keeps Clinic at the tip of modern popular music's shrinking creative vanguard. --Ted Drozdowski

Album Description

Since exploding into life about nine years ago, this Liverpool quartet released a brilliant debut, "Internal Wrangler" in 2000, toured with Radiohead, and appeared at Scott Walker's Meltdown. In 2002, their second album, "Walking With Thee" earned them a Grammy nomination. Described by NME as "a stunning return to form", this release sees the band work again with Gareth Jones (Interpol, Nick Cave, Depeche Mode). Clinic are distinctive in the way that The Fall, The Residents, or Missy Elliot are distinctive - it's hard to mistake their sonic fingerprint for anyone else's, yet because they keep exploring the outer limits of their thing, they always sound fresh.

Customer Reviews:

A Mildly Disappointing Visit to the Clinic.......2007-06-23

I love the menace in Clinic's sound. Angular, harsh, disconcerting--all of them apply. It's as if the singer from ? & the Mysterions were fronting the Fall. And they're playing a voodoo club in Haiti whose walls and ceiling are painted glossy black, with only a few bare light bulbs for illumination.

Were it not for expectations being so high, I would find 'Visitations' just fine. But they are, and as a result, 'Visitations' suffers.

To hear what 'Visitations' could have been, cue up "If You Could Read Your Mind". The tinny, angular guitar line, the zither, the disembodied vocals (especially the 'whoops' in the chorus) and the maracas make this prime Clinic. It's Bo Diddley meets Sam the Sham & the Pharoahs. Perfect. But it's a peak they too seldom reach.

'Visitations' is an improvement over 'Winchester Cathedral', and you could do worse than to purchase this. (Ever heard of the Hold Steady or the Cold War Kids?) "If You Could Read Your Mind" will light up your iPod and MP3 players and amaze your friends. But comparisons with 'Walking With Thee' and 'Internal Wrangler' are inevitable, and 'Visitations' comes up just a bit short.

the future of rock.......2007-05-07

Great minds think alike.I have read the reviews of all the CLINIC albums and everyone seems to agree on three things:CLINIC is the future sound of rock. This band is way ahead of everything else out there.Second,the singer sounds like he's singing through clenched teeth,but this is a good thing.And third,their sound is a mix of just about every influence you can think of,but it emerges as a totally unique new sound.So forget about all your other albums and get as many CLINIC records as you can.I know I am.thanks dennis

Visitating.......2007-03-11

Personally it was the surgical masks that first pulled me into Clinic.

But it was their tangled, intense art-rock that kept me listening to this strange little band. And their fourth album "Visitations" doesn't stray too far from the style Clinic has mastered in their previous albums, yet somehow it's still compelling, dense and just a bit unnerving.

It opens with "Family," a sort of stompy freakfolk anthem that veers along steadily without any big ups or downs. So, uh what makes it hypnotic? Ade Blackburn's distinctive (if rather mumbly) voice floating above the dense thicket of buzzy guitars and melodica, as he murmurs out lyrics about family, capture and whatever. I told you it was hard to understand.

But that doesn't make the music that follows any less excellent: the somnolent "Animal/Human" with its slow, circling melody, which is followed by sizzling slow-burning rock, ringing art-punk, murmuring freak-folk, and soaring indiepop in the shimmering "If You Could Read Your Mind." It closes on the title track, a suitably atmospheric song that makes me think of deserts, sunsets and stone-faced cowboys.

Yeah, their sound hasn't really altered over their entire discography. True. But on the other hand, Clinic sounds surprisingly refreshed, compared to the more lackluster "Winchester Cathedral," as if they've taken a long nap and woken up with renewed enthusiasm. There's more soul in this one.

The music itself is a glorious tangle of ringing guitars, simmering bass, and rippling melodica in some of the softer songs. It's dense, heavy and wild, like a thorny thicket. But it's also surprisingly hypnotic, since the melodies tend to circle themselves in a repeating loop, but they're complex enough not to sound repetitive. Instead, listeners get sucked in.

