Customer Reviews

Hallelujah All the Way Home

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

 

 

not a bad little record from a sadly unknown band who's made a habit of steering clear of tired rock conventions and forging their own sound. well deserving of repeat listenings for the vivid vocals and lyrics and the strange, middle-ages bent of the music. the drawbacks are that it's too short and the songs lack much true variety, but perhaps that was the point. whether it's the point or not the verlaines can get a bit tedious when they don't sway from the (admittedly unique) formula and so it's probably best to seek out one of the longer, more expressive records instead. regardless, it's uniformly good stuff and if you come across it while rummaging through one of the many bargain bins verlaines cds sadly often find themselves in then give it a good home. it deserves nothing less.

The Verlaines are a band from New Zealand. They were mostly active in the 1980's (this album is from 1985). Their style is unique. The compositions resemble classical music, but this is a rock band. What is interesting is this combination of complex, lyrical compositions (at least for a rock band) and an assumed lack of prettiness (the sound is rough, the singing is approximate). The advantage of not following fashions is that, after more than 20 years, it is still fresh and original.