Customer Reviews

High Rising

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have been a fan of SFTG since "Kin" graced my speakers in 1996. Ive followed their career and enjoyed every one of their releases. Just when I thought their music could not get any better than "Luminal", I was blown away by my first listen of "High Rising". Wow! They really outdid themselves. The music just soars as the title so aptly implies. As anyone who knows their ambient/chill music must agree, "Triangle" from their first release is an alltime classic in the genre. Well, I do believe they have another classic in "Beautiful Feeling". When I first heard it, all I could do is shake my head and smile. This release is more laid back than "Luminal", and even more emotional. This is an instant classic.

If you like Chillout or any other music that inspires thought provoking emotional depth then buy this CD. Its mind blowing. I cant even describe it. My fave is Beautiful Feeling.

HOW CAN THEY POSSIBLY OUT-DO THIS CD....IT SIMPLY CAN'T BE DONE!THIS MUSIC WILL TAKE YOU PLACES ONLY YOUR IMAGINATION CAN TRAVEL.I LISTEN TO THIS CD CONSTANTLY AND EACH AND EVERY TIME GET SOMETHING "DIFFERENT" FROM EACH AND EVERY TRACK....IT'S VERY OBVIOUS THEY DO WHAT THEY WANT WITHOUT PARAMETERS....KEEP UP THE EXCELLENT INNOVATIVE 'SOUNDS'FROM THE GROUND!I LOVE THIS BAND!THEY KNOW HOW TO TRANSCEND YOU EMOTIONALLY AND SPIRITUALLY! RANDAL

If I ever get tied to the ground and a B52 bomber flies overhead and drops it's paylod of 100 megaton love bombs on my face this is the album I want to be listening to... and I hope the song Beautiful Feeling is playing when the first one hits me in the teeth because my smile is so large.

Thanks for reading

If you're looking at this then I think you need to buy it. It's an excellent album, none of the tracks are similar to each other and they just get better and better. (hopefully this gives you a guage)-> Other albums that I think are amazing are...

Shpongle -Nothing Lasts But Nothing is Lost

BlueTech -Prima Materia

Younger Brother -*all*

Infected Mushroom -Viscious Delicious

Juno Reactor -Labyrinth

Pendulum -Hold Your Colour

Phutureprimitive -Sub Conscious

Squarepusher -Ultravisitor

Venetian Snares -My Downfall

Vibrasphere -Exploring the Tributaries

At first spacious and melodic, High Rising soars into a sensual chillout mood with a sexy smooth appeal. "Slate Grey" is slightly more edgy at first, then warms and slips somewhere between a melodic hum and a static symphony of mind penetrating echoes that seems to melt into a flock of sonic birds rising from rolling waves of sound. Quite intriguing actually and this leads into a world fusion experience with soulful dub intoxication. The urban vibe is slightly exotic and inviting.

The audibly exciting "Beautiful Feeling" has a intimate hypnotic effect with vocals by Taz to create a mesmerizing crystalline ambience. "Modo" seems to capture some of the energy from "Beautiful Feeling" and "Slate Grey" but has a more rapid trajectory with ambient techno flourishes and barely audible vocals that lead into a trippy journey.

The echo and reverb in "Palmprint" is audibly intriguing and I liked the spontaneity of the electronic harmonica-like sounds in this track. "Blink" is more down to earth with drums and mixing perfection. "Speedbumps" is appropriately named because you are suddenly awaken from your sonic daze and propelled into a sophisticated electronica playground with sexy trajectories. "Allsorts" presents a mysterious conclusion that seduces you right back into listening to the album again. This is the type of album I dream about. High Rising is audibly delicious!

~The Rebecca Review

Awesome in everyway. I have never been so pleased with an electronica band. This cd is enjoyable no matter what mood. Coming from a guy that listens primarily to extreme death metal, this means alot. Get it and be pleased.

I have been a huge fan since their debut on Two AD. They continue to put out quality music time and time again. Cool grooves and deep beats to ease the stresses of the day.

Excellent as always. It's always nice to acquire a recording that has all very listenable tracks.

After reading the other reviews of this CD, glowingly relating that every track is a winner and that the CD is one nearing perfection, I figured I couldn't go wrong. I mean, I own many CDs which I am happy to own only for a couple tracks. Perhaps I just didn't do my homework on this one. But again, people were saying "chillout" and "relaxing" about this, so I feel misled.

That's not to say it doesn't qualify as Chillout or as somewhat relaxing; however, I prefer some semblance of melody or at least melodic direction in my music (like Ulrich Schnauss); and if not, I want to hear some killer atmospheres or textures (like AmBeam). Neither are found here. You get the ubiqitous beats, but they are unusual in and of themselves. They don't really establish groove so much as just create rhythm. I find them quite uninspired. They don't draw ME in, that's all I can say. And with songs so long, they need to do that, frankly.

Melodies? Well, you might be able to grab one from the repetitious (lazily looped) bass line or from some other esoteric bit. Again, I realize this kind of music often uses looped bits to create texture (love the way Marconi Union does it), but this stuff just falls way short. Uninspired. That's the word that keeps coming to me when I listen to this music. It sounds very much like it's adhering to some expected formula.

As for the textures and supposed beauty, they can't hold a candle to Schnauss, Vangelis, Jon Hopkins, or any number of other artists. I don't mean to be too harsh on this music, but there needs to be a balanced opinion on this page, and maybe I'll save somebody else the disappointment I felt when receiving this CD. I had much, much higher hopes. Somebody described this as fantastic background music. I agree. Way, way back, it could work.