Ade Blackburn's voice is pretty distinctive too -- high-pitched, detached, and kinda stoned. But he has the vocal chops to rise above the simmering music, and he murmurs the lyrics almost like a chant. Basically, he fits into the music seamlessly, because his singing is just as hypnotically circular.

What could "Visitations" do without, though? Well, "Interlude" is basically just a half minute of creepy inarticulate whispers, and somehow the dense blasting of "Children of Kellogg" just didn't grab me. And I had to crank down the volume.

But "Visitations" is definitely a good return for Clinic, after a third album that was rather lackluster. Their cycling, eerie art-rock is definitely something to look out for.

More of the same, which is great.......2007-01-30

Ok first off, I'd like to thank either Clinic or Domino records or whoever decided to put a copy of the cd in with the purchase of the vinyl. Now I have the awesomeness of owning it on vinyl plus the convenience of the cd. Lets make that common practice! Now onto the tunes. If ya like clinic, you'll like this cd, cuz basically it sounds like every other clinic cd: talking through your teeth vocals with spooky boogie behind it. In fact some songs I swear I heard before, but ya know what? I dont even care, cuz this cd still rocks especially family, children of kellogg and if you could read your mind. Good stuff! Buy this.

Average customer rating:

Visitations Clinic Manufacturer: Domino ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: The Good, the Bad & the Queen Someone to Drive You Home Harvest So Divided Sound of Silver ASIN: B000HKDC2G Release Date: 2006-09-25

Tracks:

1. Family
2. Animal/Human
3. Gideon
4. Harvest (Within You)
5. Tusk
6. Paradise
7. Children of Kellogg
8. If You Could Read Your Mind
9. Jigsaw Man
10. Interlude
11. New Seeker
12. Visitations

Album Description

Fourth studio album from this brilliant Liverpool Art/Punk quartet who don surgical masks for their publicity photos! Their often brutal cerebral attacks on musical formulas has made them a favorite with the critics and music buyers alike. 12 tracks including the single 'Harvest (Within You)'. Domino. 2006.

Album Details

Following on from the Release of Lead Single `harvest (Within You)', Clinc Unleash their Latest Album `visitations'. A Unique and Distinctive Band who Gather the Wild, Arcane and Oddball and Then Combine them to Create Something Always Fresh, but Strangely Similar. The Album was Recorded in the Band's Studio in the More Godly Climbs of Liverpool, Produced by the Band and Mixed by Old Friend Gareth Jones, who Worked with them on the Seminal `internal Wrangler'.

Average customer rating: More convincing than the average Rautavaara Another decent Rautavaara effort by the RSNO, but nothing special Rautavaara's modern romanticism Rautavaara's seventh symphony: simply beautiful! Competition for Segerstam's versions at half the price

Rautavaara: Symphony No. 7 "Angel of Light" Einojuhani Rautavaara , Hannu Koivula , and Royal Scottish National Orchestra Manufacturer: Naxos ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music 4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music 4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: Rautavaara: Cantus Articus; Piano Concerto Rautavaara: Symphonies 1, 2 & 3 Einojuhani Rautavaara: Works for Piano Rautavaara: Garden of Spaces; Clarinet Concerto; Cantus Arcticus Rautavaara: Symphony No. 6; Cello Concerto ASIN: B00007FKQH Release Date: 2003-02-18

Tracks:

1. Tranquillo
2. Molto Allegro
3. Come Un Sogno
4. Pesante
5. Angels And Visitations

Amazon.com

To get to the second piece on this CD first, "Angels and Visitations" is Rautavaara at his darkest and most mysterious (the work was inspired by the composer's childhood dreams). It isn't exactly tonal--melodies and motifs pile up on one another disturbingly--but it's not rehashed Romanticism, either. It's a unique blend, and the menacing lower strings are offset by the calming upper ones; insane brass interruptions are as interesting as the occasional background bells. The Seventh Symphony is an altogether different matter. It floats along, sometimes evoking nature at its most benign (a flute and harp interlude in the first movement, horns and woodwinds in the third), sometimes at its most unpredictable (in the brass throughout). The playing of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra is excellent, and Hannu Koivula clearly understands Rautavaara. If Leif Segerstam's performances of these works (on Ondine) are a bit more potent, well, Naxos's price--less than half--makes up for that potency. Rautavaara is a great composer, easy to get to know and fascinating. Recommended. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

