Customer Reviews

Exploded View [Vinyl]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mid-80's is its home:
So many jazz (based) CD's from the 80's just sound awful when played back today, due to Synth-percussion or Keyboard programming and a myriad of other tragedies related to that musical era. This CD suffers from none of the above, the acoustic guitar sound (12 string) is very nice and the percussions are layered and powerful.
Certain CD's can be played while doodling around the house or playing chess or drawing or sadly even while reading. This CD however falls into a category specifically relegated to pure listening, perhaps Wine whiskey or scotch in a glass can accompany headphones but that's it. This (statement) is true for a few reasons, mainly because the electric guitar is frequently beautifully obnoxious (fingernails on chalkboard) all variety of feedback and pick-sliding in conjunction with over the top distortion and compression. Frankly, I love it but it cannot be on the player whilst attempting anything else (other than the afore mentioned scotch).
Some of the highlights scattered about the disc are very cool 12 string guitar washes and intense percussion breaks well crafted quiet moments and full throttle attack revolving around "on again off again" guitar mayhem. This is a unique musical experience in that his playing regularly borders on "self-serving showmanship" only to be followed by haunting little acoustic interludes that if not focused on can slip by almost unnoticed (the opposite of self-serving) in that they serve only to expand the mood or enhance the song groove. Tibbetts playing is enigmatic and this CD is worthy of its high praise.

I like to refer to this one as his 'hot' album. Tibbetts and percussionist Marc Anderson created almost all of their works as extended jams that were parceled out into 'songs' for these lp's. "Exploded View" sounds like they took themselves out into the hot african plains and recorded from there. The drums are the heaviest of all the other works, and a couple of female singers add an expansive emotion to the earthy, primal sounds. This is not 'world music' as we've come to know it. The guitar wails and washes are too varied to fit into that genre. Tibbetts' guitar sounds as if it's ripping in from another dimension at times, supplies a gentle atmospheric blanket at others, and drifts into tinkling accoustic sounds at others. This is the best music for playing while driving in the world - pick any album. I can honestly say that his works sound like nothing else I've ever heard - timeless (I've owned this album for 15 years and was playing it on the way to work today) and defying description. If Hendrix had lived and become involved with Stewart Copeland, they might have created works of this magnitude.

You should all be thankful that someone has decided to re-release old Steve Tibbetts albums. Exploded View is nothing short of amazing. With a compositional style unlike anyone you have ever heard, Tibbetts takes you on a journey ranging from serene beauty to intense catharsis. The interplay of Tibbetts' jaw-dropping guitar work, Marc Anderson's compelling percussion, and several singers who use their voices not to sing lyrics but to sound like a human orchestra, all work together for one of the greatest, and most unique musical experiences I have ever heard. Further listening: Everything Tibbetts has ever recorded. Preston Reed-- Handwritten Notes; Preston plays two-handed tapping, percussive acoustic guitar with enough intensity to make Michael Hedges sound like the new-agers with whom he was often lumped. Blues, jazz, and funk come together beautifully on this one. Richard Leo Johnson-- Fingertip Ship; solo acoustic guitar pieces. Nothing sounds quite like it should, but somehow, it all makes sense. Jerry Douglas, Russ Barenberg and Edgar Meyer-- Skip, Hop and Wobble; experimental jazz done by a group of bluegrass masters. Truly weird, but brilliant. And of course, Frank Zappa's 70's stuff.

In 1967, John Fahey released "Requia"-- a combination of his usual brilliant instrumental acoustic guitar compositions, and the 4-part "Requium for Molly," which took some interesting acoustic guitar work and buried it under a morass of random noise. I never quite understood where Fahey was going with that piece, but after listening to Steve Tibbetts, I understand what Fahey was trying to do-- the key to Tibbetts' works lies not in following melodies, chord progressions or even modes, but in understanding the combinations of textures and how each sound fits not into a riff, but into the piece as a whole. It may take a few listens to get into this stuff, but it's worth it. Possibly most impressively, Tibbetts is high in the running for best guitarist ever, but he uses his skill not as a crutch, but as a crucial tool. All of Tibbetts' works warrant serious attention, but along with The Fall of Us All, this is probably my favorite.

