Customer Reviews

Antidote

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I had such an odd mix of feelings when I found out Morcheeba had a new cd. I was joyous, exhuberant, high on life and just plain happy...but, that soon ended when I got this cd and realized something was VERY wrong. SKYE is gone!!!! There is a new vocalist who just DOESN'T do the music justice. She sounds like she should be singing the opening song to a BOND flick, NOT vocalizing for one of the best trip hop bands ever! Skye was the soul of Morcheeba, and her airy, seductive vocals were a HUGE part of what made this band so incredible. The new lead singer's vocals are far too pitchy and annoying for me to fully enjoy. There is just something very grating about her voice to me! I am very upset about Skye leaving the band and I just can not find this album enjoyable. It's lacking more than Skye...It's lacking the old emotion and beauty that Morcheeba's previous albums had. The grittier, crunchier, 1960's influenced sounds are boring and have been done time and time again. For fans of Morcheeba who had high expectations this may just well turn out to be a let-down as it was for myself, but for newer listeners (who have no previous knowledge of the band) they MAY find something in this album that they enjoy.

I don't mind that Skye went solo as long as Morcheeba still sounded good. We got two fine cds out of this deal. Skye's cd continues her own musical adventure while Morcheeba go for a retro feel with Daisy sounding a lot like Grace Slick; one of the best singers ever! Lighten up was the first song to hit me then Everybody Loves A Loser was next and the whole cd grows on you as a whole. Both cds are still better than most of what's out there now!

When Morcheeba released their singles "Trigger Hippie" and "Tape Loop" I really dug them. Enough to purchase "Who Can You Trust" and i liked that album as well. I even purchased "Big Calm". Overall I liked them but didn't love them. I found their sound to be repetetive. They were kind of like Thievery Corporation. (where each album was maybe once removed from the last. where you could hear an altered version of particular song formulas being used for the next album or the same drum machine being used.) Their songwriting was great but by this time there were already other bands that I thought did what they attempted to do but better. It didn't help that they were lumped in with the second generation of the much maligned "trip-hop" label. So I never purchased the subsequent releases. I don't know how I ended hearing "Wonders Never Cease" but the sound was refreshing and the Daisy Martey's vocals and the arrangements were classic and yet modern at the same time.
"The Antidote" follows through with this approach not every track has the same tempo. A couple of songs have a more "pop" feel than anything they've ever done but this comes across as more refreshing than a mere copying of styles. Daisey Marty's vocal style has much to do with the arrangements as evidenced with the work I've heard her do with her former collaborator on Noonday Underground. The Morcheeba sound is still mellow and the record scratches are far and few in between but it's still Morcheeba...evolved. The entire album is a mesh of more live sounding arrangements with hints of FX that conjure, Shirley Bassey("Wonders Never Cease"), Jefferson Airplane("People Carrier"), and even the Mamas and the Papas("Like a military Coup"). It all makes for a great package of songs. This, sad to say, will be the only Morcheeba album that will have Daisy on it as it appears that so many fans blasted the band for replacing Skye. Sad, because Morcheeba's new direction was promising. Well... maybe they'll bring both back. For all it's worth Daisey your voice was wonderful. Good luck with your future projects. Morcheeba R.I.P....again.

"The Antidote" and "Who Can You Trust?" are highly recommended.

"The Antidote" is a collection of infectious, clever, funky pop songs, with a singer who has a voice like butter with a bit of Grace Slick and Shirley Bassey in there but with a style all her own. Fortunately, this disc is by Morcheeba, a band formerly known for their groovy sound, combining hip hop, relaxing sexy vocals and a little bit of country, rock and R&B. They also produced two of my favorite CD's, Big Calm and Charango - both brilliant. Well, Morcheeba's sound is still groovy but different. Skye Edwards left the band and Ross and Paul Godfrey hired a new singer, Daisy Martey. So some fans are a little disappointed. But after listening to this disc one time (it didn't even have to grow on me) I'm hooked! Every song is a gem, from the title song, with its little bit of Brasil 66 swing, to the gorgeous melodic Lighten Up with its infectious chorus, to the opening cut, which kicks the disc into high gear. It never lets up. It is disappointing when one singer leaves a band, but Morcheeba didn't try to emulate their old sound. They started fresh and I'm glad they did. Bands have to stay fresh to keep people interested. Keep it coming, Morcheeba!

