Customer Reviews

Emoticons

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

 

 

This album was recommended to me from Amazon and I decided to take a chance. I absolutely love this album!.....Beautiful arrangements combined with equally beautiful vocals, as well as, thoughtful lyrics. The disc has not left my player since it's purchase...It has led me to purchase everything that is Ben and Jason! and each title reassures me of their incredible talents. Please support this band, they truly deserve it.

Ah, but this is a beautiful album. Ben and Jason, two inconspicuous geniuses in the world of quiet acoustic rock, put out a thought-provoking, intelligent second LP (or first, depending on how you view their debut ep, Hello). It pulls you right in with the slight opening crash of "Widow's Walk", then to the great second single "Air Guitar". Elsewhere on the album are more wonderful, sometimes skewed love songs such as "Say Come" (check out the great remix of this on their "Romeo and Juliet are Drowning" single) and "Emoticons."

Please. Buy this. You won't be sorry. And if you like this, get the singles--the unavailable b-sides (so to speak) are equally as wonderful.

I got this album through an old internet friend who sent me just a 2 minute sample of one of their song. The sample was distorted but the music still had its rhythm and it got me singing it always all the time, unique chorus. From that moment on I bought Hello their first album and then went on to buy Emoticons. Emoticons left me speechless, no breathless with the lovely compositions and soothing vocals. The first song starts out with the most beautiful string arrangements I have ever heard and goes so wonderfully well with the vocals, ending in such an intruiguing way, rendering one to think of an amusement park or a circus of instruments. From then on the album just gets better with haunting lyrics and sweet to the air musical arrangements. Each song has its own style and a unique sound to it. Song #12 I will always want you, has to be the most poetic sounding song ever made, from the chorus to the lovely piano sequences involved. It led me to picture it to a romantic movie soundtrack but yet again its so beautiful for any picture or anything its more of a mental poetic creation and its made to be heard in a soundtrack to one's life. I cannot comment more on this cd because no words could do justice to it, none. Put this cd on your player folks and let the music take you away to many many poetic dreams. The most beautiful album ever created folks!!No single tear of joy can match this album its too beautiful for anything! Ben and Jason are pure genuises!

Track 1: Begins very abruptly with an aggressive, up tempo, acoustic riff, and the violins, fit into the backround perfectly. The vocals although soft, feel like they're coming from the gut. Track 2: This is a warm and wonderful pop tune. When I hear this song i picture myself on a Vespa or Lambretta, cruising through the streets of San Francisco, or maybe London on a sunny day. Track 3: This song is a classic example of the very lush & unique sounds Ben and Jason can create. I can't put my finger on it, but their gutiars just sound sooo good, maybe its in the production or the type of equipment they use in recording, but very few artists, even the most talented ones, rarely if ever create such a warm sound with their guitars. I also love the effects that they put over the vocals on this track. It makes me feel like this song is coming directly from the heart, via the guitars, straight into my ears, filtering down into my heart, resonating in my soul. Track 4: Every song on this cd is fantastic, but this track may very well be the brightest of all the stars on here. The melody is simple & poignant, warm, & beautiful. The vocals are sung with a sincerity and honesty that is rare to find in music today. Hearing this song alone, fills me with more emotions & feelings than words can describe. The trumpet at the end of the song was completely unexpected, and i couldn't think of a more lovely way to bring this song to a close. Track 5: This begins with a creepy mechanical sound, but quickly metamorphasizes into a very lovely & soft fune. The use of the chimes was very exquisite, a perfect backdrop to such a wonderful tune. Track 6: This is a deeply heart felt apology to a loved one. The piano accompanying the other stringed instruments, could have not been arranged more perfectly. Track 7: Up beat acoustic arangements, that make me feel so warm inside, and which evoke such a happy feeling in my heart. It creates almost a longing feeling, but not one without hope. Track 8: I Thought I already had a favorite track on this cd, but this one may actually be a tie with track 4. Once again, i love the effect that they put over the vocals, and in combination with the other beautiful electronic sounds, which melt perfectly, oozing all around the insides of the acoustic structure, creating an intricate, melodious tune. You may catch yourself putting this track on repeat a few times befoe moving on. Track 9: The string arangements on his song are beautiful, uplifting, and perfect. These guys have a way of bringing out the beauty in everything, including the mundane. Track 10: This track is wonderful, and makes me wonder why more american artists can't create such wonderful pop tunes. Track 11: This song is a fiesta of horn & string instruments arranged perfectly, set against a simple acoustic tune, and the rather sarcastic lyrics which amazon probaly doesn't want me to repeat here, are silly and will probably evoke a smirk or chuckle. Track 12: A warm, optimistic tune, with piano & string arangements, accompanied by a horn towards the end. The blend of insturments on this track are again superb. The last track: This is another gem amoung gems. This song gives me a feeling of nostalgia. It makes me think of so many different things. I feel like I could drift away at any moment, like a cloud or a day dream. All the tracks on this cd are absolutely wonderful. They all shine brightly, some more than others. Not only could these songs be the soundtrack for a film, but they could very well be the soundtrack for all our lives. Ben and Jason are swelling with talent. I can't wait to see what they do next. Don't ask me why, but i have a feeling that these guys could be hiding several b-sides for future releases. These guys have alot of life in them & i'm sure they have alot more tunes left to give us. I only hope these guys come to the states, & grace us w/ their musical mystique. If amazon allowed, I would give this 10 stars. Perect for any mood or day, rainy or sunny. Get it for yourself & experience the resonant sounds of Ben and Jason.

...then this is your album. Imagine Jeff Buckley covering the Nick Drake songbook, or Ron Sexsmith taking on Paul McCartney's first couple of solo albums, and you'll get the idea. The breezy, gorgeous "Air Guitar" is worth the price of admission, sounding like the best song Macca himself never wrote. "Cartoon Heart" and "Emoticons" are almost as good, with Jason's understated arrangements and string quartet backing, but there are also more upbeat tunes like the biting Elliott Smith-styled pop of "Dear Sally" and the musical melodrama of "Romeo and Juliet Are Drowning" to even things out. While Ben's Jeff Buckley-esque croon can overwhelm a couple of the weaker tunes, and the strings-only "What I Meant To Say" is almost TOO precious, this is a great album. These Londoners are pop classicists who are not ashamed of the Carole King and Joni Mitchell records in their collections. It's a shame that artists like Starsailor and Badly Drawn Boy sell more records, since they are simply a more inferior version of the B&J sound.

Well I'm shocked to see that no one had written a review for this stunning debut! Ben & Jason are two extremely talented singer-songwriters and in "Emoticons", they have crafted a lovely acoustic album filled with swooning melody and lyrics worthy of a poet. Right from the start you'll know that this is no run-of-the-mill pop album but a modern day classic that will endear itself to your heart for many years to come. As firmly-strummed guitars introduce "Widow's Walk" and beautiful string and piano arrangements snake their way into the listener's mind, one is compelled to give the duo the time of the day they so richly deserve. The pair do away with conventional pop formulas and many of their tracks (eg. "Halfway Up A Tree", "What I Meant to Say")do not feature drums or percussion as they simply use their instruments to create the tempo. (think The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby"). Singing is almost entirely Ben's duty while Jason plays guitar, cello and other assorted instruments to accompany Ben's amazing voice. The duo are now no more after the release of their aptly named last album "Goodbye" and this simply serves to reinforce my view that in Emoticons, I have a very valuable and precious slice of pop music history. Familiar, yet like nothing you've ever heard before.