September 16, 2005

I read somewhere (cannot remember exactly where) that producer Michael Beinhorn thinks that drummer Silas Graae is one of the best he has ever worked with. And The Glass Handed Kites surely gives Silas plenty of opportunities to shine and if it wasn’t because of Jonas Bjerre’s characteristic (and very, very beautiful) voice, you could often be tempted to question if this really was the new album by Mew....
But hey what do you know - this is the new album and it’s pompous, ambitious, complex, haunting, daring and definitely not sucking up to anyone.
I’ve listen to it 6-7 times now and I’ve already been through a wide range of emotions. I’ve been happy, confused, excited, disappointed, thrilled, felt like crying and on more than one occasion I’ve had goose bumps, because some parts of the album (one song in peticular) are just beautiful.

The Danish media obviously is all over this album, but if you sum up the reviews (the ones I’ve seen so far) the main conclusions are:
- This is NOT Frengers II
- The album as a whole is much better than the individual songs
- You must listen to the album several times before you can really enjoy it
I fully agree with these conclusions and currently I’m listening to it over and over again in an attempt to become more “familiar” with it. Since it took me probably 20 listens to get into Apocalypso (which I now think is fabulous), I won’t yet post my final opinion of the album, because I expect it to keep growing.

Standout tracks: I have my favorites (I just mentioned Apocalypso), but I’m reluctant towards listing any, because this clearly isn’t a singles album.

I'm in a car
I don't know where we are headed for
Stay with me
Don't want to be alone

Beauty beyond comprehension...........Ended up crying after all..........

I should be careful or this Mew post could end up as an endless saga. So I'll make this (my final comment on the album for a while - it's time to move on) short and sweet!

It took me 10 listens (or more) getting to this point, but now there is no doubt in my mind.....The album is absolutely brilliant! BUY IT!!!!

1 comment:

Chris said...

AARGGHHH!!!! :( :) :D