Morcheeba released their title album in '96, so they've been in the game for nine years now. Bands that last that long and longer must find new directions to go in, or they stagnate and die. With the new album, "The Antidote", Morcheeba has done just that. While still recognizable as the same band, with similar vocals and sounds, the music has a new mood and tempo. It might be described as a bit more upbeat, a bit more punchy, a bit more raw. Listing to this album, it is easy to get a sense of the musicians coming through, rather than the producer.

I loved the previous albums, especially "Who can you trust" and "Big Calm". And I love this one too. But it is different. If you're looking for the dark, moody old Morcheeba, this isn't it. This is more like music you can dance to. So, for variety and newness, this album rates very well. But for someone who expected Morcheeba to stay the course and do more of the same, this will be a disappointment. That's ok ... bands change, and so do tastes. It just so happens that this band changed in a way that I like on this album.

I'm listening to Everyone Loves a Loser as I write this, and I'm actually bored. It sounds like a pop song, FCOL. I got hooked on Big Calm after only ONE song that was included on a mix CD I got for free after attending a Stevie Nicks concert.

This album just isn't as interesting as Big Calm was. I'm going to see what Skye has been up to... hopefully she has a solo album out.

FCOL = "for crying out loud".

Don't listen to the negative reviews. I am as big of a Morcheeba fan as there is and I must say I was very skeptical about the new singer. Upon listening to the 1st song I knew that if there was ever a singer who could belt out a song with as strong of a voice a Skye, Morcheeba had found her. Her style is different. It is more of a retro James Bond movie theme sounding. However, the new singer has a great voice and Morcheeba's great music continues on.

I was sad when I heard that Skye Edwards was leaving but the pure vocal talent of the new lead singer more than makes up for it. What can't redeem this album is the song writing straight out of a junior high school band. It is truely sad that the vocals cannot carry the tired and cliched songwriting. This album (which I bought for $9.99 on iTunes) was a waste of money and has made me move on from Morcheeba with much regret.

Morcheeba didn't just "lose Skye", as some think. The Godfrey Brothers asked Skye to leave because her style didn't fit with the new musical directions in which they wanted to go, e.g., this recording. Daisy Martey, the singer on this CD, was fired by the Godfrey Brothers and she responded by suing them for assault, defamation, harassment and breach of contract.

This recording marks a very different direction for Morcheeba. Though it pales in comparison with Who Can You Trust? and Big Calm, there are many fine moments, especially tracks 1,2 and 5.

Like many others, I really wanted to like this album. I had heard it was a 'return to form' for Morcheeba, a return to the days of Big Calm and Who Can You Trust. Those albums had Skye Edwards' lush vocals and the amazing combination of Eastern influence and Western twang that made Morcheeba something very special.

Even though I knew Skye was gone on The Antidote, I hoped the music itself remained. I was extremely surprised at what I heard. If you didn't read the cover, you really wouldn't know it was the same band. Instead of sitars and guitars, we have an album that, as other reviewers have said, sounds like music from a 1960s James Bond film. (I'd like to go a little further, and suggest that it sounds like music from a '60s Las Vegas lounge act.) Don't get me wrong: that doesn't make it bad. It just isn't the Morcheeba I know and love.

I had to set it aside for a couple of weeks and then approach it again on its own merits. "Wonders Never Cease" and "Everybody Loves A Loser" are pretty good, in their way. "Loser" is probably the catchiest on the album. "Ten Men", "Living Hell" and "People Carrier" are okay, but the songs are starting to sound a little bit alike. However, it's on "Like A Military Coup" that you can start to feel the wheels coming off the bus. I'm also not sure what happened on "Living Hell": they have a singer with a big, brassy voice, and they hide her under back-up vocals right when she should be belting out at full strength. The rest of the album comes off as largely forgettable.

In summary: No, it isn't Skye. No, it isn't Big Calm. No, that doesn't make it bad. Lackluster songs and production straight out of 1965, however, make me wonder what made anyone think this was a 'return to form' for Morcheeba. Borrow a copy from someone, LISTEN to it before shelling out your own money if you're looking for Who Can You Trust II...