Customer Reviews

Absinthe

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Kudzu's name often appeared in "Wind and Wire" magazine as well as in the new age music newsgroup, but I only recently discovered his music first-hand. I'm hooked! This is not piano music per se, but keyboards are used extensively, creating the soundtrack to a film that exists only in the listener's mind. Recordings like this could easily reignite the passion for sitting in a dark room and focusing on the music without distractions. At the very least, a listener will have to concentrate on the album a few times to really understand what is happening. It ain't a pretty picture, but it sure gets the pulse pounding and the visual images flowing! It is music to be experienced and savored in all of its deep complexity, allowing your mind go where the musical images take it.

If you are not familiar with it, absinthe is a bright green drink made from the hallucinogenic extract from the wormwood plant, combined with anise. It was used extensively by artists and writers to enhance their creative vision (Oscar Wilde was a very prominent advocate), but is now banned in almost every country in the world. Even if absinthe were still available, this album would probably scare away anyone interested in experimenting with it. "Dancing With the Green Fairy" (Main Title Theme) opens the album with a mysterious and somewhat ominous feel - undoubtedly the preparation of the drink and consumption of it - temptation and seduction into a rapidly-changing mindstate. For the listener, this opening sequence is also compelling and seductive, drawing him or her in. Rhythms become more intense, as do the sound effects - we're in for a real ride here! The hallucinations begin with "Night of the Circus" - these clowns are definitely evil, and the calliope is scary with its breathy and distorted piping. Each track conjures up new visual experiences as the absinthe effect intensifies, taking the listener deeper and darker, creating an incredibly powerful experience. "Unwanted Memories of a Music Box, a Funeral, and a Merry-Go-Round" indicates how disjointed things are becoming. "Oblivion" begins almost serenely with a catchy rhythm - the calm before the storm. Next come "Faces in the Woodwork" and the (Nightmare Sequence), "Visions Through the Third Eye" - some of the scariest music I've ever heard (and more than 17 minutes' worth!). When the drinking glass is shattered amid the pounding rhythm of the nightmare, you just know this guy is totally enveloped in his darkest and most terrifying vision. What an exhilarating trip! It makes you want to return again and again for another fix!

"Absinthe" is another example of how broad the "new age" genre has become. This is not music to relax or unwind to, but is to be experienced for itself. It is about an intense as they come, and I thoroughly enjoy getting caught up in all of the visual images. Very highly recommended!

a new era of new age music has begun! the intricate and deluded melodies of absinthe will push you over the edge but catch you just before you hit the ground! michael lococo's genius has captured the true meaning new age and refreshed a few tired ears. truly a one of a kind, but a warning to the wise...if you are not willing to put all of your senses on the line, stay back!

This cd epitomizes the kind of music I am always in search of but only occasionally find ... music that you listen to with your mind. ABSINTHE will take your mind, caress it, scramble it, and leave you begging for more. From the stellar performances of the artists to the unorthodox composing style (there seems to be elements of classical, jazz, new age, and progressive rock all floating seamlessly around in the psychedelic soundtrack) to the mind-blowing instrumentation, this is the most unique and totally hypnotic album I have come across in the last ten years.

It's great when all my searching ends up in a find such as this. Eureka!

a new era of new age music has begun! the intricate and deluded melodies of absinthe will push you over the edge but catch you just before you hit the ground! michael lococo's genius has captured the true meaning of new age and refreshed a few tired ears. truly a one of a kind, but a warning to the wise...if you are not willing to put all of your senses on the line, stay back!

Awesome timbral textures I've not heard before, Treatment of modal harmonies had me buzzing in my chair. Nothing less than True Intuitive Genius. Can't wait to hear what's next. These are My Favorite tracks; 1. Dancing with the Green Fairy. 2. Night of the Circus. 3. Backstreet Theme. 5. The Horsefly (my very favorite, the harmony is erie and the guitar work is oohh soo sweet! 7. Oblivion

The Artist playing guitar (Michael LoCoCo) is unbelievable, the effects are truly mind boggling. I plan to spread the word to others I know who would love it. I can't imagine anyone not loving it! Look forward to new stuff from Lococo.

Sir Simoneaux

Unusually enjoyable musicial experience, allowing the listener to become involved in fantasy and melancholy.

This CD is a total trip. It starts with the sense of the participants' anxious, hungry anticipation and craving for the seduction of a drug that sends them on a hallucinogenic spiral into the realm of dark dreams, crazy, distorted visions, riotous colors, liquid emotions, and vast cravings. As the listener descends into the madness of an such an altered sensibility one may find that it evokes the feeling of having tasted the Absinthe and of being there oneself. The use of exotic, multidimensional whispery, steamy, as well as icy synthesizer effects, at times becoming atonal, creates an "otherworldly" feeling. This is further enhanced by the use of distant, ethereal voices that evoke a truly chilling, shivvery, eerie feeling throughout the entire album. Song #3 "Backstreet Theme" is deliciously scary with its wavering bell countdown into the sluggish depths of deepening hallucinations.

"The Horsefly", "Oblivion", "Visions Through the Third Eye" are intoxicatingly vivid expressions of utter self absorption and of the fantastic panoramas experienced while under the influence of an such an intense mind altering drug. "Faces in the Woodwork" is terrifying and one may actually "see" the effects of the wormwood plant upon one's visual perception through this brilliant soundscape. This music is for those who really enjoy "tripping" to the notion of being in a dark, scary sci-fi scenario with limitless vistas and boundless dimensions. A very exotic, incredible journey. I loved it.