Discosis [Import]

Bran Van 3000 | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 18, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: EMI Europe Generic
• ASIN: B00005ATGJ
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #78,268 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Astounded

2. Loop Me

3. Montreal

4. BV3

5. Discosis

6. Go Shoppin'

7. More Shopping

8. The Answer

9. Jean Leloup's Dirty Talk

10. Loaded

11. Speed

12. Predictable

13. Senegal

14. Dare I Say

15. Stepchild

16. Love Cliche

17. Rock Star

Editorial Reviews

Import edition of their 2001 studio album featuring the first single, 'Astounded w/Curtis Mayfield'. 17 tracks in all featuring Youssnou N' Dour, Dimitri From Paris, Big Daddy Kane & Momus. Signed to Grand Royal domestically this release is currently not on schedule for a US release. 2001 release. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars sheer musical bliss..., September 22, 2001

By 

r404k (Atlanta, GA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Discosis (Audio CD)

I had the distinct priviledge of living in Montreal at the time BV3 released Glee, their first album (I was even lucky enough to meet some of the bv3 folk). Not only did Glee completely embody the cool, weird, wacky, and generally brilliant culture of Montreal, but it was a musical tour-de-force and one of the best pieces of music I've ever heard (and I listen to a lot of music).

When I saw that bv3 released a new album, I scraped all the change out of my pocket and went to buy the CD. Was I ever in for a surprise during the first listen-through. Upon hearing the first few notes of "Astounded" (featuring the legendary Curtis Mayfield), I screamed "Oh my God! They've gone Disco! Or not. What is this funky latin rhythm?" Then I waited a few minutes. "Hmmm... It's world music (Montreal)" A few minutes later "What an incredible reagge song (Go Shoppin')" And so on...
As you can see, Discosis is yet another collection of different music styles and some incredible collaborations. Curtis Mayfield, the incredible Youssou N'dour, the reagge pioneer Eek-a-Mouse, DJ Dimitri from Paris, and the ever-so-cool Montreal rocker Jean Leloup (definitely worth checking out) all lend their immense musical talents to this fantastically eclectic collection of songs.

Music lovers of any genre, particularly those interested in exploring something new and brilliantly refreshing, need to get this CD immediately.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars are you a tramp like that? are you born to run?, June 6, 2002

By 

Ryan Hennessy (Albany, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Discosis (Audio CD)

Bran Van 3000's 1998 album Glee was hailed by many to be a great pastiche of genres, and I'll give it that. There are a lot of different sounds piled in there, but the problem I had was that it felt like it was darker than it should have been. It's hard to explain it, but it sounded like there was a happy album wanting to get out there, but the band was feeling too bitter to let it fly, and there's a number of pointless interludes and boring songs thrown in there. Discosis, I was pleasantly surprised to hear, lets everything go. The six-minute opener dispelled any fears I had of more cumbersome rock and rapping. The Bran Van guys found some old vocal track that Curtis Mayfield recorded, but never used, and somehow got the rights to use it in their own song. So they made a whole song for the Curtis track! The music is just what you would expect when you think of the word "discosis." It's really dancey, has dramatic strings segments, is slickly produced, and it sounds like it's basically swirling all around you. The Bran Van girls is even back Curtis up on the chorus, "All I wanna do is love you / I just wanna take you there." And no less than four minutes into it, what sounds like a couple of Cuban guys take over the vocal duties in their own language, while someone goes absolutely wild on a flute solo. This is the song for the your party mix.

Although their first album sounded unbalanced at times, this one bearly misses a beat. The songs are packed together and even though their throw the genres around, the songs all have a similar type of sound to them. Also, as with the first album, they recycle vocal tracks using them on more than one track. So we actually get a preview of "Senegal" in "Montreal" and a reprise of the Cuban singers in "Discosis." It's a really effective way of making the album more cohesive. Oh, and if you noticed, there's a whole slew of special guests brimming with indie credentials. Bran Van 3000 has always been more like a collective than a band with people coming and going as they please, so this all fits in fine. Loop Me" is a sultry space-accented lounge kind of song, although I think it goes without saying that anything the Bran Van girls sing turns out sultry. Their voices are perfectly fit for an album like this, with of its tongue-in-cheek disco stylings. The "Loaded" and "Speed" combination is another in the natural progression of things idea. "Loaded" is sung by the girls and is basically about partying and drinking a lot. "Speed" is like the antithesis, a beautiful acoustic-turned-rock-turned-rap song from the same girl, except it looks like she needs someone to put some excitement in her life. ("So hold on / Take me with you! / Hold on / My soul is on!") She wants to ride someone's motorbike, and this other guy starts rapping and it turns into a sort of quasi-conversation. As the song moves along, the music seems to gradually build and speed up until at the end the guy is yelling "New Jersey girl! / We gonna ride around! / New Jersey girl / New Jersey sun!" It's really just a wonderful song.

Globe-hopping, genre-plundering, tongue-in-cheek and bringing it all back to the nightclub. It doesn't get any more cosmopolitan than Bran Van. Oh, yeah, and what's most amazing: They're Canadian.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly amazing, September 25, 2001

By 

Jason Ding (Ottawa, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Discosis (Audio CD)

I bought this CD after reading the reviews on this site and was even more impressed than I thought I would be. This album is truly a gem; it is incredibly well-done, original, and, best of all, it succeeds in being original.

The CD has 17 tracks and all of them are well done. Unlike most albums, it doesn't go downhill after the first few tracks. Every song is unique and different in its own right, and everything comes together well. My favourite songs would be Astounded, Loop Me, Speed and Love Cliche, though everything on the whole album is well done.

The only downside is that the vocal talents of BV3 pale in comparison James Di Salvio's songwriting skills. Most tracks have lead vocals doen by performers outside of the group, but the vocals that are done by the members of the group do seem to lack some liveliness. They are good, but not up there with the best.

Aside from that, though, this is an incredible album. It's definitely one of the best CDs that I have. Rarely do you find an attempt at creativity working out as well as this has.