Customer Reviews

Lost in Space (Spec)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I reviewed the original release (same 4 stars) - but I did go out and purchase this disk upon it's release and will re-gift the single disk to someone who is Aimee Mann-less. As w/other reviewers here - I'll stick to covering the 2nd disk.

The sound quality on the live recordings are excellent. If it weren't for some clapping at the beginning or end of songs - you might just think they were alternate versions and not necessarily live. Mann does a great cover of Coldplay's "The Scientist", though she doesn't really do anything different to the song.

The studio b-sides I have heard and really are good enough to be included on a full album ("Nightmare Girl" in particular). The unreleased songs are ok - though "Observatory" grooves unlike most anything Mann has done recently. I think it would have been better had the vocal been just her - but it's at least interesting.

I cannot tell if "Backfire" and "Observatory" are from 'Lost In Space' or from 'I'm With Stupid' sessions. You can clearly hear members of Squeeze on backing/harmony vocals - and I had not heard of them working with Mann since "That's Just What You Are". At least on "Backfire" you can see how well their vocals fit in w/her music.

Still a worthy purchase - though mostly for established fans. I'm not sure how many newcomers to Mann's music would want studio and live versions of the same songs on the same disk. But on the plus side - I think this cost me one dollar more than the original one-disk set....and *that's* a deal!

Fans already know that Aimee Mann is a rare bird as a songwriter and that Lost In Space is a terrific record running a bare step behind her superb Bachelor #2. Therefore, I'll limit my comments to the repackage itself. If you don't already own the album, this is the way to get it, but if you bought the earlier limited release, you have the right to be a mite annoyed. The book-style package of this "new" Lost In Space is attractively sturdy but simply upgrades the original comic/lyric booklet into a heavy cardboard format and includes no new pictures or information. The second disc is a fine live set with 2 new studio tracks plus the 2 rare cuts that filled out the bonus single from the first version. Therefore, the new disc released by itself would have made a perfect website offering for fans who didn't want to buy the whole thing again.

This CD set contains the original "Lost In Space" album and an extra disc of wonderful live songs and a handful of non-album studio tracks. The album portion focuses on relationships and the addictions that derive from them. From the slow sinking of "Humpty Dumpty" to final stab of "It's Not," Mann paints deconstructive portraits of love and the disillusionments that come along for the ride. This is one of those rare CDs on which every song is beautifully written, sung and recorded. Aimee Mann is a true artist and a perfectionist, so the quality of this record is undeniable.

The bonus disc features wonderful live versions of "The Moth," "Real Bad News" and three other songs from the album proper. Another great live track is "The Scientist," which has yet to appear on any of Mann's studio albums. The four non-album studio tracks are pure, terrific Aimee Mann. Though "Backfire" and "Fighting The Stall" sound more like late 'Til Tuesday records than current Aimee Mann recordings, they are still satisfying listening.

The packaging on this CD set is ultra-high quality! It is designed like a hardcover book, with CDs at the beginning and end. Brilliant! And the artwork throughout is a treat as well.

My advice is if you don't already own this CD, BUY THIS VERSION. And if you already have the original release, you may want to buy this one also and pass your old copy to a friend (that's what I did). More people need to experience the musical brilliance that is Aimee Mann.

I've already reviewed the original Lost In Space, so I won't bother reviewing the first disc again. The second disc provides some live versions of the tracks, all of which have a little something extra to make them definitely worth the listen. In particular, the live version of the haunting Invisible Ink is brilliant, especially with the crowd participation at the end. The two B-sides, most big Aimee Mann fans will already have heard. Backfire is actually included on the UK tracklisting to Bachelor No. 2, so I heard that one a long way back but this version is subtly different. To anyone who doesn't already own it, for me it was one of Bachelor's best tracks. Nightmare Girl I managed to find on the Internet, with Aimee Mann singles being incredibly hard to find here in the UK. This was another track that was originally slated to appear on Bachelor but would've made the tracklisting too long. It's great to see it here, and it's co-written by Aimee's husband Michael Penn. The two unreleased tracks are good too, both faster-paced songs that would easily fit on Lost In Space, but both hiding a distinctly depressive edge. Fighting The Stall seems to be about escaping from life by going off the rails, mirroring perfectly the themes of addiction that run through the record. Observatory is fantastic, observing how people deny love when they have it and even when they lose it in an attempt at self-preservation. The fact that the song doesn't sound depressing unless you're following the lyrics is another testament to the subtlety of the lyrics. The second disc is closed by a live version of the first disc's closer, It's Not. For me this even rivals Wise Up as Aimee's saddest song. The live performance is uniformly brilliant and Aimee's live vocals add even more depth to it.

I received this special edition for Christmas last year and it was one of the best CDs I received that year. For those who know who Aimee Mann is, this is a must-have in your collection.

I've just (re)-discovered Aimee Mann, after finally managing to procure the Magnolia soundtrack and cluing in to the fact that she was the lead singer from Til Tuesday, a favorite band of mine while I was in high school. When I bought Magnolia, I also bought the LIS special edition, and I'm extrememly glad I did.

