Customer Reviews

Black Cherry

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(33)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I found out about Goldfrapp purely by coincidence, and checked it out because I liked the cover. I immediately liked the funky industrial beats, mixed with pixie glitter, sweet voices, orchestra backgrounds, lively rhythm and how the music grabbed my by my hair and slipped into my brain. I was hooked!

Goldfrapp reminds me of another band called LadyTron. I have been introduced to electronic music a few years ago, but mostly stuff such as Jean Michel Jarre and Vangelis. They had no words, so listening to electronica with a female voice was a newer experience for me. I am definitely hooked on this type of music, as Black Cherry is an excellent cd, you can put it up really loud while you're getting ready for a party, or quieter if u need some nice background tunes.

Allison Goldfrapp drives this cd with disco and glam-rock themes. The first time I put this cd on shuffle with other related artists such as Jem, Massive Attack and Thievery Corporation, whenever Black cherry songs came on id run over to see what this music was because it was so good. I adore this whole cd, as it's funky, up beat and definitely cutting edge. You will not be bored of this one, that's for sure.

This should be part of some required listening if you like cool new music. Its like eating gourmet food versus frozen pizza. This cd is not a waste of anyone's time for sure, as it's rich, deep and satisfying to the ear. If anything its addictive, you cant wait fro the next time you can put it on.

I was a bit hesitant about getting "Black Cherry" when I heard that the duo ditches their cinematic sound heard on their steller debut album "Felt Mountain" for a different sound in the vein of Fischerspooner and the electro-clash movement which I am not to wild about. When I found a used copy of "Black Cherry" today, I decided to give it a shot. Goldfrapp's sound definitely has changed on their new cd but for the better. The gorgeous cinematic strings from the first album is definitely gone. "Black Cherry" definitely has a slinkier, more sexier sound than on their first album "Felt Mountain". There definitely is elements of the electro-clash sound on "Black Cherry' minus the annoying beats that I heard on Fischerspooner's "#1". The Shirley Bassey comparison is no longer heard in Alison Goldfrapp's vocals. Alison sounds better than ever now that the group's sound has evolved. I think Alison was exploring her voal range throughout this album. "Train" is a funky, electro-clash/house track that just makes the listener wants to get up and dance. I must confess that I didn't know what to think of the group's new sound when I first heard "Crystalline Green" but after the second time I heard the song, it grew on me. Not all of the songs on the album has that electro-clash beats. "Black Cherry" is a silky, sensuous trip hop ballad. Kinda reminds me a bit of Hooverphonic from their second cd "Blue Power Wonder Milk". A beautiful song. "Tiptoe" is one of the more unique tracks on the cd. Very avant garde. I liked it a lot though. All in all I thought "Black Cherry" was an interesting follow up to the group's eponymous debut cd "Felt Mountain". Some people who expect to hear songs like "Paper Bag" and "Human" probably won't dig "Black Cherry". Those with open minds I think will enjoy the cd. I know I am glad to have taken a chance with "Black Cherry".

On Goldfrapp's highly anticipated, sizzling follow-up to their so well received debut ''Felt Mountain'', it's all about freedom. After conceiving a debut masterpiece, this duo simply decided to change dramatically their musical direction by entering the electro-glam world and trying to establish themselves in the middle of it - probably not for good, until a new change surprises us all someday.
Here the lyrics are still intense, but not as psycho as in their previous LP; here it's more about fun, with more dance, upbeat songs, that can sometimes sound deliciously strange (''Train'') or be more comfortably sensual catchy-pop (''Twist'', ''Strict Machine''). Unfortunatelly the 'ballads' (title track for example) are the weakest point of this album: they are too mechanical, too mellow and very less convincing than the soulful downtempo material of 'Felt Montain' the LP.
No matter what's your opinion and personal taste in regards to the musical style they decided to develop on this album, one thing is for sure: the album is solid in which it follows a direction, with very cohesive themes that really belong to it and are created the best way to fit the project's goals.
Goldfrapp's self-allowed feedom gives hand to their arty consciousness and is appearently gonna work as a fountain of many more daring, provocative and enjoyable discs to come...

