Customer Reviews

Continental

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Though highly atmospheric, this album has far more musical complexity than your typical "ambient" album. As far as Cocteau Twins sounds go, Continental points to my favorite Cocteau Twins album: Victorialand. Lovers of this blissed-out music will want to check out Slowdive, Radio Dept., July Skies, Coastal, Lovejoy, Landing, Love Spirals Downward, Malory, Montgolfier Brothers, Nathan Larson, Silver Screen, Wan Light, and Bark Psychosis.

Most fans who listen to this album are going to (once again) lament the fact that Liz Frazier is "missing." I have grown extremely addicted to Robin's work, and after listening over and over again to "Imperial" and the "Mysterious Skin" soundtrack, I actually find Frazier's voice to be intrusive when I put on my Cocteau Twins CD's! Of course I still love Liz... but what Robin has done is weave his own musical dream, and it's absolutely every bit as lush and beautiful as you would hope. Most of the songs on his "Continental" start out as a whisper, and build to a crecendo of guitar and drums. Robin's soundscapes never get muddy or overly "fuzz boxed;" each song is clear and clean. My only complaint is that it is such a short CD, at just over 40 minutes- I would have loved it if some of the songs went on longer! I suppose that is a testament to how lucious this disc is- when it ends, I guarantee that you will end up just hitting "play" again and letting "Continental" drift over you.

I loved Cocteau Twins. I loved Slowdive. I loved My Bloody Valentine. So what to do now they are gone? Love Robin Guthrie. Love Hammock. Love A Shoreline Dream. 2006 seems to be one of the best years ever for Dream Pop and Shoegazing music since the genres came to be, back in the eighties and nineties. And this album can be thanked for being a part of that.

Jumping between calm, lush guitarscapes and animated passages the album does more than fulfilling a need for more good music. Continental, by Cocteau Twins co-founder, Robin Guthrie, is a piece of music to live and dream by. It's become a permanent part of my bedtime routine, to help me calm the thoughts of my day and get me in the mood for dreaming. Happy to have learned about it, I have no doubt it's one of the best albums of 2006.

RG gives his trademark soundscapes a different twist by adding more prominent bass, ambient vocals and a more energetic sound, making this even a stronger record than his previous "Imperial" on Bella Union.
While imperial was more ambient and dreamy, focusing mostly on Guthrie's excellent guitar work, Continental feels more complete. You will not miss the Cocteaus!

For an even better experience, try to get the other companion EP's: "Everlasting" and "Waiting for Dawn".

Here are soaring, dreamy, melodyless instrumentals drenched reverb, seeping with ethereal mood, but pumping with rock that you can punch the air to. Basically it's the latest incarnation of shoegazer -- I am glad Guthrie and others are not allowing this noble genre to die. I have real trouble reading to music with words and cerebral melodies. I seek stuff like this to play as I read. If this kind of stuff becomes the elevator music of the century, I will love the time I spend in elevators. Lush textures, pleasingly longing intervals, warm,cold, clean, distorted and wailing. What a satisfying blend.

this is just what you would wish for on a Robin Guthrie album, it's got all the necessary ingredients and it hits harder than Imperial which was more ambient.
So far this century this is my favorite album, followed by Campfire headphase from Boards of Canada,Waves are Universal from Rachel Goswell, and possibly maybe Takk from Sigur Ros.

My first encounter with Robin Guthrie was on the Mysterious Skin soundtrack he wrote with Harold Budd. It was a beautiful piece of luscious score that emoted perfectly to the dark brooding film, making each scene vividly memorable for the audience and listener.

On his own, Robin Guthrie retains his sensibilities for emotive pieces but instead of feeling blue all the way, some tracks are actually uplifting. In the end, the record is cohesive and cogent.

This is a great instrumental album by a great artist. Opening track "Continental" is a perfect introduction to what follows, building gradually into something very emotional. "Conquering the Romantic" brings back that good old Cocteau-style landscape sound. "Crescent" starts delicately and, as the title implies, becomes louder later on - I have to say I have mixed feelings about the finale, though. "Monument" is probably the best track of the album and one of the best songs ever IMHO. "Amphora" is a downbeat tune in which the best element is the guitar that comes in at the end. "The Day Star", similarly to "Crescent", builds into a louder sound - again, mixed feelings. It does provide an energy to the album, but it kinda breaks its otherwise linear soothing ambiance. "Radiance" is maybe my second favorite: beautiful intertwining guitar and bass arrangements. "As I Breathe" is another song featuring calmer and louder bits, but this time I think this device works better, perhaps because it comes and goes (some moments in this song remind me of "Four Calendar Café"-era Cocteau). "Last Exit" is nice: I see it as kind of a sister-song to "Amphora". The final track, "Pale", starts with eerie sounds and slowly brings more familiar sounds to Cocteau-trained ears, until becoming complex, a little Cure-like music (there is something here that reminds me of that Judge Dredd "Burn" song). All in all, this album has become my "residual" CD for more than three months now. Robin Guthrie is one of the few artists nowadays whose work I feel confident to purchase without hesitation.

Robin Guthrie's expertly crafted, thick sound. Fourty minutes of thick rich soundtracks and melodies in just the right ambiance-flavor; the right hints of depth, bass tones, strings like bells and shimmerings; the major fall, the minor lift. Addictive, as any fellow Cocteau Twins / Guthrie aficionado will attest.
Thank you Robin for allaying our hunger a bit, till the next release of another bevy of enchanting lullabies and danses.

I recently discovered Robin Guthrie's work through his collaborations with Harold Budd (e.g., Mysterious Skin, Before the Day Breaks, After the Night Falls). I was surprised to learn that he was the creative force behind the Cocteau Twins for many years (See my review of The Moon and the Melodies). I subsequently purchased other Cocteau Twins works(Treasure, Lullabies to Violaine: Vol. I and Vol. II) and they are excellent. That brings me to the review of one of his solo work Continental. I like all of the tracks on this outstanding CD as it allows me to work, write, think and enjoy myself without having to pay direct attention to the structure of the melodies. While this is the primary reason that I like all amient music, I find that Guthrie's music, and the CD Continental, leaves me wanting more. Check out his other solo works, especially 3:19 Bande Originale Film.