Customer Reviews

Code Blue

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Icehouse tries a new sound and it doesn't quite work with fans. Although there are still some great tracks off the CD like "Harbour Town" and "Where the river meets the sea", but the CD lacks and leaves you scratching your head. But the Bonus track of "where the river meets the sea" is awesome, why didn't Iva Davies use the original demo in the first place? Its a mystery.

Parts of "Wind and Sail" are reminiscent of "Man of Colours" (the track; not the album). Wind and Sail starts with quiet, dreamy vocals and an atmospheric celtic backdrop, and then picks up with the driving force of distorted electric guitars. Worth buying the album for "Wind and Sail" alone, in my opinion. The beginning of "The Great Divide" has great slide guitar, and some of the vocals are a little Doors-like. I've never understood why Icehouse are still so unrecognised in the music biz. This album proves that they can stand up there with the best of them. The whole album has more than its fair share of the kind of rhythms and melodies that make you want to either suddenly jump up and dance like a crazy person, or play air-guitar in your lounge. There really is something here for everyone.

This and Great Southern Lands together seem to set their own slant on Australia - it's people and the land. This is rare. It is not pretentious. There's a flood of junk around that claims to be, and isn't, 'uniquely Australian' - this manages to be without beating itself up. It is a far more positive album than its pair, and almost all of the tracks are excellent. Icehouse receives far less recognition than it should for albums like this. Particularly noteworthy are "Jericho Bay" (11), "Charlie's Sky" (12), "Harbour Town" (2). Track 9, "Where the River meets the Sea", is absolutely incredible. This would easily top my desert island list.

Like many in the U.S., I was introduced to Icehouse through "Man of Colours" in the late 80's. I have since collected all of their CD's through the internet but had the opportunity to pick up "Code Blue" while on business in Sydney. If you remove "Big Fun" this CD would be a perfect "10." The play list flows well with the next song an even bigger surprise. "Anything is Possible" is the song you can't get out of your head but "Jericho Bay" and "Charlie's Sky" are the jewels, providing strong lyrics and magicial bridges. Be sure to listen to the lyrics on each. The music is so engaging that they are often hidden but are strong enough to stand on their own. This is their best CD, not "Man of Colours."

Man Of Colours (1987) was the Icehouse's most succesful album everywhere, so it's always expected when an album is good,to be followed by other one most 'personal'.

That's what Code Blue (1990) means. In this one, Icehouse decide to try with late 80's rock style (that had influence over the early 90s) mixed with all the influences taken through the time.

Code Blue give us a very rich playlist, so in the same Album, we've got 'rocker beach' party songs: Big Fun, Miracle Mile, Harbourtown (pure late 80s - early '90s style), the classic icehouse's Rock-Pop style: Where the River Meets The Sea, Jericho Bay (Very Good), and some experimentations: Wind and Sail (Excelent, it could remind us the Pink Floyd's 'A momentary Lapse Of Reason') and Charlie's Sky (a perfect close to the Album).

Maybe Code Blue is not considered a good Icehouse's album because the singles (Anything is Possible, Miss Divine and Where Ther River Meets The Sea) had not the success of the band's classics (Crazy, Electric blue..) but in my opinion, these songs (the code blue's singles) are not of the best in the album, and the album most be judgded by all the songs, not only these ones.

Of course not all the songs are good (personally i didn't like Anything is Possible and Miss Divine) but the disc really worth booth the whole music and some lyrics.

About the Bonus tracks, the 2 mixes don't are an interesting thing, but the demo version of 'Where the River Meets The Sea' definitely is better than the original, more clear and effective.

In my conclussion, Code Blue may let down people who only knows Icehouse by its big hits, but if you take a chance on it to listen, you will discover a great aussie's rock album

This CD rocks from beginning to end - great music to clean house to, and if you stop dusting long enough to catch some of the lyrics you might appreciate it on a deeper level. It is a bit of a departure from previous Icehouse releases but no disappointment to THIS fan! If anything, it might be a little "too much fun". :-) "Where The River Meets the Sea" makes me want to go stand on the beach...and wait...

This is not one of those smooth polished albums that i got used to after 'Flowers',but it certainly is refreshing and different.That's why i give it 5 stars.The sound is raw for a change but still has an abundance of fantastic hooks.Bands from Down Under are truely unique.You don't get that here in the States.The only letdown album from Icehouse is 'Sidewalk',but i can live with that.I wished Iva Davies would get it together at least one more time to record another great album such as this one.

This is not perhaps the most commercial of the Icehouse albums, but it's still Iva Davies, and it's still great music. True fans will appreciate the additional range of styles that Iva explores on this album, and enjoy it for what it is: another piece of work by an amazingly talented artist, although probably more experimental than some of the more successful albums. He explores a number of styles that haven't been found on his other, more homogenous albums, and I think that's why this one didn't score well with the punters. It's a collection of very different tracks and maybe the average listener wasn't ready for that.

