Amazon.co.uk allows you to pay for your items in your local currency. Restrictions apply. Learn More. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
Listen to Samples and Buy MP3s
|
Product Description
Review
Yes, U is their third album and finds their personnel boosted by 'special guest' Nigel Yang on keyboards, with additional synthesizer and violin by Andrea Lee, who now seems to have effectively become a member, since she joins them when they play live. Her most notable contribution is an icy retro synth tone on the likes of 'The Pest', which is strongly reminiscent of Martin Rev's early work with Suicide.
The band's main and most distinctive singer is Conrad Standish, whose lugubrious, whispered croon variously suggests Tindersticks' Stuart Staples, Nick Cave and Jarvis Cocker in his more reflective moments. Standish is best heard emerging from the dreamily pulsing electronic shimmer of 'Oh Me, Oh My', which provides one of the few optimistic moments in lyrical terms ('You brought me back to life'). Another is Tom Carlyon's 'The Face Of Love', with its acoustic piano and guitar, and waltzing 'sha-la-la-la' chorus, which sounds like an out-take from Cave's The Boatman's Call, or perhaps Coal, the group's more pastoral, piano-dominated sophomore effort. The other most memorable numbers are 'Rosa', with its pounding drums and suspenseful tempos changes, and the trickling keyboard riff decorating 'An Avalanche Of Stars', which strongly suggests a James Bond theme tune.
Slow tempos I can do and so can they, but after 50 minutes, the dark, angst-ridden tone of much of Yes, U is a bit difficult to take seriously - in particular the overcooked melodrama of 'The Saddest Sound'. Still, with a name like Devastations, it would probably be churlish to ask them to lighten up. --Jon Lusk
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Who, me?,
By
This review is from: Yes U (Audio CD)
Unforgivable text-speak aside, The Devastations last outing with Coal was a heartfelt, gravely voiced nightcap of an album, which strongly recalled the Tindersticks at their finest. `Yes, U' is a different proposition, which takes the listener time to warm to, such is the variance from their previous offering. Nevertheless, it contains plenty of noteworthy moments, despite album opener `Black Ice' starting like a soft-porn soundtrack with its lazy, soft, synthy beats and percussion. Luckily, this track then evolves into a sultry shuffle, which gets the toes a-tapping to Standish's catchy rhetoric, `Is this some kind of slow dance?'
`Oh Me, Oh My' recalls Super Furry Animals at their most minimalist, `The Face Of Love' evokes Nick Cave circa Murder Ballads. Its touch of piano brings a spot of class to proceedings. `An Avalanche Of Stars' sees Standish embody Jarvis Cocker and twins his sardonic drawl with Pulp's lazy, pop constructions. The track that most recalls Coal is the slightly saccharine, `The Saddest Sound', which is an effortless, emotive ballad. The problem lying within this album is its anonymity. Each time after listening, it takes a moment to remember who it was that has played. `The Pest' is neither memorable, nor annoying as the title suggests, `Misericordia' an instrumental closer that leaves the listener indifferent. Perhaps the album title is there to jolt the listen into memory, more likely a plea to the same end. `Yes, U' is harmless and enjoyable, an unobtrusive soundtrack to your chore of choice.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic,
By Schpapsch - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Yes U (Audio CD)
Great moody, atmospheric cd. Cool sound with a good amount of diversity. Their other two discs have more of a Nick Cave influence -- this disc really seems to show them blossoming into their own sound.
5.0 out of 5 stars
beautiful,
By mlm - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Yes U (Audio CD)
This is the third album by the Devastations who are from Melbourne, Australia but based in Berlin. Their music is dark, moving, mellow, melancholy, and atmospheric/spacey, with influences from Nick Cave and The Dirty Three and similarities with the Tindersticks, Blonde Redhead, and Velvet Underground.
Black Ice (track 1) uses lots of keyboards and layerings. and Oh me, Oh my (track 2) are spacey and dark. Rosa (track 3) has a Nick Cave style of urgency. The vocals become almost a soft whisper on The Pest (track 4) which has an electronic/spacey feel. Mistakes (track 6) has the feel of a pop song with guitar distortion. The Face of Love (track 7) is another soft track which reminds of Nick Cave. An Avalanche of Stars is spoken more than sung, and reminds of Arab Strap or Yo La Tengo. |
|
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!
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