More convincing than the average Rautavaara.......2006-10-30

Music by the Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara tends to be entertaining the first time one hears it, and rather empty afterward. I first discovered his work through various other discs, and ultimately I was disappointed by the fluffy feel of writing and lack of rigour or any fresh perspective. These two orchestral works, performed here by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Hannu Koivula, are more successful.

Symphony No. 7 "Angel of Light" (1994) is one of Rautavaara's most acclaimed works, giving the composer a sudden popularity in much the same fashion as Gorecki's Third Symphony gave to that Polish composer. As it is a purely instrumental work, any clear programmatic basis is sure to depend on the subjective interpretation of the listener, but Rautavaara has made it plain that he didn't intend the work to evoke New Age pictorial images. Cast in four movements but not with the classical form, it is a boldly Romantic work that subjugates overt melody below an ambience created by tonal chords over a pedal point. What's striking about the work is that the effect is so strong from the very beginning, even when the composer is writing only for selected portions of the ensemble, and when orchestral tuttis come, they sound grand indeed. The scherzo comes in the second movement here, the only lively portion of the work, and has some very charming writing for percussion.

The 20-minute "Angels and Vistations" (1978) is a very different work. Based on childhood dreams which apparently were quite frightening, its soundworld is filled with conflict. It opens with images of doom in the bass kept in balance by tinkling percussion, but ultimately these bright tones fade out and grimness sets in. It's an engaging piece, just as successful a depiction of nightmare as, say, the second movement of Carter's "Symphonia".

Sure, none of the material here shows symphonic writing of the strength of Per Norgard, Alfred Schnittke, Kaija Saariaho, Magnus Lindberg, or even Sofia Gubaidulina. But it's a lot better than the average Rautavaara. If you must get something by the eclectic Finn, this is one disc that won't seem tired after the first few listens. Indeed, it even draws the listener back rather often.

Another decent Rautavaara effort by the RSNO, but nothing special .......2006-03-14

I bought this on spec when I spotted it at a local record shop, having been blown away by some of Rautavaara's earlier works. It isn't his greatest piece, but nor can I say I was disappointed in it. The Presto is the highpoint - Angels can be jolly too, apparently, and there's lots of chromatic fun here.

The RSNO put in a solid performance, but again, there's no real magic. If you like Rautavaara, then this is certainly worth a fiver. If you're unfamiliar with him, Cantus Articus or the 6th Symphony are better introductions to his music.

Rautavaara's modern romanticism.......2005-03-21

Finland's Rautavaara, after exploring the world of serialism as a young man, turned toward lush romanticism later in life. With this Symphony No. 7 "Angel of Light" (1994), he dramatically expanded his audience, as he tapped a popular longing for tonality and meaning in classical music. The meaning is only hinted at -- he says the "angel" is not to be taken literally -- but still it has seemed to resonate with the Zeitgeist. This is excellent music which continues the romantic symphonic tradition.

The structure of the piece is a conventional symphonic form, with a fast second movement and a slow third movement, but it is an odd juxtoposition of styles and moods. The first movement invokes, for me, a Scandinavian nature tableau, a grand panorama of wind, waves and craggy shorelines that Sibelius would recognize as his offspring. Then comes the ironic scherzo with mocking horns, a Prokofievian turn, and an element that does not seem to clearly fit with the rest of the work. It is the slow movement (Come un sogno -- Like a dream), that has most impressed listeners with its sense of spirituality, wonder and awe. It seems to combine romantic melodiousness with the holy minimalism of Part. The finale returns to a heroic Sibelius mode. The accompanying piece, "Angels and Visitations" (1978), is a more disturbing work, which contrasts frightening, powerful blasts of dissonance with somber, Part-like interludes.

