Customer Reviews

Just Backward of Square

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

 

 

I got this c.d. on the basis of listening to the first few tracks on a listening post.The music immediately struck a positive chord with me and the more familiar I've got with the tracks I've discovered that this is a c.d. of rare depth and quality.

Okay so this c.d. has 11 tracks and comes in at just under 50 minutes.The music is fairly standard rock,drums,bass,guitar and occasional subtle use of synths or keyboard.The vocals are very good-they sound quite laidback and never rise to incredibly loud decibel levels.They are not averse to using harmonies especially for the chorus.The songs generally are of a slow to mid-paced tempo.Who could I compare them to?Well they don't sound very obviously like any one other group.They start off sounding like Mogwai-especially on the instrumental opener-but this is not a true flavour of the c.d.The next 2 songs-Beauty Dies Young and Mercury are excellent.They were the first two singles but they didn't set the charts on fire.I suppose you could say they sound a bit like Colplay without ever hitting the high singing notes.At times the guitars sound a little like early Oasis-not in a sixties way but more in the rawness of sound.

The next few tracks are fairly low-key,atmostpheric songs.The pace of these songs could best be described as glacial.But these are the songs that don't strike you as being excellent the first time-but they have a rare depth to them and really grow on you as much as the two singles.The 6th song Counterfeit-is a really welcome change in pace and mood.It's a loud fast-paced belter of a rock song.Once again the subtle backing vocals really enhance the song.As with all the songs the vocals never really dominate the whole song or sound.It's not that they are very feint or that the singer has a weak and wispy voice-it's just that they are placed on an equal footing with the rest of the music.I think this is a brave move,but I think it works because the listener can really appreciate all aspects of the music.

The closing segment of tracks starts off with the excellent song "Amber".Like all of these tracks they average about 5 minutes.This affords the group to build the songs from a quiet and understated start to a rousing finale.And this song just builds and builds and really comes to life with a quite catchy chorus.It's one of the many highlights on the c.d.The next song to me sounds a bit like Travis.It's also one of the shorter songs on the c.d.Once again the chorus uses harmonies and the guitar work is excellent.It is another potential single.The last two songs in my opinion are not as good as the songs which proceed them.

All in all I would recomend this c.d. to people who like groups like Coldplay and Travis.If you like those two groups then I'd say this c.d. is for you!

Just because you like Coldplay, Travis, Doves, and bands of their "ilk" does not mean you will like Lowgold's "Just Backward of Square." You will, however, grow to love this album if you give it the time it deserves. There are many similarities between Coldplay and Lowgold, but the main difference in my opinion is that, while both bands take you down to the lowest emotional depths, Coldplay does it to bring you back with hopeful, soaring choruses...Lowgold leaves you down, and I love it. These are some of the most emotionally gut-wrenching songs ever recorded, but it won't hit you until you've listened to it a couple times, and then it will hit you like a ton of bricks, probably driving by yourself in the car, feeling lonely, thinking about an old girlfriend (or boyfriend), and then you will be suddenly overcome with an overwhelming familiarity. Have I heard this song somewhere before? In a movie? In a television show? No, you haven't heard it before. It's just that Lowgold is so successful in connecting with the emotional lows of life that when you really LISTEN to it (not just listen to it, you know what I mean), the album gives off an eerily familiar aura. There is no comfort here, only dispair, and if you are not OK with that, then this album is not for you. There is a redundancy in many of the songs that will sound boring at first, and then (like most great albums) will grow into an addictive motif. The vocals sound like a man off the street, not a choir boy, and it's the perfect match to the down-to-earth music. Highly recommended overall...

I really enjoy Doves, Coldplay, and Blur, and so I bought this at a large music store in my area that has a lot of imports. Well, this album dulled me no end. Sure, all the songs have some merit, but they all just seem like something I've heard before, only not as good. Being an import, I spent around $27 on this, only because Amazon didn't have any sample tunes and neither did the music store - all I had were the reviews you see on this page. You may like this - I didn't. I'm not going to tell you not to waste your money on this; this may be the best thing you have ever heard. It's all about taste, after all. I'm just sorry I belived what I read here.

It is hard to believe that this is a debut album; from start to finish Just Backward Of The Square has the feel of a confident and accomplished band. And, in fairness, that is what Lowgold are. For me, because that is when I listened to this album in depth, Lowgold mean summer, and when I hear the opening chords of the beautiful Beauty Dies Young it still sends shivers down my spine. With more airplay, songs like that, and like Mercury and Never Alone, could have been huge hits. I still find it hard to believe they weren't. Had they been, Lowgold have the potential on this album to have been catapulted to Coldplay-type stardom. That would probably have saved Nude Records from destruction, and Lowgold from two and a half years of wilderness, but as it is this is a great album to own.
They draw inevitable Coldplay comparisons, and indeed toured with them in 2000. But so does any band who plays music that is even remotely sad. Lowgold are very different to Coldplay. The sound is fuller, and though there is less piano, there is much more clever guitar. This is an album to while away the evening to, it's a grower, it's what you should put on when you want to relax, or when you are feeling upset. But if any of that puts you off, don't let it. This is a truely great album, one that I am sure can have a hundred different effects and purposes. I have a terrible fear that it might go unnoticed for ever...

Yeah, I think I understood what I just said. I was completely shocked at the review given by All Music Guide. I don't know if the reviewer has something personal against this group or thier album but he was far too harsh in my opinion.

Given the list price of the album I can understand how people can get upset over this purchase, but pretending you paid the average CD price it is a good album. I think some people are also disappointed because of the overall slowcore vibe. I think it was best that these tracks stayed simple and mellow. This album might not also be suited for a casual listener. With only a bare minimum of catchy tunes I don't recommend this to someone with little patience or appreciation of subtle melodies.

Obviously it all boils down to personal preference. I'm a big fan of britpop in general and I love this album. I know this wouldn't appeal to many people trying to jump on the whole British Invasion bandwagon by listening to Coldplay, Oasis, or Keane. The tracks I'd recommend you listen to before you buy are "Beauty Dies Young", "In Amber", "Never Alone", and "Out of Reach". If you don't enjoy those then you won't enjoy the rest. They're pretty much representative of the album. Whether you like this or not I think that this is the perfect "marination" album if you get my drift.

I got this album thru hearsay. It was okay when I first heard it but never really paid them much attention but after my friends gave me a copy, then that record's been all over me for the past ten months. All the songs in this album are great! But if you want to be convinced on how great this record is, listen to Beauty Dies Young, Counterfeit, Mercury, & Out of Reach. Great music, great album, buy IT! Hear it first before everyone here in America can..

a new band? heard there track mercury on mtv2 and it was so good i bought the album. mellow and very listenable.