Often I find that musicians kind of run out of steam after a while and end up repeating themselves, producing watered-down versions of the hits that made them famous, but Mann just seems to get better. Pavlov's Bell and the Moth are personal favorites of mine, but truthfully, every track is extremely strong. It was also great to hear the unreleased tracks on the second CD.

I actually had to sit and listen to this album a couple of times for me to really get a grasp on how great it was. That's kind of how Lost In Space is, it takes time to sink in completely.

But what I also loved about this special edition release was the inclusion of more of Seth's art, in the form of a mini-comic and illustrations for each song. I used to enjoy reading his comic Palookaville and I have to say that the style and content of his work jibes perfectly with Aimee's sound. He's done stuff for her website too, which looks great. I'm normally not much of a packaging whore, but I really enjoyed the way this special edition was put together.

If you haven't gotten Lost In Space yet, fork over the extra few bucks and get the special edition release, it's worth it.

I can't wait until her new album, The Forgotten Arm, comes out in May!

This is worth it even if you own 'Lost in Space' because we get so many new songs. There are some great live versions of songs and a FANTASTIC version of Coldplay's 'The Scientist'. This feels like a continuation of 'Lost in Space' for Aimee is still drawing on the metaphors of space and how it feels to be lost in this world; 'Observatory' in particular. 'Nightmare Girl' is one of the best songs Aimee Mann has ever written. I've noticed that a lot of her songs deal with the need to 'save others' or be there for them. This really is an amzing 'special edition' CD and it's worth every penny.

This is one of the most beautifully packed CD sets I have ever seen. Each CD has its own slip case that the CD's slide into like LP records. The lyrics are binded and secured between both CD's, which are also binded. It opens just like a book. The artwork is also very outstanding. The graphic designers also used various icons that are very cool. Oh ya, the music is fabulous also, but that is a given.

If you love Aimee Mann's music, then you most likely have the regular release of this album like I did. I am glad that I bought this limited edition because the extra songs are great.

She is one of the best lyric writers that I have ever heard, and it is nice to have some live songs now, especially since I got to see this tour live.

Pick up the "Lost In Space Limited Edition." If it is too much money, then I would suggest picking up the regular release, but after hearing that, you will wish you picked up the Limited Edition.

This is an EXCELLENT package for this CD--Even if you have the original, you should purchase this one. Limited to 20,000 copies, this edition has the extra songs you want, and the artwork you want. Easily one of the greatest CD's of the past few years, you can't go wrong with this. Get it now before it's sold out!

I don't think I can add much to the accolades of other reviewers. This was my first Aimee Mann CD, and it quickly made me a believer. But if you're one of the fans who got stuck with the Non-Special-Edition, don't lose any sleep. Disk 2 isn't worth the price tag.

I will say that the bonus video is fun to watch once or twice, and the unreleased b-side "Nightmare Girl" is impressive with its full string orchestration (consistent with much of the album). But aside from that, the 6 live songs that make up the brunt of Disk 2 are a bit lackluster and VERY NASAL. Honestly, either the EQ settings were all muddled, or perhaps Aimee was wearing a clothespin on her nose. In either case, it sounds like Ethel Merman out there! My advice is for you to buy the cheap edition, and with the money you save, go out and buy Bachelor No. 2.

P.S. It just occurred to me that you may be an Ethel Merman fan. In that case, Disk 2 is for you!

Aimee Mann's "Lost in Space" had the unfortunate problem of being released after the fantastic "Bachelor No. 2" and "I'm With Stupid", and suffers in comparison. Its not that its not a superb album, on the contrary, there's quite a bit of great material here, its just that it had a lot to live up to.

What's most immediately noticable is a feeling of relaxation and confidence in these pieces, be it the magnificent throbbing "Humpty Dumpty" (with completely magical vocal harmonies), the subtlety of the playing on "This is How It Goes", the incredible guitars, strings and vocals of "Pavlov's Bell" or the unnervingly brilliant countryish "The Moth", it sounds as though Mann has finally found the sound she wants.

There is some experimentation that goes awry on this one ("High on Sunday 51" is Aimee does blues and doesn't quite work, and "Real Bad News"'s pacing makes it lethargic), and there's enough unmemorable material to impact opinion of the album, but again, this may be a side effect of coming after two great albums, and there's certainly enough good material here to make it worth the investment.

On this edition, there's an additional CD of live material, b-sides and unreleased tracks. The live take of "Real Bad News" alone makes the extra disc worth having, delicately performed with what sounds like a ukelele anchoring it and while "The Moth" doesn't quite translate live as well as the studio take, the remainder of the live tracks are consistently high quality. The b-sides ("Nightmare Girl" and "Backfire") are both pretty much throwaway "Fighting the Stall" and "Observatory" are significantly better-- the former has some great vocal arrangements, the latter is just a superb pop song. The album closes with a live on the BBC version of "It's Not" that, while superior to the studio version, still does little for me.

This package is a great value-- I gave the album four stars, but this set gets five. Highly recommended, even if you have the album.