I own almost all of Iva's albums now, but hadn't got around to listening to Code Blue until recently. After all it's the black sheep of his catalogue, and had little commercial success. I don't recall hearing even one single off it. However I figured it was time I completed my collection and came here to buy it. There were a few reviews here that basically said "you couldn't pay me to buy this album" but I figured anyone who hadn't really listened to it probably wasn't in a position to write a proper review anyway. So as a genuine fan I decided to give it a go and see what this album had to offer. And the answer is - it's an interesting piece of work that grows on you as you listen.

Sure, it's not "Man of Colours", but in many ways it's got more soul. I think these are songs Iva had to get out of his system. They sound like ones that meant something to him personally, and let's face it - you don't *have* to be able to dance to everything you hear.

For those who are looking for a real rocking sound that is definitively Icehouse, I can highly recommend "Knockin 'Em Down", a punchy dance track with a wicked chorus about a boy from the streets who becomes a boxer who just won't quit.

"The Great Divide" is an excellent track which somehow feels a bit like a follow up to "Great Southern Land" - it's more upbeat and more intense, but there are certain sympathies in the music and lyrics.

"Wind and Sail" is a departure from the norm which shows more of Iva's range. It has a distinctive Scottish flavour to it, and in parts it sounds more like Pink Floyd than Icehouse, but it's one of the standout tracks on the album with guitar riffs David Gilmour would be proud of, and Floyd-like choral work behind Iva's amazing voice (wow - that gives me an idea - imagine Iva fronting Pink Floyd!!).

"Big Fun" is a track that starts off fairly simple and repetitive and becomes increasingly more complex as it develops as Iva is clearly having a good time with it. He even drops in some "studio session" comments into the finished track as additional colour.

"Miracle Mile" is another classic Icehouse track. A great beat with some signature synth work on the base track.

"Jericho Bay" is a catchy tune that's classic Icehouse, but probably wasn't considered single material because it's about a woman leaving an abusive husband.

"Charlies Sky" is a really thoughtful track that also sounds like it was produced by Pink Floyd. Excellent stuff.

And then there's "Where the River meets the Sea" - which sounds a lot like a grown up and finished version of "Hey Little Girl". It's absolutely beautiful, and there are TWO versions of the track on the album so you can enjoy the soulful original demo track, or the more heavily produced final version. Two other tracks also have alternative mixes on the end of the album.

Altogether I'd recommend this album as a treasure of slightly-atypical gems from one of Australia's (and the world's) great artists.

I've been a fan of Icehouse for over ten years since Man of Colours appeared in the U.S. with singles "Electic Blue" and "Crazy." Code Blue is a lot like Icehouse's Great Southern Land and its as good as, if not better than Great Southern Land. The lyrics on Code Blue are meaningful without being sappy or sentimental. The music is danceable and doesn't all sound the same. This is a cd that I have never gotten tired of listening to or bored with. The best track is #9 "Where the River Meets the Sea." After that, #2 Harbour Town", #3 The Great Divide", #4 "Wind and Sail", #8 "Miracle Mile", #11 "Jericho Bay" and #12 "Charlie's Sky" are all incredible. This cd is definitely worth having as a part of any collection.

Icehouse has gone through a number of musical incarnations in its history: the first album is an underrated synth-pop gem (and the album that made me a fan of the band); Icehouse then seemed to hit it's stride with the next two albums ("Primitive Man" and "Sidewalk"), which were both solid efforts. Then they produced "Measure for Measure", which contains some real gems like "No Promises", but which sounds more like late-period Roxy Music - very smooth and generally enjoyable, but somewhat bland. This trend would continue with "Man of Colours", which produced their biggest hit, the John Oates co-written "Electric Blue" - which, while being a well-crafted pop song, bears little resemblance to "We Can Get Together" or "Great Southern Land". Iva Davies began to resemble what some described - unfortunately not without with some justice - as the "poor man's Bryan Ferry". Obviously, many people were happy with this direction, but I found myself becoming increasingly disappointed. I have to admit that, given the trend of Icehouse's output, I did not really have high expectations for this album when I ordered it, and it was pretty much what I expected.

Musically, "Code Blue" falls between the albums that precede and follow it ("Man of Colours" and "Big Wheel"). There are some decent moments here and there (the songs 'Wind and Sail', 'Jericho Bay' and 'Charlie's Sky' probably being my favorites), but if you have listened to the two albums mentioned above, you won't find anything new or groundbreaking here. Overall, it's a somewhat bland and generic-sounding pop/rock record. In the end it comes down to a matter of taste: if - like me - you prefer Icehouse's earlier, "new-wavier" albums to their later output, I'd think twice about shelling out this kind of money for "Code Blue". It's not exactly a bad album, but certainly not a great one.