Big Machine [Import]

Emilie Simon | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 20, 2009)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: 101 DISTRIBUTION
• ASIN: B002G4FQCU
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #302,875 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Rainbow

2. Dreamland

3. Nothing To Do With You

4. Chinatown

5. Ballad Of The Big Machine

6. Cycle

7. Closer

8. Devil At My Door

9. Rocket To The Moon

10. Fools Like Us

11. Way I See You

12. This Is Your World

Editorial Reviews

Review

EMILIE SIMON first made her mark on the U.S. in the fall of 2006 with her debut U.S. release, The Flower Book on Nov. 7, 2006. Her plush, artful soundscapes had already yielded her significant praise and awards in her French homeland, as well as acclaim across the rest of Europe and Japan. Singing in both French and English, Emilie allows her music to flow naturally, rewarding her with devoted fans worldwide.
It s in New York, birthplace of all artistic hybrids, that Emilie Simon now lives, meaning that it s in the heart of the Big Apple that the seeds of The Big Machine were planted and grown. The Big Machine: an impressive third album from a young French woman with a new freedom of expression, singing (almost exclusively) in English and continuing an expanded version of the musical adventure she started in 2003.
After releasing records back to back, and a lot of non-stop touring, I felt I needed a break. Above all I wanted to experience some things for myself and not necessarily think about music. I upped and left with no microphone, no piano. I even forbade myself to go near a computer for a year and a half. I wanted to see what I was capable of without my usual comforts around me. Of course this imposed diet could only last a certain time, and soon Emilie tentatively started touching her instruments again, although with a different attitude to composing and singing, letting her intuition guide her as she has always done. She recorded her feelings day by day, approaching songs not as something magical, detached from the real world, but as a veritable sketchbook for the sensorial overload that is life in New York.
The Big Machine had been set in motion, and even if Emilie wasn t aware of it at the time, distant ancestors of the New York music pantheon were being integrated into her plans, such as Laurie Anderson s Big Science which itself reconciled thirty years of joyous and serious experimentation (O Superman), both avant-garde and pop. The first two Emilie Simon albums were already built around the perfect equilibrium that is somewhere between sensual songwriting and complex old-school electronics. This time surprisingly, for someone who had never really tried working within a group she started looking for musicians capable of bringing to life what she had in her head. And before that, as if to familiarise herself with the swooping emotions that numerous American musicians on the folk circuit had felt before her, she gave some solo concerts in a few clubs.
I wanted the album to be the transcription of the impression I had of New York, with both a black and white musical feel to it, urban, heavy on bass and drums and with explosions of colour and light from the synths.
The breathtaking result is surprisingly rich, and confirms Emilie Simon's multiple talents, proving definitively that she's not just good for tinkering with machines. Quite the contrary in fact: you'll find her venturing into unknown territories here, such as on the seductive track The Cycle with its hints of pop radio from the 70s/80s, or - at the other end of the spectrum - the astonishing Rocket To The Moon (co-written with Teitur) where she transforms into a sultry cabaret singer off Broadway. Both inventive and charming, as she always is, The Big Machine is also Emilie Simon's most accessible, personal record to date. A large part of it was recorded in the mythical Electric Lady studios, a fitting nickname for the lady herself. --Myspace

Product Description

Emilie Simon launched her career in 2003 and immediately captured the imagination of a large audience with her sprawling and elegant musical fantasies. She gained international acclaim for scoring the smash documentary March of the Penguins and saw her first US release in 2006 with The Flower Book. In 2008, she relocated to Brooklyn where she recorded her album The Big Machine alongside talented guests such as Kelly Pratt & Jeremy Gara (Arcade Fire) as well as John Natchez (Beirut) or Mark Plati (David Bowie). --This text refers to the Vinyl edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bravo!, February 3, 2011

By 

S. Corn (Asheville, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Big Machine (Audio CD)

Upon first listen to this album, naturally expecting a continuum of the artistic journey Emilie Simon started with previous album Vegetal The Big Machine struck me as odd. Like a splinter in my mind her brilliant musical cords and electronically adorned vocal ornamentations I soon became addicted to this album. It is a "grower" of an album and it is well worth the money you pay for it. Not only did Emilie Simon experiment with new vocal styling and musical arrangements but the album takes you on a journey through her mind. If you enjoy the experimental side of the early work of Kate Bush I would imagine you would fall in love with the album like I have. Tracks like "The Ballad of the Big Machine", "Dreamland", "The Cycle" and "Rainbow" seem to pay an unspoken tribute to Kate Bush, at least on a vocal level. Musically it is almost incomparable but at times reminiscent the music of Tori Amos (the Boys for Pele /Choirgirl Hotel era), Bjork and at times similar to Fiona Apple's Extraordinary Machine. The album can not truly be described by comparing to other artists work; it is to be owned! It is truly unique on so many levels. It is brilliant and I hope you become as addicted to it as I have.

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What could be better than Emilie Simon? MORE Emilie Simon!, November 10, 2009

By 

James Stromberg "Qmaus" (Martinsburg, WV, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Big Machine (Audio CD)

I'm always excited when Emilie puts out a new LP; she's my favorite artist for good reason. The Big Machine, like all of her previous LPs, has a personality of its own. An interesting change from her previous works is that you'll find all the songs are in English on this LP, with only an occasional French line or two in the middle of a song. Once again, Emilie has compiled a fantastic album, highly recommended and well worth the money.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Electronic-pop French opera? Yes, please., December 3, 2010

By 

Stephanie - See all my reviews

This review is from: Big Machine (Audio CD)

Emilie Simon's latest effort "The Big Machine" definitely lives up to the quality of her previous albums, and is an obvious extension of the eccentricity of "Vegetal". The sounds of "Machine" are fuller, richer, and more heavily layered than her previous efforts, and her vocals are stronger and brighter. There are elements of Kate Bush influenced vocals, but this album sounds like an Emilie Simon album: creative, beautiful, strange, and more rewarding with each listen. The songs sound modern yet familiar and antique at the same time. If you enjoyed Emilie's prior albums, you will enjoy this one. She's pretty much amazing, and efforts like this make me excited to see what she will create next.