This is an incredible album! He has been one of my enduring favorites ever since I first heard his music several years ago. Steve Tibbetts is not very well known, but he should be. His music is a rare obscure treasure, charged with a profound spiritual atmosphere rarely met with today. Tibbetts albums are a montage of primal spiritual music from all over the world; from Tibet,Burma,Africa,India to America. Jimi Hendrix meets the Dalai Lama! A MUST!

"EXPLODED VIEW; n. An illustration or a diagram of a construction that shows its parts seperately but in positions that indicate their proper relationships to the whole"

If you're reading this review you probably already know Tibbett's is an amazing guitarist, and composer; he plays his heart out but does so within a conscious structured composition. The experience is beyond words....like your car careening on a mountain road, sliding, plunging unexpectedly, inevitably, over the edge, and before and after the terrible crash there is peace, reassuring, tempting and fleeting...and then it all happens again.

I like all his recordings but this is the one I reach for most often.

I have never in print seen any mention or acknowledgment of 'Engine Summer' by the author John Crowley [also author of the wonderous 'Little,Big']. as the original source of, or at least the titles, [of most of the songs] 5 0f 9 are clear references to the early 80's underground masterpiece.

As a little Background to the Tibbetts album; Engine Summer takes place in a post-Electric America [it would seem] with people rather pleasantly living of the gleanings of 'civilization' now beyond living memory.

While there is not, as is usual in post-civilization type works any 'mad-max', 'Terminator', or 'Postman' type violence to be found, the Story centers around a boy who wishes to explore, to find lost 'secrets', and bring them back to his community, Little Bel-Air. As he wanders through the countryside, as much in search of a girl from his youth that went off with a gypsyish group called if I remember correctly 'Dr. Boots List'.

While my precis does little to illuminate one of the most well crafted and well written stories I have ever had the pleasure to encounter, it may explain a little of the references to follow.

Below are a few comments relating Tibbbett's titles to the Book, I havn't read it in quite a fwe years though I have read it at least a few times.

Track 1 Name Everything - In Engine Summer, many bits of remaining Technology and Brick-abrack are given humorous and often insightful histories, the residents of Little bel-Air did indeed like to 'name Everything, when they could. They also were patient with mystery.

2 Another Year - the through the course of the story we see the change of seasons and it's effects first hand, just as one might expect from a group of people inhabiting an ancient mall!

3 A Clear Day and No memories -
A reference to the strange device of Dr. Boots list that their community centers around, I think I finally understood this on the 3rd read, but that was probably 7 years ago or so you will have to give it a go yourself.

4 Your Cat - Lots of cats in Dr. Boots list. Big ones.And the people are like them to much to Rush that Speaks' bafflement.

5 Metal Summer - A reference to at least the tile of the Book, if not to something more specific, which I don't recall.

Oddly enough, Tibbets, in bringing to life of this book, or some aspects of it, uses his darkest and heaviest pallette yet.
To my mind, Big Map idea would actually have made a better 'soundtrack' but hey, I will take a Tibbets album anyway I can! His music is so refreshing a change from any 'Genre'.

While Northern Song, Big Map Idea and 4/5th's of Safe Journey could be at home on the Windham Hill label; Exploded View and THe Fall of us All [and 2 tracks on Safe Journey] are more reminiscent of a flawless and uncliched Improv of the Grateful Dead meets Yes' War section in the Gates of Delerium.

For the first time Tibbets uses voices to bring yet another range of emotions and colours to a near flawless performance.

The only nitpick I can offer is an annoying keyboardish sound [almost certainly not one!] in 'Forget'.