Amazon.com's house reviewer seems to imply that Black Cherry is a weaker effort than its predecessor Felt Mountain. Not so, grasshopper! Different, well, yes, but that's the idea isn't it? Although Felt Mountain might have higher highs, it also has lower lows. You can throw Black Cherry on and listen right through without a single weak or "off" song on the entire album. ... Alison Goldfrapp vamps and vixens and uses that golden angel voice of hers to slither and sex-ate all over the place. The most powerful single song is Goldfrapp's soaring, pulse-pounding riff on Donna Summer's "I Feel Love," with Alison doing her fave Giorgio Moroder honor with the S/M anthem "Strict Machine." Following that is her best ballad to date, the ethereal "Forever." Both "Forever" and the title song "Black Cherry" give us a deeper and more direct Goldfrapp, far more affecting than anything on Felt Mountain. She's not hiding out behind lush instrumentals here. The album generally seems to revel in a kind of retro late-1970's decadence: it is straight synthesizer and drum machines from beginning to end, none of those John Barry-esque horns from the first outing. But it really doesn't matter. Black Cherry is a more mature, more stylized and, ultimately, better work than Felt Mountain. And, come on, given how good Felt Mountain was, that's really saying something. Get Black Cherry and make your ears happy!

Ever so the hybrid band that Goldfrapp is, they are really a success creatively (if not commercially). If you like their debut Felt Mountain, Black Cherry will definitely be on the top of your CD purchase list.

Brighter and more sensual than their 2000 debut, the duo comes back with an album that perfectly blends the new wave 80's sound with a touch of industrialism that's seldom seen. On the excellent debut single, a mechanical experience is created while the vocal of Alison Goldfrapp adorn the hyper rhythm. Elsewhere on the album, a dreamy landscape unravels with Forever.

On Black Cherry, you'd get a little of everything without ever losing sight of the road ahead.

The Goldfrapp duo is one of the most interesting things in synthetic world of electronic music these days. Their music is like an abstract painting - you may either love it or hate it. What's the most attractive about Goldfrapp, they prove dance music can be inspired, fun and not repeative at the same time. Alison pushes her voice to the places where most singers would never go, which stems of her wide range and wonderfully open mind. Perfect musical backgrounds are produced by Will Gregory, who never fails to deliver brilliant, imaginative tunes. Their second cd, "Black Cherry" is their most sensual, not to say raunchiest. You may get distracted by the sexual references and metapors, but somehow they fit the mysterious or aggresive electronic arrangements. The album perfectly blends the airy subtlety of their debut and the energy of dance beats. Like any other black cherry, this record is dark and juicy...

*** Goldfrapp has just released a new cd, "Supernature", which is, in my opinion, their best to date. If you liked "Black Cherry", you'll love "Supernature" that's even more fun and up-beat. WARNING: Goldfrapp is addictive!

This is one of my favorite CDs, it's just really good music. They create a nice electronic soundscape, with Alison's lyrics fitting right in.It kind of pulls you into a trance, into a space odyessy of sound.

I can't really say anything bad about any of the songs, this is one of the CDs that I can listen to the whole thing and not get tired of it or want to skip songs.

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Crystalline Green is a nice flowing journey with a trancy ending.

Train has an unstoppable upbeat feel to it with some square wave sounds that tickle your brain.

Black Cherry is a very mellow song, comforting to listen to.

Tiptoe is one of my favorites, a trippy blend of a cool beat and mellow vocals.

Deep Honey has a very soft, melodic, symphony sound to it.

Hairy Trees is also very soft sounding, like you are floating along with the song.

Twist is a faster harder rocking song with a really cool chorus.

Strict Machine is a popular song with a very upbeat alive sound and a catchy tune.

Forever goes back to the mellow side, another great song.

Slippage is the trippiest song, and caps the end of the CD quite nicely.

I havent been able to take this out of my CD player for two years.
If you love the high production of Depeche Mode with the softness of Saint Etienne or Portishead, you'll love this album.
The vocals are phenomenal, the arrangements are almost classical in their cleverness and the sounds are fresh and exciting.
Last year while riding through Greenwhich Village in summer, people were coming up to my car and asking me what it was!
That rarely happens...it happened 4 times! in one night.

My encounter with Goldfrapp is somewhat strange. I knew who they were from around the time they released their second album "Black Cherry" in April 2003. I had never actually heard one of their songs, however, and all I had to go on was hype. I put them to the back of my mind, but in the Christmas sales at the end of the year I saw this album on sale in WH Smith for £1.99! Yes, £1.99! I instantly picked up a copy and so did my mate and we bought it straight away, without ever having heard any of their music. I knew I was taking a gamble, but for £1.99, wouldn't you?! Even if I didn't like it I could always say I had a 'cool' CD in my collection...

