- Audio CD (31 Oct 2005)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: Moshi Moshi
- ASIN: B000BOG24I
- Other Editions: Audio CD
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 160,611 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
Jubilee Offer: Patriotic Classics for £2.50 |
Product details |
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
I've been curious about Au Revoir Simone for quite some time, ever since catching a glimpse of their name in a magazine, with some scant descriptions of their synthy pop music.
But apparently this Brooklyn trio was worth waiting for, if their debut EP, "Verses of Comfort, Assurance & Salvation" is anything to go by. These girls spin delicate melodies of retro beats and dreamy synth, and the result is thoroughly endearing -- it almost makes you feel comforted and assured.
It opens with a sleepy, summery little melody. "Baby tell me please/Is this a dream/Spending the night with you/Beneath the cherry trees?" they croon softly over the smooth synth music, which twitters and floats off as they sing about flowery moons and kisses in the bedroom.
They use harder beats for the sparkling "Hurricanes" and retro "Disco Song," which shimmy along without losing that bright edge. Then they bob back into softer songs, with the shimmering "Winter Song," sleepy "And Sleep Al Mar," and effervescent "Stay Golden." Along with the music the tone becomes more melancholy -- it switches from summer kisses and dancing to unrequited love.
If you need a comparison, then Au Revoir Simone sounds a bit like a very stoned Broadcast, or an all-girl, electronic version of Eisley. More the latter, since these girls also spin pop songs that are full of magic and innocence, but they know how to make their music tug at the heartstrings in an honest way.
There are basically just two instruments: keyboard and drum machines. But they avoid typical synthpop sound, without sharp beats or typical catchiness. Instead they veer towards soft, silky, dreamy sounds even when they have catchy tunes, and molding their synth into different sounds. The finale is a shining example of that.
The trio also have very pretty girlish voices, and they sing as a chorus as often as they sing individually. Their lyrics show some early stumbling ("And you say/and you say..."), but most of the time they manage well-written songs, with a poignant edge. "I'm feeling better every day/I'm only waiting if you stay/So don't feel bad/Your faith was an illusion..."
Au Revoir Simone are a charming, heartwarming little band, "Verses of Comfort, Assurance and Salvation" is an enchanting listen. Definitely worth checking out.
But apparently this Brooklyn trio was worth waiting for, if their debut EP, "Verses of Comfort, Assurance & Salvation" is anything to go by. These girls spin delicate melodies of retro beats and dreamy synth, and the result is thoroughly endearing -- it almost makes you feel comforted and assured.
It opens with a sleepy, summery little melody. "Baby tell me please/Is this a dream/Spending the night with you/Beneath the cherry trees?" they croon softly over the smooth synth music, which twitters and floats off as they sing about flowery moons and kisses in the bedroom.
They use harder beats for the sparkling "Hurricanes" and retro "Disco Song," which shimmy along without losing that bright edge. Then they bob back into softer songs, with the shimmering "Winter Song," sleepy "And Sleep Al Mar," and effervescent "Stay Golden." Along with the music the tone becomes more melancholy -- it switches from summer kisses and dancing to unrequited love.
If you need a comparison, then Au Revoir Simone sounds a bit like a very stoned Broadcast, or an all-girl, electronic version of Eisley. More the latter, since these girls also spin pop songs that are full of magic and innocence, but they know how to make their music tug at the heartstrings in an honest way.
There are basically just two instruments: keyboard and drum machines. But they avoid typical synthpop sound, without sharp beats or typical catchiness. Instead they veer towards soft, silky, dreamy sounds even when they have catchy tunes, and molding their synth into different sounds. The finale is a shining example of that.
The trio also have very pretty girlish voices, and they sing as a chorus as often as they sing individually. Their lyrics show some early stumbling ("And you say/and you say..."), but most of the time they manage well-written songs, with a poignant edge. "I'm feeling better every day/I'm only waiting if you stay/So don't feel bad/Your faith was an illusion..."
Au Revoir Simone are a charming, heartwarming little band, "Verses of Comfort, Assurance and Salvation" is an enchanting listen. Definitely worth checking out.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
When Au Revoir Simone appeared in that indie bible, Vogue Magazine, they described their debut album as the ideal soundtrack for exploring a secret garden at night. I can only agree. Au Revoir Simone are as twee as twee. They are as twee as Doris Day in a big flowery print dress with a basket full of fluffy kittens in one hand and a long stem rose in the other. Their music conjures up walks in the moonlight by a silvery lake ... the scent of Jasmine on the air ... the strains of Chopin wafting gently through the open French windows of the summer house. OK, perhaps that's just me, but you get the picture.
