Illumination

Pastels | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 9, 1997)
• Original Release Date: December 9, 1997
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Up.
• ASIN: B000003L24
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #306,134 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Hits Hurt

2. Cycle

3. Thomson Colour

4. Unfair Kind of Fame

5. Fragile Gang

6. The Viaduct

7. Remote Climbs

8. Rough Riders

9. On the Way

10. Leaving This Island

11. G12 Nights

12. Attic Plan

13. Mechanised

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

In the late '80s the Pastels were bold purveyors of anorak pop, the shambling, chaotic love rock that was named for the heavy coats its followers wore in every weather. A decade later sees the band light years away from their former artlessness. Illumination is a fluid and spacious work, with offhand vocals and textured melodies that recall late-'60s Southern California folk rock. The Pastels have been a continual influence on the Glasgow, Scotland, music scene, and their passion for flute, percussion, and low-key organ can be detected in their protégés the Delgados and Belle & Sebastian. Rather than being fusty, nostalgic old-schoolers, the Pastels adapt their music to current moods and interests. Illumination takes a relaxed view of things, which makes the frantic pace of the music world slowly disappear. That is true magic. --Lois Maffeo

Product Description

2008 retrospective from the '80s minimalist funksters. Manhattan's Liquid Liquid (Scott Hartley Richard McGuire, Salvatore Principato and Dennis Young) effortlessly melded and shaped there own, very groovy, space. Loose but tight, edgy and inviting, both dry and wet, the phrase Slip In And Out of Phenomenon perfectly nails both the sound and the sensation of listening to Liquid Liquid. Over little more than three EPs in their lifetime, Liquid Liquid rerouted the rhythms of the subway and the steam of the city to some imagined African nighttime future. Domino Records. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THIS JUST MAKES MY HEART, December 20, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Illumination (Audio CD)

With definite echoes of Yo La Tengo, Illuminations is the record you SHOULD go to sleep to and it's the best to wake up to. Who else writes a song about director Edward D Wood Jnr (Unfair Kind of Fame). This album is the best to come out of Scotland for ages. It also makes one feel depressed without a special someone in their lives. It's best listened to when thinking of loved ones.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars brilliant pop nostalgia, May 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Illumination (Audio CD)

calm, soothing, comforting. listening to this just now put me back in the womb of the dreamy days or 80's brit pop. my friend said it was depressing to him, but not to me. it put me inside an atmosphere that felt familiar -- but most definitely not a depressing one. the vocals, the music...it's all so lovely!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great music from unexpected corners., January 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Illumination (Audio CD)

Illumination is a work of beauty. It is the sound of people dedicated to their art and it is a progression in the pastels sound without having to compromise their original concepts. On the surface the intricate and delicate melodies and chords create a gentle, docile sound but on ' the hits hurt ' and on ' rough riders ' the pastels prove they can rock. Electronic music and jazz have played a part in creating this statement which shows that the pastels can play their instruments but they maintain their amateur enthusiasm for their music. Katrina's sonf' the viaduct ' is a song which can bring many people to tears. The pastels and Illumination are best seen live. the new remix album, Illuminati, is excellent. It contains remixes by Make - Up, Mouse on Mars, Jim o' Rouke but the best remix is of 'the viaduct' by Bill Wells.