In a Bar Under the Sea [Import]

Deus | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 11, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Island UK
• ASIN: B000001EA4
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #128,757 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #45 in Music > World Music > Europe > Continental Europe > Belgium

Track Listings

1. I Don't Mind Whatever Happens

2. Fell Off the Floor, Man

3. Opening Night

4. Theme From "Turnpike"

5. Little Arithmetics

6. Gimme the Heat

7. Serpentine

8. A Shocking Lack Thereof

9. Supermarketsong

10. Memory of a Festival

11. Guilty Pleasure

12. Nine Threads

13. Disappointed in the Sun

14. Roses

15. Wake up Before I Sleep

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Eclecticism is one of the defining characteristics of the current cultural era, but while anyone can slap together a collage, few can unify disparate elements into a whole. About 10 minutes into their second album, In A Bar, Under the Sea, the quintet Deus based in Antwerp, Belgium, settle on a groove so graceful they perform scattered sounds both tastefully and effortlessly. Combining perfect pop and a handful of varied rock flavors with avant jazz and classical touches, Deus offers a consistently excellent stream of music as listener-friendly as it is challenging.

Mind you, it isn't always so cohesive. In A Bar begins with an all-out assault on the senses, a low-fi acoustic blues rant followed by a sampled sound bite advising listeners to "be your own dog," interrupted by a James Brown break beat, invaded by a grunge guitar crunch. Then comes a funk bass and guitar groove, leading into a call-and-response rap/shout with a falsetto soul chorus, and into a middle section of synth dance pop. "Opening Night" overlays two different pop melodies by two very different singers, with guitar and piano lines weaving through. And "Theme from Turnpike" uses a Mingus bass sample, Beefheartian vocals, sound effects, James Bond guitar, horn, and string arrangements, Latin percussion, and free-roaming sax to create something both eerie and warm--not far from Tom Waits at his best.

Keep going and you'll also hear pop punk in "Memory of a Festival" and whispery cabaret jazz in "Nine Threads," set among more typical, playful tunes. But admixing more sounds than can fit into the diminutive kingdom of Belgium, Deus's sum becomes a rich, dynamic chamber music for a postmodern world. --Roni Sarig

Product Description

It's always nice to find an album you can't quite pigeonhole, and dEUS sheds its skin all over the place. There's a bit of Pere Ubu in the band's sound (probably thanks to Ubuman and former Frank Black sidekick Eric Drew Feldman, who produced this record), a touch of Soul Coughing, some balladeering, sad vocals, maudlin music, limber experimental touches... it's a smorgasbord of delights, you fool! Originally released in 1997, features the 15 original tracks. Island. 2005.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars dEUS should be famous, May 20, 2005

By 

Julian Cassia - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In a Bar Under the Sea (Audio CD)

It a bit frustrating trying to explain how important this band has been to me as most of it probably will sound like someone recommending something for the sake of having a strong healthy opinion. But at the risk of sounding redundant dEUS simply should be famous. Not because they deserve the stardom (which they do) but because they really have it in them to touch so many people in the world. They kind of fit it in to the time of albums like "The Bends", "Nevermind" etc ... and that kind of stuff ... its different but with the same amount of b@!!s ... This album certainly changed my life, or the way I listened to music, the bar to which I compare different bands to. They have given me a lot and I certainly recommend it to anyone who likes music with a multidimensional flavour. This band is simply amazing.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Epic CD!!!!!, November 27, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: In a Bar Under the Sea (Audio CD)

If you like Radiohead, Gomez and The Dandy Warhols, deus will fit nicely into your niche. Like the other bands mentioned, deus has the ability to transcend having one complete label. Their music shifts back and forth stylistically. In my opinion, the album really kicks into high gear with Track #4 (Theme from Turnpike) and never looks back! This is an epic must-have cd for serious music lovers! Enjoy!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars dEUS = god, March 30, 2006

By 

Nele Scheers "neeltje" (Antwerpen, Belgium) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In a Bar Under the Sea (Audio CD)

"Second album 'In A Bar Under The Sea' (1996) was produced by Eric 'Drew' Feldman, a Captain Beefheart Magic Band veteran who had also played in PJ Harvey's band and The Pixies. dEUS, with the inhibitions of a band in a sweetshop, created an album which surprised not only with the ebullient eclecticism of the music but even more so with how it segued so beautifully together: Moving from the 60s cinematic panorama of 'Theme From Turnpike' to the sweetly beguiling dance floor pop nugget of 'Little Arithmetics' onwards to the brooding avant-grunge explosion of 'Roses' to the spine tingling gentility of love song 'Serpentine'. The end of the album, again, was to see another founding member of dEUS depart (guitarist Rudy Trouvé had left after the making of the "My sister = my clock" ep and was replaced by Scotsman Craig Ward), bass player Stef Kamil Carlens decided to call it a day in order to concentrate on his own band, Zita Swoon. The gap he left was bridged by Danny Mommens."

The above is some information from the dEUS-website. This record is one of my all-time favourites. dEUS have now released four albums (with a six-year break inbetween and not counting the ep), and it's hard to say which is my favourite, but I think this one still tops the list...

www.deus.be and www.zitaswoon.be