Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain [Vinyl] [Limited Edition]

Sparklehorse | Format: Vinyl

Product Details

• Vinyl (October 31, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Limited Edition
• Label: Astralwerks
• ASIN: B000HT393Y
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #613,403 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Don't Take My Sunshine Away

2. Getting It Wrong

3. Shade and Honey

4. See the Light

5. Return to Me

6. Some Sweet Day

7. Ghost in the Sky

8. Mountains

9. Morning Hollow

10. It's Not So Hard

11. Knives of Summertime

12. Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain (aka Maxine)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Battling his own personal demons while he has been highly coveted as a producer for other bands, singer/songwriter Mark Linkous' output with his own Sparklehorse has been as irregular as it is ingenious. And it's been five years since the candid album It's a Wonderful Life welcomed a clean-and-sober, Linkous crafting the same divine and bizarre songs that have come to define his North Carolina-based band. That inclination continues here with the peculiar front man punctuating his songs with mentions of ghosts and knives and mountaintops, and presenting them with a murmured, spaced-out and psychedelic soundtrack. The up-tempo, bundle-of-nerves pop songs "It's Not So Hard" and Guided by Voices twin "Ghost in the Sky," though luscious, seem out of place among slow and startling ballads like "Getting It Wrong," "See the Light" or, especially, the imminent kiss-off "Some Sweet Day," where Linkous grouses, "I was the one who loved you most/ But you can't put your arms around a ghost." A parting shot that's meant to linger—much like the 53 minutes that are Mark Linkous' latest comeback. --Scott Holter

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I dreamt for light years..., September 26, 2006

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain (Audio CD)

It's been five long years since Sparklehorse's "It's A Wonderful Life," which is probably the most "ordinary" album Mark Linkous has ever produced. But the mysterious Linkous returns to his peak with "Dreamt For Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain," his fourth album full of unpredictable indie-rock.

The title should show you how likely it is that we'll hear Sparklehorse on mainstream radio. And true to its name, "Dreamt For Light Years..." is like a dream -- a wild, unpredictable, sad and exquisite dream, which is sure to captivate listeners who want music to be an experience.

It opens with fuzz, blips and mellotron, and then Linkous starts singing, "Your face is like the sun/sinking into the ocean/your face is like watching flowers/growing in fast motion..." The grimy guitar and swelling strings kick in, for a charmingly upbeat little song that lulls you into the right frame of mind for the remaining songs. Of course, it's not really upbeat -- it's all about Linkous pleading with his lover not to leave him.

Having lulled you into the Linkous Zone, the album gets stranger and more appealing as it progresses -- the shimmering folk "Shade and Honey," meditative folk, classic indie-rock, and jagged lo-fi rockers. This is weird, wonderful music, with the pleading love son It finishes with the title track, a ten-minute piano instrumental full of sadness and exquisite beauty.

Though "It's A Wonderful Life" was the last Sparklehorse album, this one owes a lot more to his masterpiece "Good Morning Spider." Okay, the album is apparently not about near-death experiences, but Linkous still sounds sad and surreal here, with no nods to convention. Even when he tries to be upbeat, he sounds like his heart is breaking.

He also doesn't mess with the instruments that work: grimy lo-fi guitar and folky indierock, with some charming harmonies, smooth strings and some electroblips, courtesy of Danger Mouse, and Flaming Lips drummer Steven Drozd. At first glance you'd think that they would overwhelm Linkous, but their additions are more like putting a pretty frame around a masterpiece.

His vocals haven't changed either -- falsetto and very despairing, and even when he's doing Flaming Lips-style harmonies, he sounds despairing. The lyrics match up with this -- there's a childlike simplicity to Linkous's emotions, but they are wrapped up in poetic lyrics and peculiar imagery.

It's been five years, but Mark Linkous has not lost even a little bit of his magic touch -- in a year flooded with many wretched albums, this quietly downbeat album is a triumph.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not my type of music, but...., January 6, 2007

By 

Antiquity (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain (Audio CD)

This is the type of music I typically wouldn't care for. The music is electronic and airy, and the singer's voice a little too sweet and fragile for my taste. I must say, though, that the disc is very good. The songs are layered, complex, and the album unfolds nicely. After a couple of spins, I found myself really enjoying the music and the mood it creates. To me, the only negative is the 10+ minute wordless final song, with soft, dreamy melodies that would have made a nice 2-3 minute finale but don't quite keep my interest for the entire duration.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great range, dreamt on great stars, December 16, 2006

By 

Otto Zappatore "Finderman" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain (Audio CD)

With breathtaking range, a heartfelt sensability that doesn't annoy, great ideas, lyrics and melodies, Sparklehorse strums his way into his fifth or so album, with beautiful nonchalence. But don't be decieved. This is a rich, interesting, complete album. All the trimmings. And maybe the first time since Vivadixie that he's had rendered emotions so bare.