I'm happy to report, therefore, that I didn't have to say this because Black Cherry is a simply amazing album that deserves more praise than it has received. I don't own 2000's "Felt Mountain," but I've heard it's good (maybe one day I'll buy it), but I'm currently too occupied with this album! Lead singer Alison Goldfrapp is a saucy and slinky dance-diva goddess of seduction who wraps her beautifully erotic vocals around the sexually-charged and smouldering lyrics of desire and passion. Will Gregory is on hand for synths and creates some of the most fantastically creative, albeit weird, blips and beeps that I've heard in a long time!

The album opens with "Crystalline Green." Opening softly and tightly with Alison's stop-start vocals, the song works its way up to bigger things and the last two minutes are really atmospheric with sighing and wide-open-spaces kind of music that drifts through space. "Train" converts this swiftly and soon enters a hard-hitting and relentless dance beat with a buzzing industrial noise that wedges firmly into your brain. Alison's vocals are seductive and filthy yet still remain classy - a fantastic album standout. "Black Cherry," the album's title track slows things down for a while with soft and almost theatre-like production. The beat is tight and claustrophobic with a great soft silent lullaby synth in the background. It's very hard to describe, but this is an amazing chill-out song for anyone to relax to.

"Tiptoe" is a very camp number, serving up chunky slices of electronica-beats with some dramatic lyrics which are very limited: "You feel good, you feel right. You're so good. Tiptoe over me. Nah-nah-nah. Tears start over," and that's about it for the whole song! The focus here is mainly on the beats and the weird techno-wizardry, especially towards the end. "Deep Honey" is absolutely amazing with its hypnotic and intoxicating beat that throbs and reverberates all over the set. The atmosphere created is soft and calm, but almost intimidating and ominous. "Hairy Trees" is probably the best song on the album because I feel it has an amazing life span where you could just listen to it for years and not get bored. The beat is dripped in love and so deep and thick with passion. What is created is something so beautiful that I'm finding it hard to describe because it's so dreamy and heavenly. I best leave it at that!

"Twist" changes the pace of the album by bringing in dirty lyrics and sexual undertones: "Put your dirty angel face between my legs and knicker lace." This is a big departure for the band, and although it's great, it's not quite as stunning as the past two songs. "Strict Machine" is the album's lead single and has been on TV commercials all over Europe! The beat is really driven and the lyrics are so head-spinningly loved-up that you cannot help but dance! "Forever" returns to the soft and atmospheric music that appears in the middle of this album, and for which I like them best. "Slippage" closes the album and has a dark and dragging bass that features underneath the main body of the song, giving it a dramatic and almost spooky sound - imagine playing any of the first few Tomb Raider games and you'll see what I mean!

OVERALL GRADE: 10/10

In my opinion Black Cherry is definitely an album that everyone should own because it's different and unique to anything else (mainstream) out there. Goldfrapp have brought it to the masses and for this we should be grateful! A third album will tell us if this band have real staying power in the industry, but if it's anything like this album, they have nothing to worry about! This is the cheapest CD I've bought in years, and it just so happens to be one of the best! With their atmospheric and beautifully crafted songs mixed with sexually-charged lyrics and seductive vocals, Goldfrapp stand out from the crowd as the prime example of a band that is Uber-cool! This album serves as a dance-floor filler and a chill-out classic simultaneously. I prefer the chill-out personally, but you should buy this whichever one you prefer! Highly recommended!

After listening to this CD, those three words came to mind. I'm a little biased because I was recommended to Goldfrapp's 'Felt Mountain' CD on a music association website, bought the CD and immediately loved it! But I do like this CD, and am still a fan of Goldfrapp. The tracks on this CD are a little bit more erotic, risque, and throbbing with catchy beat sequences like 'Tiptoe', and 'Strict Machine'. Her song 'Twist' has lyrics like "put your dirty angel face between my legs and knicker lace"...etc. On this CD, I think you will hear a sexier Alison Goldfrapp than the ethereal jazzy one from Felt Mountain. There are a few blissful tracks that will be a treat for Felt Mountain fans-tracks like 'Hairy Trees', 'Forever', and if you buy the Japanese import -'Big black cloud little white lie'... Hope this helps!