It's not necessarily what you'd expect from a three-piece Brooklyn-based synth-pop outfit. Erika Forster and Annie Hart met in 2003 on a train. They were joined by Heather D'Angelo, who adds a drum machine as well as a third synthesizer. Two years later they recorded Verses of comfort, assurance and salvation in a former shower cubical at their manager's apartment, and it was picked up by the excellent Moshi Moshi, arguably London's most interesting label. `Verses of comfort' - named after a small book of biblical quotations that Annie received in the post - is an exquisite confection of lighter-than-air pop. Ethereal vocals drift above an insistent but unobtrusive drum and keyboard combination that varies from pounding disco to murmuring synth blues, nowhere more obviously than in `Hurricanes', where the tempo suddenly shifts mid-song. Hurricanes is one of the highpoints of the album, together with the slightly darker `Where You Go' and the subdued, sensuous `Back in Time'.
The best track by a distance, however, is the first, `Through the Backyards'. This judgment I take to be confirmed by its subsequent appearance, not only as a single and on Moshi's own compilation `Can you here me clearly?', but on V2's `Fear of Music' sampler, and the season finale of Grey's Anatomy. This song illustrates most successfully Annie Hart's account (in an interview for Columbus Alive) of the group's approach to writing. "I kind of just let words and melodies fall out of my mouth" she says, "It's really weird how things just come out and then all of a sudden they're songs without really thinking about them." At their best, this is exactly how Au Revoir Simone appears: effortlessly elegant; timelessly romantic. `Oh this old thing', Vogue may add, `I just threw it together'. Sometimes they overstep the mark and drift into that state of unfocused tweeness where the ghosts of St Etienne murmur eternally in the half light. This and the album's brevity (it weighs in at around 28 minutes) prevent it from being more than a promising debut to 2007's more accomplished `Bird of Music'. Still, for me this is one of those guilty pleasures. Slightly embarrassing but fun: music to drift off with to a midnight garden, to enjoy it in its proper surroundings.
It's not necessarily what you'd expect from a three-piece Brooklyn-based synth-pop outfit. Erika Forster and Annie Hart met in 2003 on a train. They were joined by Heather D'Angelo, who adds a drum machine as well as a third synthesizer. Two years later they recorded Verses of comfort, assurance and salvation in a former shower cubical at their manager's apartment, and it was picked up by the excellent Moshi Moshi, arguably London's most interesting label. `Verses of comfort' - named after a small book of biblical quotations that Annie received in the post - is an exquisite confection of lighter-than-air pop. Ethereal vocals drift above an insistent but unobtrusive drum and keyboard combination that varies from pounding disco to murmuring synth blues, nowhere more obviously than in `Hurricanes', where the tempo suddenly shifts mid-song. Hurricanes is one of the highpoints of the album, together with the slightly darker `Where You Go' and the subdued, sensuous `Back in Time'.
The best track by a distance, however, is the first, `Through the Backyards'. This judgment I take to be confirmed by its subsequent appearance, not only as a single and on Moshi's own compilation `Can you here me clearly?', but on V2's `Fear of Music' sampler, and the season finale of Grey's Anatomy. This song illustrates most successfully Annie Hart's account (in an interview for Columbus Alive) of the group's approach to writing. "I kind of just let words and melodies fall out of my mouth" she says, "It's really weird how things just come out and then all of a sudden they're songs without really thinking about them." At their best, this is exactly how Au Revoir Simone appears: effortlessly elegant; timelessly romantic. `Oh this old thing', Vogue may add, `I just threw it together'. Sometimes they overstep the mark and drift into that state of unfocused tweeness where the ghosts of St Etienne murmur eternally in the half light. This and the album's brevity (it weighs in at around 28 minutes) prevent it from being more than a promising debut to 2007's more accomplished `Bird of Music'. Still, for me this is one of those guilty pleasures. Slightly embarrassing but fun: music to drift off with to a midnight garden, to enjoy it in its proper surroundings.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
St Etienne fans will love this ... tho it's simpler, less clubby - gentle harmonies over keyboard and drum machine
Highly Recommended
Highly Recommended
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Listmania!
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
