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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exceptional As Always,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Emerald City (Dig) (Audio CD)
JV has an exellent track record regarding his records, and Emerald City in no different. Anybody who's a fan of his music knows his music is way better than almost anything that plays on the radio. I have almost all his records, and this is among his best, though the exceptional Cellar Door is by far the best of his career, thus far. What struck me about Emerald City is it's exceptional melodic structure, incompairably beautiful harmonies, and poetic lyrics (all of which are staples of JV's unique style). It's not as immediately accessible as Pixel Revolt (thus the negitive reviews), but if you give it some time, you'll grow it love it just as much. Basicly, anybody who's a fan of JV's music should definately buy it, but someone who's not very filmiliar with his music should probably get Pixel Revolt first.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
lush apocalypse,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Emerald City (Dig) (Audio CD)
Love it, especially the first track "Kookaburra", which seems to wrap together the seemingly opposite qualities of goosebump-inducing beauty and destruction. Of course, I've always felt that danger and beauty go together.
I'm not sure why the background instruments on "White Dove" are distorted, but it's a cool song too. Best CD I've bought in a long time.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Back to Oz,
By
This review is from: Emerald City (Dig) (Audio CD)
Just got this early this week and felt I needed to say something on the latest Vanderslice. After the second time I listened to it, I dug up all his albums I own. This involved digging into my overpacked closet. You see I've been listening to John since "Occult Figurines" which I found to be a cool if minor indie rock album. And then he released Time Travel is Lonely. My interest grew and I realized what I had found. A talented songwriter who payed as much attention to the lyrics as the instrumentation and the arrangement. I mean he is the real deal! Somewhere between Malkmus and McCrea both vocally and lyrically with a undercurrent of melancholy. There is something direct and poetic about his work. This is pop, before that was a bad word, that is evocative and concise. Musically the elements are expansive and harder to pin as being anyone but Vanderslice. Then came Life and Death of an American Fourtracker which seem to slant more to art over pop. It took me awhile to crack it but I did. I like a lot of it but found some of the experimentation didn't take with me. It seemed like it was needlessly obtuse in the music department.
I had no problem with the Beulah style horns, it was just the studio-centric noodling. Some could call it prog pop, I thought of it as needless stretching. But it grew on me. The real moment of doubt came with Cellar Door. Gone was the light conceptual draw of the previous albums for more of a short story feel. And there was one too many ballad type songs. Not to mention a feeling of creative exhaustion which made it more of a song by song experience than an album one. It left me in a state of uncertainty which made me unsure if I wanted to bother with Pixel Revolt. So I drifted away until I heard about Emerald City. After devoting so much time, I figured what the hell. And it was worth it! I think that this is the ideal place to start. Back is the internal cohesion and a nice split between innovation and tradition. Not to mention a blur between autobiography and invention which is Vanderslice's strong suit. It is a solid presentation of what makes him singular in a world bloated with singer/ songwriters with a vision. So why should you want to check it out? It shows that you don't have to suffer to hear good creative music with a personal touch. Not a party record but it sustains you through those introspective/alone moments. This stuff is crafted! Inviting yet enigmatic. It just keeps drawing me back.
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