Customer Reviews

Apollo Stars

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

 

 

i was over at a friend's house, doing some work together, and he played me a 10" record by a band that he had been getting into. when the record finished playing, we listened to it again..and again. something about it struck me as really great. it was a tricky listen; containing practically no hooks, but full of some weird kind of force that propels you to listen deeper each time the record spins. the name of the band was Golden.

Golden keeps things taught and lean in their musical stylings. the drums are fabulous and flow with tight precision. the bass is right along it's side, busting out low tones that are both propulsive and creative. the guitars mingle around each other like two puppies playing. the notes skipping around one another and forming into dual melodies that lift the songs into greater terrain. it sounds like the members of Golden each have a fond appreciation of rock and roll of an era long gone...both in their songwriting and their production. when i hear their music, i can't help but think of the feeling of discovering some kind of curious album in the penny bin of a thrift shop. a mysterious and anonymous soul band that might have played local civic halls or maybe a blues band that held nightly gigs at the town bar...now add a very weird mathy approach to that formula, and you are on your way to understanding this band. maybe.

with Apollo Stars, Golden sounds like they found a treasure box full of old Stax records and soul music. adding their own particular brand of 'mathy-blues rock' to the mix, and then sprinkle some exotic instrumentation around the edges...and you've got yourself a very intriguing listen.

there certainly seems to be a theme running through the lyrical ideas on this record. Apollo theater, the Appolo spacecraft, and Apollo pizza. what...no greek gods? this lyric idea is handled playfully, but stated with serious, almost mythical delivery. as if that certain slice of Apollo pizza must be magical. it's really strange and quite funny, but it works more times than not.

also, there are some really nice vocal harmonies on these songs; sure it's not The Shirelles or anything, but it adds to the geeky soul chic of it all.

in a nutshell, Apollo Stars and Golden are an aquired taste. they probably would not go down smoothly with the average indie rock fan, i would assume. but there is plenty here for the adventerous and open-minded rock fan to appreciate. just remember to bring along your sense of humour.

I had never heard of Golden, nor their members' other bands, when a friend of mine saw them live in early 2003. He went to see the opening band, but the night was easily ruled by Golden. It was after hearing Apollo Stars album for the 2nd time, that I knew Golden would become one of my favorites. Questions followed: Who is Golden? Where the hell did they come from? What the heck is an Apollo Star? Why don't they have a website???

Apollo Stars is a concept album. I can't tell you for sure what it's about, but it definitely centers on the Apollo (spacecraft/mission), Judy (she's a temptress), and pizza. It might be best to just let the lyrical content slide...

While some people have described this CD as a party album, I would say it's more like and adventure album, with rocking choruses and solos, but also slower, prettier pieces. As a concept album it is somewhat confusing (ie. what exactly is the concept?), but as a rock album it's just incredible.

If there is one thing you can say about Golden is that they are TIGHT. While they rely on a loose guitar style, the way they interweave all the parts is extremely well done. I might have thought that was just good production, but my friend assures me that Golden is even TIGHTER live. Special props should go to the drummer who really shows us what rock is about.

As far as the sound goes, Apollo Stars is a very interesting mix of styles -- something like indie post-prog. I have no idea who these guys listen to, but you can definitely hear similarities at diffent times to Television, the Beatles, ZZ Top ("Other Side of the Sun"), Oingo Boingo, and Talking Heads, among others.

Reaction to this album by people I know has been almost uniform. On the first listen they are confused, but intrigued. On the second listen they are hooked. That's one reason I think Apollo Stars is the "Best Album of 2002 That You Didn't Hear Until 2003". You should probably buy this album. Now!

Great album. Killer funk sound with an edge. This has some great drumming on it done by former The Mars Volta drummer Jon Theodore. It's a must if you're into the more creative realm of music that shuns genres and commercial appeal.