Not necessarily what I would reccomend as a first Tibbets disc. Safe Journey would probably be that, unless you want to skip the radical knife edged guitar-work altogether, then I would say Big Map Idea, but one that every fan of progressive music should get around to sooner or later.

Enjoy them Both!

This was my second Tibbetts album after receiving Album 1 as a gift. I was instantly hooked on this stuff and amazed to see how long Steve Tibbetts has been around. I had never heard of him before, and as an aspiring guitarist, it's a sin for me to not have as much of his stuff in my collection. The thing about Exploded View is that even the subtleties are huge. This masterpiece moves with an evenflow like a speeding freight train, but without any awkwardness. From the first song "Name Everything" to "Another Year", to "A Clear day and No Memories", we have three componental songs that seem to weave one giant intro. The mood then evens out a bit with "Your Cat", in which this genious, wizard guitarist has hauntingly captured the whining meow of a cat with his axe. The rest of the album is just sheer delight and seems to be intelligently composed. I don't know what Mr. Tibbetts has tapped into, but my guess is that he's just been gifted with an incredible talent and could probably just plug into a studio, play around for a few hours and create a masterpiece by accident. I just ordered "The Fall of us all" and can hardly wait to hear it.

Steve Tibbetts is a genius of an artist. The master guitarist, arranger and producer has managed to devise many notable albums -such as this one- with refreshingly unique sounds. For good reasons, some reviewers like to compare him to Hendrix ; most of the time, he makes me think of a dark antithesis to Terje Rypdal. This one's from 1986 and adds the (wordless) voice to an already rich musical palette. This recording opens up an impressive window of time-travel exploration in its sophisticate use of the musical medium.

From a technical viewpoint, i think 'Exploded View' is a good approximation of a nearly faultless recording : Sound quality is awfully excellent with tight, high definition stereophonia, proving a real test for any hi-fi or high end componentry. I remember how stunning a track like "Forget" sounded through my old rig, and it still sounds great today if just a bit less crystal-clear than the unparalleled German LP. "Forget" is an impressive track, displaying layers of voices and what sounds like an amalgam of world music with echoes from another time and another place. It's not unlike "A Clear Day And No Memories". Another track i found quite fascinating is "Drawing Down The Moon", with its reflective acoustic guitar melodies mingled with fancy rhythms. Other tracks feature some harsh, abrupt electric guitar passages over complex rhythmic figures. "Another Year" is a good example of this. The first track, "Name Everything", will transport you in another dimension, guaranteed.

To be underlined, Marc Anderson's invaluable contribution, in a certain way the other half of Tibbetts in the studio. He certainly adds his share of vitality to the guitar parts and sonic effects of Tibbetts. On 'Exploded View' his various percussions do make for a most interesting blend of sounds, pristinely captured by the recording. Steve Tibbetts is as strong a composer -and improviser- as he is an instrumentalist. 'Exploded View' proves to be a brilliant realization by this original artist from St.Paul, Minnesota. Easy to understand why he's considered by many as a groundbreaking musician. To quote Rick Mason in City Pages, "Steve Tibbetts is a musical explorer, studio magician and tireless sonic alchemist." This is one of S.T.'s finest discs ; sound quality is awesome and the artistry is phenomenal.

As of this writing, this is the fourth album of this artistthat I've heard, so the tendency is going to be to start comparing,which is probably an injustice since this guy is SO original and creative. I've heard enough to know that I must get everything available. Based on what I've heard so far, the sound of this one falls somewhere between "Safe Journey" and "The Fall of Us All". Without any lyrics, this album shook and shocked me with it's POUNDING polyrhythms, beautifully bizarre vocals, and, of course, intertwining of acoustic and ELECTRIF(R)IED guitar. If you put a gun to my head and made me pick just one Tibbetts cd it would be "Safe Journey", but what a shame to have to make such a choice when this one is out there as well - and I do mean OUT THERE!