This is, I believe, the second recording of the 7th Symphony, following Segerstam's on Ondine. Hannu Koivula and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra are superb, and there is no need to fear that the low Naxos price indicates low quality. This is a recording that has met with universal critical acclaim.

Rautavaara's seventh symphony: simply beautiful!.......2004-07-31

I praise Rautavaara for writing such music! The seventh symphony is clearly one of the most beautiful compositions ever! I know, some people (mostly so-called 'professionals' and critics) will call it sentimental, too sweet and perfect for Hollywood romantic feature film. But if you are a normal human being and feelings, you should simply close your eyes and let the sound colours touch your heart. The angels are mysterious, nice, gentle and caring (first and third movement), sometimes a bit nasty (malicious second movement) and glorius (fourth movement).

Angels and visitations are the composer's written experience when he visioned a nightmare as a child. This angels were obviously not friendly. The music contains some soft but tense beauty and terror-like explosions in the orchestra. The masterful orchestral fantasy and a fine example of so-called 'post-modernism'. Rautavaara, thank you very much for providing us with such great classical music of the new age!

Competition for Segerstam's versions at half the price.......2003-03-14

A friend once asked me to explain how Rautavaara achieves his usually instantly recognizable sound-world, and off the top of my head, and trying for humor, I replied, 'Well, imagine Debussy had a baby by Sibelius. When he grew up he'd be Rautavaara.' Not very funny, but afterwards I kept thinking about it and realized that I probably wasn't far off the mark. Combine the harmonies of Debussy with the dramatic use of the lower orchestral instruments by Sibelius and you come close. Add the Martinu-like layering of blocs of horn chords and string chords, all in minimalist slow harmonic motion, and you get even closer. Yet, somehow Rautavaara manages something new that I can't quite put my finger on. He accomplishes ecstasy and drama in equal measure. However he does it, his music is unfailingly beautiful.

Leif Segerstam has recorded both the Seventh Symphony, subtitled 'Angel of Light,' and another 'Angels' piece, 'Angels and Visitations' (prompted by some childhood dreams of Rautavaara), but they are not on the same disc. His performances are a bit more edgy or, if you prefer, more potent than these performances here. But Hannu Koivula and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra do very well by these pieces, too, and actually, to my ears, achieve more of the ecstatic stasis that occurs in spots in both these works. The performances are quite good, the price is certainly terrific, and the recorded sound is clean and truthful. If you want either or both of these pieces, and don't already have the Segerstam performances on the Ondine label, I'd suggest you go for it!

Average customer rating: Great introduction to Rautavaara's sound world. Great! Great! "Angels and Visitations" not bad at all...

Rautavaara: Violin Concerto; Angels and Visitations; Isle of Bliss Manufacturer: Ondine ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Rautavaara, Einojuhani | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Symphonies | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Violin | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Similar Items: Rautavaara: Garden of Spaces; Clarinet Concerto; Cantus Arcticus Rautavaara: On the Last Frontier Rautavaara: Angel of Light Rautavaara: Symphony No. 8 (The Journey) / Harp Concerto Rautavaara: Symphony No. 6; Cello Concerto ASIN: B000003797 Release Date: 1997-04-22

Tracks:

1. Angels And Visitations: Violin Concerto: Tranquillo
2. Angels And Visitations: Violin Concerto: Energico
3. Angels And Visitations: Isle Of Bliss
4. Angels And Visitations

Customer Reviews:

Great introduction to Rautavaara's sound world........2000-11-11

Rautavaara is a modern composer accessible to anyone, but without sacrificing musical interest. The three compositions on this disc are a good introduction to his work. The closest "big name" musical kin I can think of would be Sibelius, but Rautavaara's work is more mystical in conception. He is very much his own composer, and his musical personality is well represented here.

