Contino Sessions [Import]

Death In Vegas | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 13, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Sony Bmg Europe
• ASIN: B000025AOK
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #406,296 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Dirge

2. Soul Auctioneer

3. Death Threat

4. Flying

5. Aisha

6. Lever Street

7. Aladdin's Story

8. Broken Little Sister

9. Neptune City

10. Dirge (CD-Rom)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Richard Fearless has earned his name. Death in Vegas's 1997 debut, Dead Elvis, established him as a defiant DJ, mixing techno with weird dub, rock, and industrial. Despite itself, the disc spawned a hit ("Dirt"), an experience he may have wished to replicate here, though Contino pushes even harder in multiple directions. Many high-profile guests add to the blend of smooth grooves, noisy ambience, and raucous rock rhythms. Primal Scream's Bobby Gillespie conjures a laid-back hip-hop posture for "Soul Auctioneer," while Jim Reid makes "Broken Little Sister" sound a lot like his own band, Jesus and Mary Chain. On "Aisha," Iggy Pop's wicked monologue could rival Nick Cave's creep-factor were it not for Fearless's musical playfulness. From gospel choirs and organs to Americana twang, deep bass rumblings to spacey sci-fi sounds, The Contino Sessions is a psychedelic trip with bravery and grit. --Liisa Ladouceur

Product Description

The British club/dance act's 1999 album that is out-of-print domestically. Featuring guest appearances from Iggy Pop, Bobby Gillespie (Primal Scream), Jim Reid (Jesus & Mary Chain), & Dot Allison. Nine tracks. Deconstruction/BMG. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dark Without the Death, March 31, 2003

By 

"gibbun" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Contino Sessions (Audio CD)

This album is a rare example of that music which manages to be dark and moody without causing involuntary wrist slitting or head-bang whiplash. The opening track, "Dirge", is representative of everything that is great about modern American rock music. The track contains simple, effective riffs obscured by gritty overdrives and thundering bass beats that are utterly addictive. The track also reveals the band's knack for increasing the tension and power in a song without advertising the fact. The result is a song which swells and pumps along, carrying the listener on a musical waterslide until the instruments seem to crash into the pool at the bottom leaving said listener both exhilarated and exhausted.
Try not to feel like a member of the trenchcoat mafia as the album's pivotal track 'Aisha' proclaims: "I think there's something you aughta know. I'm a murderer." The agressive rhythm combines with the sinister lyrics to provoke a sense of latent 'cool' in the listener.
Not all the tracks are stand out. Neither are they all heavy and dark. 'Flying' is one of the best tracks on the album but contains only feelings of airy joy as the various electronic rhythms swoop and, well, fly.
Death in Vegas are a rare breed of artist. They belong to a movement arguably started by the Velvet Underground but now frequented by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Nine Inch Nails, and others. These are the bands that will save the world from hyper-conformist pop. Vive le Death.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ok. I wanna talk about Aisha only........, September 28, 2001

By 

PAUL QUIGLEY (Colorado Springs, CO, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Contino Sessions (Audio CD)

The whole cd is clas, but Aisha stands head and shoulders above everything.

My first hearing was soley for the music. I didnt pay too much attention to the lyrics. I love their blend of funky beats and the journey it takes your body.

Last night i lay and listened to the lyrics. Of course i was still 'bopping' but MAN.....the sound of the voice is PERFECT.....the analogy hes using i think ive figured out, but the simple use of very poignant one-line lyrics kicks. i mean, when he says 'HE GOT OUT'.....sent shivers down my spine. I heard myself loudly uttering 'This is GENIUS' over and over again......

I defy you to hear this song, to not feel the power, to not hear the ingenuity, to not want to go and buy every cd theyve done just in the off chance that they might have gotten close to this again somewhere else.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One Of A Kind, October 28, 2001

By 

Timothy B. Oneil (Holyoke MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Contino Sessions (Audio CD)

There's a reason why Ed Simons of the Chemical Brothers is such a huge fan of this disc (besides the obvious one that Richard Fearless is a pal of theirs). It is quite simply one of the most creative and endearing discs to be released in the past few years.

I will admit that it took me some time to come around to it. Its dark, at times disturbing... if you are looking for pop-friendly hooks or accesable melodies, this is not the place to go. But if you are in the mood for a richly dense album that will yield great rewards for repeat listenings, this is for you.

There are a few stand-out tracks: Dirge is a comparitively quiet intro to the album, a slow-building jazz stomper that acts as a kind of thesis statemtn for the album as a whole. Lever Street is a simple tune, consisting primarily of what sounds to be a Hammond organ - one of the saddest songs I can remember, supremely evocative of heartbreak and despair. Neptune City closes the album - it's one of my very favorite songs, a euphoric capstone to an emotionally draining experience.

All in all, I consider this an essential album. It takes your preconceived notions of what electronic dance music can or should be and stretches them like taffy.