Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rollercoaster ride for your soul..., 5 Nov 2002
First of all, it's quite difficult for me to review Belle & Sebastian, they're my favorite band, by far.
This album amongst everything they've ever produced is a gem. If you're into gentle and harmonious pop music... I find it quite difficult to find words but Stuart Murdoch and Isobel Campbell are wonderful singers... it's simple, honest, deep, considerate beauty altogether. It's very human; the sort of band which changes your life or at least how you look at it anyway - it did for me and for a few of my friends who are found of B&S. It's both refreshing, despairing, have some of the most beautiful and witty lyrics in pop music...
I would consider Boy with the Arab Strap as my favorite B&S album as a lot of my favorite tracks are there, Ease your feet is pure melancholy, Rollercoaster ride is amazing, fantastic lyrics. It just makes the difference in this shallow world we live in, very reassuring to hear that... well... it's not. It's prescription for your heart and soul, to meditate.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
8/10. 'Ease Your Feet In The Sea', 16 Jul 2007
On first inspection the Amazon's favourable comparison to the Smiths and the Velvet Underground seems a little generous. And while the lyrical concerns bear resemblance to those of Morrissey and Stuart Murdoch's vocals make for a less smokey Nick Drake, Belle & Sebastian don't quite reach that songwriting bracket. Nevertheless, the Boy with the Arab Strap is a real grower, and after a few listens its melodic hooks start to catch. They excel at making music so seemingly light and effortless gradually leave its indelible mark on the heart and mind. Bleak stories of everyday failure and regret add a bitter taste to the unflinching prettiness of the music. Stuart Murdoch and Isobel Campbell aren't quite the odd couple of Lou Reed and Nico (or even Morrissey / Marr) but they make revisionist pop as dreamily saccharin as the Velvets.
'It Could Have Been a Brilliant Career' marries the Velvets' prototype dream-pop with Nick Drake's jazzier sensibilities, the folksy acoustic guitar slowly embellished with piano and alt-country tinges. 'Sleep the Clock Around' builds sweetly shimmering electronics and piano around a delicate melodic refrain. Swelling into a blissful synth and trumpet driven finale, this is where my Belle and Sebastian preconceptions went out of the window. 'Is It Wicked Not To Care' features Isobel Campbell on vocals and summery, breezy orchestrations. Despite the relative lushness of the musicianship on songs like this, it always feels loose and spontaneous, never top-heavy or over-produced. 'Seymour Stein' is like the Velvets' 'Pale Blue Eyes', with some lovely summery organs, piano and horns. 'Space Boy Dream' begins with a cryptic spoken-word sample and turns into a jazzy instrumental David Axelrod would be proud of. 'Dirty Dream Number Two' has a propulsive stomp and nice upbeat horn arrangements, reminiscent of Nick Drake's Bryter Layter.
While the invariability of the mood and the lack of vocal range can make the it a little samey, it is a gorgeous and uplifting record all the same. I was expecting something much more fey and brooding than this but it is really quite a revelation. If you like this you might like Feist's 'The Reminder' or Lambchop's 'Nixon' as well.
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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Their best work to date (marginally), 21 Sep 2001
By A Customer
Stuart Murdoch and co are what all other bands should aspire to be. They have never drastically changed their musical formula of beautiful, downbeat instrumental arangements, and yet all their songs sound wonderfully fresh. Added to this are witty lyrics that at times can only be described as sublime poetry. This record, arguably their best work, builds on their earlier albums, and also contains some more experimental material, combining an electric piano and bagpipes on "Sleep the clock around". It also contains the B&S songwriting debuts of Stevie Jackson ("Seymour Stein" and "Chickfactor") and Isobel Campbell ("Is it wicked not to care"). Other highlights include the lushious, beautiful ode to loneliness "Dirty dream number two", the short but sweet "Simple Things", the soothing "Rollercoaster Ride" and the Jazzy title track. I would reccomend it to anyone
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