The violin concerto is more overtly dramatic than many of Rautavaara's compositions, but never vulgar, and the solo part is played with beauty and fire by Elmar Oliveira.

"Isle of Bliss" is an orchestral fantasia lasting just a little over 11 minutes. After a strong beginning it goes a bit formless in the middle (somewhat of a weak point with this composer; he tends to sag a bit structurally at times) but masterfully evokes a strong sense of atmosphere throughout. Listening to it, I felt as though I was walking the chilly, rocky coastline of a secluded island, and as it turns out a remote Baltic Sea island was the composer's inspiration for the piece (as he himself explains in the excellent booklet notes).

"Angels and Visitations" is another work in this composer's self-titled "Angel Series," but as usual it's no new-age orchestral puff piece. As he explains in the booklet, it was inspired by a terrible recurring dream he had as a child. It stirs up a strong sense of drama, effectively mixing beauty, terror and awe throughout its nearly 20-minute length.

Not quite an hour of music, excellently recorded as is usually the case with Ondine. Leif Segerstam obviously believes in this music and leads the orchestra through some of the most effective Rautavaara performances on record. I play this one often and would recommend it to anyone interested in Rautavaara or in approachable, interesting new music.

Great!.......1999-12-30

The violin concerto is a very energetic and interesting work. Very lovely and myserious at points as well. Brilliant orchestration. Angels and Visitions, also the title of the CD, is an almost impressionistic work, and is superb. All in all highly recommended-5 stars.

Great!.......1999-12-30

The violin concerto is a very energetic and interesting work. Very lovely and myserious at points as well. Brilliant orchestration. Angels and Visitions, also the title of the CD, is an almost impressionistic work, and is superb. All in all highly recommended-5 stars.

"Angels and Visitations" not bad at all..........1999-12-16

Although I have many reservations about "Angel of Light" (Rautavaara's Seventh Symphony), I have none whatsoever about "Angels and Visitations", the title work of this CD. It's a very well constructed 19 minute tone poem which was inspired by a nightmare that the composer experienced multiple times. It's a truly beautiful and creative piece of music. Rautavaara is a master of orchestration, of course. But what strikes me the most about "Angels and Visitations" is its absolutely flawless musical narrative -- how motives are developed and juxtaposed, and how textures grow from one another or are transformed. And it has none of the excessive (sentimental, I dare say) sweetness of the Seventh Symphony -- I don't think that would be a proper response to a nightmare! Indeed, "Angels and Visitations" is really quite gritty in some passages. Rautavaara's own liner notes refer to Rilke's famous phrase "Every angel is terrifying" -- which is also a great description of this piece, especially when one remembers another idea from Rilke's Duino Elegies: that beauty is only the beginning terror. The other pieces on this disc are not quite as gripping to me. The violin concerto is certainly very lively and an effective showpiece for the soloist, but it doesn't quite hold my interest. The most recent work on his disc, "Isle of Bliss" is rather too close to the sentimental world of the Seventh Symphony for me -- the beginning is rather commonplace (almost like dated film music), and the main body of the work is too uneventful for me. Thus, I can't rate this disc higher since only one work out of the three in this disc really holds my interest.

Average customer rating: WAKE UP folks! This is AWESOME!

Visitations Jonah Sharp Manufacturer: Subharmonic ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Ambient | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | International | Styles | Music General | New Age | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: Wake up & Dream ASIN: B000003ZNF Release Date: 1994-07-26

Tracks:

1. Zurvan Akarana
2. Aion

Customer Reviews:

WAKE UP folks! This is AWESOME!.......2004-03-18

If you like Spacetime Continuum's Sea Biscuit you are gonna LOVE this and I am not kidding! Bill Laswell & Jonah Sharp play together like they have been playing for years. Jonah simply astounds me with his ability to create luch soundscapes. This is an ambient record and slightly on the dark side. The synergy between the two is fantastic and I notice that sellers are just giving it away! Subharmonic gets a bad rap because they take chances. HA! Excellent spin!

