Customer Reviews

Farewell Ferengistan

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For anyone not familiar with Banco de Gaia (Toby Marks), this is absolutely brilliant ambient electronic music, with touches of dub, world music, folk, and just about everything else you can imagine. He's been making brilliant electronic music since the late 80s, and has been releasing mind boggling original albums since 1994.

For fans, in my humble opinion, this is the best thing he's done since 'Last Train...' I, like many others, felt 'You Are Here' was a bit flawed, but this is a stunning return to form. Abandoning, except for the last track, the vocal cuts from the last several albums, this is prme vintage Banco, with gorgeous samples, amazing beats, and brilliant production.

Cannot recommend highly enough!!

"Farewell Ferengistan" isn't the most original piece in Banco's ever-increasing discography, but it's one of the best. Thoughtful, engaging, energetic at times and meditative at others, political as usual but subtly so throughout, it incorporates all the best of Banco.

For those who don't know, Banco de Gaia is a well-named electronic outfit fronted by (and consisting mostly of) one Toby Marks. For the last 15 years or so, Banco de Gaia has been dropping one fantastic record after another, mixing together global percussion, melodic instruments from around the world, chants and throat singing and synthesizers and ambience and bits and pieces of who knows what. I won't use the term "world" music because Toby apparently dislikes it, as do I. Suffice to say there are liberal helpings of musical traditions that hail from lands east of Banco's UK residence. "Ferengistan," the liner notes tell us, is an ancient Central Asian term for European lands, which "later came to have connotations of greed, materialism and untrustworthiness." (Of course, the liner notes also say that any or all of the facts therein might be made up: perhaps Ferengistan is an homage to Star Trek instead. Marks is politically minded, but he's also got a sense of humor.)

Which reminds me: for Banco fans who felt that Tongue in Chic and some of the vocal cuts of recent years were a little heavy-handed, you'll be happy to know that they are more seldom and more subtle this time around. Banco de Gaia has a unique ability to be more politically relevant without lyrics than with them (see "Last Train to Lhasa"). So, for example, "The Harmonious G8" features interweaving, undulating vocal lines from singers from each of the Group of 8 countries, each composed separately without knowledge of the other ones, and subsequently arranged by Banco in the studio, leading to a slightly chaotic composition. It works as a piece much better than you'd think, it gets its point across, and it doesn't feel like we're being preached at either.

The album's pacing is good also. The first four songs are more drum-happy, with echoing flutes. They fit together nicely. "G8," barely 2 minutes long, divides the album. The last four tracks are more gentle and pleasantly meandering. As per usual, all the songs are patiently constructed. They're in no hurry to get where they're going. The build up to, and anticipation of, the heavy percussion often takes longer than the lick itself. In lesser hands the weighty track lengths that can be found here (all but one of the songs is between 6 and 11 minutes) would smack of pretension, but here it seems more a statement of loving craftsmanship.

As I said, it's not the most original Banco record, the fun G8 experiment and the Phillip K. Dick tribute aside. But old fans will enjoy hearing some familiar refrains woven into a new and engaging work. New fans can dive in blind and appreciate this album for what it is: an excellent album.

This is really a first-class album in the ambient-electronica genre, with each track contributing to the total overall effect. Haunting and atmospheric and yet dynamic and dramatic, cosmic and ethereal and yet edged with earthly concerns and subtle humor, this music is as complex in mood and tone as it is in cross-cultural musical influences. My only nitpick comes from my personal preference for instrumental music: the last track, with its (admittedly fine) lyrics and vocals, ended this wonderful album on a bit of a weak note for me. But not enough to displace this CD from being one of this year's favorites as far as I am concerned.

While I have a few other albums by this group, I'm admittedly something of a casual fan, and I highly recommend some of the excellent, informative reviews on this page by more dedicated and knowledgeable fans. Based on my experience, though, this seems to be one of Banco De Gaia's stronger efforts, one that I will be listening to for years to come.

(Just for the record, the word "Ferengi" really is what the liner notes claim it to be, an Arabic word for European mercantilist traders and hence for Westerners/foreigners in general. The Star Trek usage is based upon this, as the Ferengi were meant in part as a sly satirical swipe at the hyper-capitalist expansionism of the West in the 19th and 20th centuries. That being so, though, these end up being mutually reinforcing references, both of which perhaps were intended to resonate with the listener.)

Toby Marks has given us an excellent musical journey with his newest album. Although the amazon reviews have been mixed on the musical merits esp. when compared to his previous albums and the lack of consistency, here's my take: the album rocks!! It's a beautiful mix with an underlying theme of all that's being forgotten in our modern existence: farewell ferengistan is an eulogy to the innocence that is rapidly disappearing in the current divisive world. The title track infuses haunting arabic vocals with a slow background that has stayed with me since I first heard it. Other tracks that I have come to really like are Chingiz and Saturn Return.
Do yourself a favor and join the journey that is Banco De Gaia...

2 1/2

Warmly exotic but rarely gripping downtempo has a hint of unique positivity but ultimately feels too boxed in to provide said liberation.

Since His early Days with Planet Dog Records Banco De Gaia has offered up as much in the World/Techno/ambient genre as any of the established dj/computer/musicians of the day. He continues to travel the world in search of his own lost chord. On Farewell Ferengistan Banco revisits his Planet Dog days and at the same instance pursues further onward into the possibilities of a true World Dance Music, and oh yes! by all means don't be afraid to dance. Stand out groundbreaking tracks The Harmonious G8, and Flow My Dreams, The Android Wept. Hurry out and get this disc. Don't let the Starbucks crowd get the jump on you. Thank you Six Degrees for picking up Banco when Planet Dog left our Galaxy.

This music is the best. you just fly out of your body when you here the first sounds of this cd. It's worth buying it. buy it as soon as you can!!!!

On Toby Marks' 7th studio album as Banco de Gaia, it seems as if he's finally mastered his electronic production skills, creating a smooth experience with his hallmark electro-ethno-techno. Thus the title track of _Farewell Ferengistan_ has the Arabic singing fully integrated into the melody, rather than having it simply plopped in out of nowhere. The perkiness of "Ynys Elen" and the quick rhythms of "Chingiz" both show Marks' interest in the upbeat side of things, but Marks also shows a better sense of how to develop his tracks: "Kara Kum" starts out slow and meditative, but shifts into a more uptempo indictment of overreaching Chinese authority; similarly, "Flow My Dreams, The Android Wept" starts off as ambient dub, but veers into a Spanish-tinged direction. He also takes a conceptual approach to "The Harmonious G8," a more experimental project. And even though the album ends on the cheesy "We All Know the Truth (You Have God)," it feels as if Marks has finally cashed in on his Banco.

This CD does nothing for me.
The attraction that BDG has for me is its pulsating rhythm which uplifts you and carries you with it as it plays upon the tension of the melody the percussion and the chorus. "Last Train to Lhasa, Big
Men Cry, The Magical sounds of Banco De Gaia" is the encompassing musical experience for those who like the pulsating almost primitive sounds that "Banco" delivers.
The strength of Toby Marks is in his background as a drummer. Utilizing Ambient dub with Arabic and Middle Eastern influences he has created some of the most dramatic and exciting music of his genre.
"Farewell Ferengistan", is not one of them.
Mbrillson

Whe I first heard Banco de Gaia's "Last Train to Lhasa," I was blown away. I have purchased several other of their CD's and been happy enough, but this one is much heavier on beat than on atmosphere. Thump and bump is all well and good, but it's also a good way to stretch out thin material. In all, passigle, but not my favorite album.