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BLUE STATES
Man Mountain (XLMICD155) Memphis Industries/XL Recordings 2002 11 Tracks. 56mins54secs. Buy this CD on line now |
Blue States: Live at The Spitz
Nearly two years after Nothing Changes Under The Sun hit the shelves, Blue States return as a full six piece band, complete with a full time vocalist, a record deal with XL Recordings, and a second album. Far from turning his back on the delicate ambiences of his first album, Dragazis has developed a more mature and diverse version of the soundscapes explored on the first Blue States album. On top of the cinematic instrumentals moments that paved Nothing…, Man Mountain also features the vocal talents of new Blue States collaborator Tahita “Ty” Bulmer on no less than five tracks. Born in the UK, although she grew up in Europe and the US, Tahita and Andy met in Brighton and hit it off straight away. The first writing session resulted in the beautiful Only Today, which combines Dragazis’s Morricone-esque atmospherics with the slight soul/jazz touch of Bulmer’s bittersweet vocals. If vocal elements are not new to Blue States, Bulmer’s presence indicates however a departure from the previous album. The presence of four other musicians impacts equally on the fragile sonic balance achieved on the first album. Nothing Changes Under The Sun was intense partly due to Dragazis playing most of the instruments himself, but it sometimes lacked the live feeling that some of the bands who have emerged since then have achieved. Metro Sound, the opening number and first excerpt of the album, makes the transition between old and new Blue States by remaining close to Arion or Golden Touch, but progressively, Man Mountain asserts its own personality. If What We’ve Won, which follows, is as reminiscent of the Cocteau Twins as Spit & Soar was, it is somewhat more ambitious, with the melody slowly rising to the magnificent chorus in a swirl or guitars. Later on, Season Song provides the most intense and impressive moment of this record. Recorded with a choir of East London and Essex school children, Season Song is in essence close to 4 Hero’s Les Fleur and could prove to become the band’s best-known track to date.
This album was also for Dragazis the opportunity to arrange strings for the first time, and Man Mountain has discreet orchestral touches all the way through, giving his cinematic approach a bolder feel than in the past. Tracks such as Metro Sound, Bare Bones, Doublespeak or Halfway Highway see Blue States integrating strings with their music to perfection, increasing the evocative power of Dragazis’s composition dramatically.
Despite the major changes experienced in the band’s structure, the music remains a touching an effective as ever. The fine melodies crafted by Andy Dragazis benefit the vocal imputs of Tahita Bulmer, while the band contributes to expand Blue States’s effortless ambiences. Man Mountain will be the soundtrack of the autumn.
Blue States: Live at The Spitz
| 01 | Metro Sound | 07 | Season Song |
| 02 | What We've Won | 08 | Man Mountain |
| 03 | Colouration | 09 | The Winfield Audition |
| 04 | Only Today | 10 | Doublespeak |
| 05 | Studio 20 | 11 | Halfway Highway |
| 06 | Bare Bones | 12 | Adrift |
NOTHING CHANGES UNDER THE SUN Memphis Industries 2000 Buy it on
line now
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Arion
Diamente Trainer Shuffle Stereo 99 Spit & Soar Golden Touch Your Girl Looking Glass Theme From Within Elios Therepia Heroes Elegy Cherio Manoli Walkabout Daystar _ |
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MAN MOUNTAIN Memphis Industries 2002 Buy it on
line now
|
Metro
Sound
What We've Won Colouration Only Today Studio 20 Bare Bones Season Song Man Mountain The Winfield Audition Doublespeak Halfway Highway Adrift |
| BLUE
STATES
Very simple and basic Blue States official home on the net. |
| MEMPHIS
INDUSTIRES
London-based Memphis Industries have been quietly building quite a solid roster over the last couple of years. With acts such as Broadway Project, Fort Lauderdale or label boss La Mouche project, Memphis Industries is bound to get more and more noticed. |
| XL
RECORDINGS
Home of artists as diverse as The Avalanches, Badly Drawn Boy, Blue States and The White Stripes, XL Recordings is one of the most eclectic labels around |