Average customer rating:

Rautavaara: Angels and Visitations Manufacturer: Ondine ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Rautavaara, Einojuhani | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Symphonies | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Piano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Clarinet | Reeds & Winds | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Flute | Reeds & Winds | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music Modern & 20th Century | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music A Cappella | Folk | Styles | Music ASIN: B000GYHRCO Release Date: 2006-09-19

Tracks:

1. I. The Bog - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
2. II. Melancholy - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
3. III. Swans Migrating - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
4. 3rd Movement (Giocoso E Leggiero) - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
5. 3rd Movement (Molto Vivace) - Ralf Gothoni
6. 2nd Movement (Adagio Assai) - Richard Stoltzman
7. 3rd Movement (Come Un Sogno) - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
8. Psalm Of Invocation - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
9. Evening Hymn - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
10. Ekteniya - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
11. Final Blessing - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
12. Apotheosis - Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra

Tracks:

1. Adagio Celeste For String Orchestra - Mikko Franck
2. 3rd Movement (Allegro) - Patrick Gallois
3. The Unicorn - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
4. Young Sagittarius - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
5. A Virgin, Waiting - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
6. Anadyomene (Adoration Of Aphrodite) - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
7. 3rd Movement (Energico) - Vladimir Ashkenazy
8. 2nd Movement (Poetico) - Mikko Franck
9. Laulu Oravasta (The Squirrel) - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
10. Sydameni Laulu (Song Of My Heart) - Finnish Radio Chamber Choir
11. Angels And Visitations - Helsinki Philharmonic

Average customer rating: Field recordings from an alien nature preserve...

Visitations I & II + Thirties (30's) Jon Gibson Manufacturer: Dunya ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Similar Items: Two Solo Pieces: Cycles (1973)/Untitled (1974) ASIN: B0000263YX Release Date: 2000-01-01

Customer Reviews:

Field recordings from an alien nature preserve..........2006-05-13

Jon Gibson must have learned the hard way to include the following disclaimer on his website:

"Please note that this is the Jon Gibson known primarily to the world at large as a composer and multi-wind instrumentalist, who has also been affiliated with Philip Glass for many years - and not the other musical Jon Gibson of Christian music fame."

Now that we've cleared THAT up... this particular Jon Gibson is the only person who has performed in the world premieres of Terry Riley's In C, Steve Reich's Drumming, and Einstein on the Beach by Philip Glass -- the "Big Three" minimalist trifecta, if you will. Many may not realize that Mr. Gibson is also a composer (and visual artist) in his own right. I've always been curious to hear Gibson's own music, but his few recordings have always been notoriously out of print and/or impossible to find.

The other day, while slumming around in the tiny "20th Century" ghetto in the ever-dwindling Classical section of Tower Records, I was amazed find two CD reissues of Jon Gibson's Chatham Square recordings from the 1970s -- a veritable holy grail of early minimalism! Knowing they would probably go out of print again as quickly as they reappeared, I quickly snatched them up (despite the hefty price tag... they're on the import New Tone label from Italy.)

Visitations I & II + Thirties was originally released in 1973, and if you are expecting to hear "minimalism" in the Philip Glass vein, this music might sound challenging and surprising at first. Dense with recorded sounds, rattling percussion, and extended sliding bamboo flute tones, Visitations sounds like some kind of field recording from a nature preserve on an alien planet. These pieces are lengthy and a little disturbing, but they reward your patience with a uniquely absorbing sonic experience (sort of like Marion Brown's Afternoon of a Georgia Faun, only louder and scarier...)

Thirties (30's), a "bonus track" not on the original album, is very different: it's a pulsing, shifting, droning organ and percussion "jam" of sorts with sort of a laid back Krautrock-ish groove to it, believe it or not (New Music luminaries Gavin Bryars and David Rosenboom happen to be among the many people beating rhythmically on various things in this live performance.)

