Aspera Ad Astra

Lilys | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 16, 2000)
• Original Release Date: May 16, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Tiger Style
• ASIN: B00004SU8G
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #180,169 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Too quick, the split, June 27, 2000

By 

"mooncraft" (Norman, OK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aspera Ad Astra (Audio CD)

A split CD with fellow Philly band Aspera Ad Astra. The Lilys material stems from late '93, early '94 sessions, after A Brief History of Amazing Letdowns and before (or possibly concurrent with) Eccsame the Photon Band. The Lilys' tunes are quite "Eccsamey" in their similarly subdued, emotive way. Coby has more of a My Bloody Valentine derived friskiness, whining guitar and descending structure. Timber feels like a lighter, skating style of Ginger with its particularly familiar riff and change. Even with its suitably repetitive phrasing, Hymn is more familiar territory, as is the opener Elsa. Of the Aspera Ad Astra tracks, Good Beat Down showscases a bit of a madcap Mercury Rev/Rollerskate Skinny affinity. Atmospherically shuddery with estranged, shuddery vocal. AAA has nice instincts of their own. Bring Back the Walls is a standout. At times a more strident guitar-driven Death Cab For Cutie but with finely honed, gnashing chops that would be out of place there I think. This sampler/lost tapes affair is a mixed bag and way too short unfortunately. It does the trick as an introduction to Aspera Ad Astra (the tracks were recorded in Feb of 2000) but isn't the most righteous purchase for someone looking into the Lilys for the first time. Lilys enthusiasits only please.

For a bio on AAA and other info check out tigerstylerecords.com .

3.0 out of 5 stars the lilys sky, aspera just lie there, April 29, 2009

By 

hillary "hillary" (oxford) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aspera Ad Astra (Audio CD)

4 very classically lilys-sounding lilys tracks--no bad thing. but not classic lilys.

for the completist, for the most part. but if you are like me you have to have it all!

aspera are really sleepy in a not interesting way.

other bands to investigate in this post MBV vein: Idaho, the black watch, swirlies...

4.0 out of 5 stars Lilys Time Capsule, June 29, 2000

By 

David C. Anderson "fenrisbooks" (Baltimore) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Aspera Ad Astra (Audio CD)

This album isn't really new, it's a split EP with new tracks by Aspera Ad Astra and 4 Lilys tracks recorded in Philadelphia in 1993 & 1994. Still, it's nothing we've really heard before from Lilys. Musically it falls somewhere in between A Brief History of Amazing Letdowns and Esscame The Photon Band. Fortunately, the Aspera Ad Astra tracks pick up where Lilys seemed to leave off with a pleasing sound not unlike recent Ladybug Transistor stuff you may have heard. Overall, the Lilys tracks are sweet, catchy shoegazer rock from yesteryear. Unfortunately they don't seem to work on me the way that they did back then.