Uncovering the long lost music of Jon Gibson reminds us that there was more to the musical revolution now labeled as "minimalism" than the higher-profile works of Glass, Reich, Riley, and John Adams, and also how far most of these composers have drifted away from the stripped-down aesthetic of the movement's early years. Jon Gibson's subtle yet remarkable music reveals a searching, unique talent that blends composition and improvisation, electric and organic, rigid structure and freedom of choice, visual and audio, mathematics and spirituality (no, not THAT kind of "spirituality"... that's the other Jon Gibson, remember?)

This is genuine, unaffected, beautiful music ripe for rediscovery... seek it out.

[Also check out Gibson's Two Solo Pieces and Criss X Cross...]

Average customer rating:

Visitations ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music ASIN: B000MGVBIW Release Date: 2007-01-23

Album Description

This quartet from Liverpool exploded into life about 9 years ago, making an instant impact with a homemade single IPC Sub Editors Dictate Our Youth and a clutch of EPs. Signing to Domino, they released their brilliant debut long player, Internal Wrangler in 2000, toured with Radiohead and appeared at Scott Walker's Meltdown. In 2002, second album, Walking With Thee earned them lavish praise in the US, where they appeared often, before recording the dense and spooky Winchester Cathedral, released in 2004. With this new opus that they are calling their 'party album', the quartet from Liverpool continues to explore its outer-limits. But as in party, think of Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut kind of shindig and nothing less. Mixed by Gareth Jones, who worked on their critically acclaimed debut album Internal Wrangler, each track has a rare intensity to it. Singer Ade describes it as a definite progression for the band. 'We went for something direct and primitive - surreal ballads next to subhuman riffs... I think it's the most consistent thing we've done.'

Average customer rating:

Propaganda Manufacturer: Independant Release ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music ASIN: B000CAGG24 Release Date: 2004-08-31

Average customer rating: FOREVER ALTERED

Voyager - Vibration Visitations for an Ambient Species ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Ambient | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Ambient | Compilations | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Dance & DJ | Indie Music | Stores | Music Ambient | Dance & DJ | Indie Music | Stores | Music ASIN: B00000HZ73 Release Date: 1998-04-08

Tracks:

1. Saul Stokes - Ivaneer
2. Falling You - When Will It End?
3. Viridian Sun - Artiai
4. Falling You - The Dream Begins
5. Lycia - Dome (alternate version)
6. Life Garden - Dzoqchen
7. Falling You - Solace
8. Exit - Echoes
9. Lead - Rush
10. Gone Postal (Totemplow with Dr. 'Sup?) - Skeleton Key
11. John Michael Zorko - Ocean Calling
12. Ambient Temple of Imagination - Olympiads of Thelema
13. Larry Kucharz - Cosmology

Album Description

Voyager takes the listener on a journey through some of the fertile landscapes of todays ambient / electronic music.

Customer Reviews:

FOREVER ALTERED.......2001-10-09

THIS MATERIAL WAS MOST IMPRESSIVE .I THINK MY DNA HAS FOREVER
BEEN ALTERED BY THIS SEMBLANCE OF ALIEN SOUNDSCAPES IN SONIC
LOVE. IT R0CKS DA HOUSE DUDES.WAY COOL. A MOST DEFINITIVE PERFORMANCE OF ABSTRACT INTER-DIMENSIONAL SOUNDWAVES FOR
THE VORACIOUS APPETITE OF AN AUDIO OMNIVORE.

Pop Music:

1. Volume 12: 11 Cuts
2. With Love From The Island
3. World Music That Speaks to the Spirit
4. World Voices, Vol. 1
5. You Raise Me Up/Flowers on a Sunday/Winter Wonderland [CD-single] [Import]
6. A Taste of Passover
7. All the Best Mariachi
8. Anthology [Box set]
9. Anthology [Import]
10. Beautiful Woman

Pop Music