Low Level Owl: Volume 2

Appleseed Cast | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 6, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2001
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Deep Elm
• ASIN: B00005O81L
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #172,018 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars High Level Masterpiece (Continued)..., October 27, 2001

By 

Manythings "manythings711" (NYC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Low Level Owl: Volume 2 (Audio CD)

If you are reading this review, I suggest you read my review of Volume I aswell. Its a shame to me, that both volumes were released seperately. It seems so much more fitting if they were on one double disc set. This is not just a review of Volume II but of both sets and one whole album.

Volume II branches from the first record as it continues with "View of a Burning City" and goes into the song "strings" which continues the beautiful melodies that Appleseed Cast have made evident through out this record. Its so hard to describe every song, and I could not do it justice. The simple plucking of strings into awesome musical arrangements, the drums that never take a back seat but makes itself known and carry each song along wonderfully. Cris' voice is always revealing but his lyrics are always mysterious. Simple words that convey so many thoughts.The Appleseed Cast do an amazing job of giving this record a great feeling of continuity, every tracks moves seemlessly into the other never feeling abrupt or innapropriate. Its an amazing blend of sounds and instruments. You can tell each song is so complex in their technicalities yet sound so simple and beautiful when heard. There are an even amount songs and Instrumentals (6 and 6) in Vol II. Its a quiet melancholy atmosphere that we are drawn into, some highlight songs include, "Rooms and Gardens" "A place in line" and "Decline". Some songs are shorter then others, but the long orchestrated instrumentals more then make up for them. "Ring out the warning Bell", and "The Last in a Line" are two of my favorites. The record comes to pleasant stop as we are teased with a hint of quiet instrumentas played to a sea of white noise. What Volume II lacks are the more louder type tracks of the first, there aren't any "Mile Marker" or "Signal" type songs, instead its much more subtle. This is the most EPIC Emo record you will ever buy this year. I cannot see a way for The Appleseed Cast to top this one. Own both and listen to them back to back and you will find yourself in absolute awe at what has been accomplished here.

Volume I is 14 tracks 53 minutes
Volume II is 12 tracks 55 minutes

Thats 26 Tracks and an Hour and 48 Minutes of pure musical Art.

Low Level Owl is more than a record, its an experience. Do not deny yourself this little piece of Musical Genius.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Appleseed Cast gets closer, June 7, 2002

By 

Candice R. Ward "C. R. Ward" (Soquel, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Low Level Owl: Volume 2 (Audio CD)

Appleseed Cast comes from Kansas City, Kansas. Rumor says they used to be an emo band. Bad start; I have judged, stereotyped, and written off bands for less, and in my mind Middle America emotional core rock gets no second thought. Good thing for me, then, that I happened to see Appleseed Cast at a local venue, sandwiched between math rockers Crime and Choir and indie cutie pants Mates of State. Appleseed Cast put on a good show - then I found out about the Kansas origins and emo history. Intrigued, I bought their latest (2001) release "Low Level Owl: Volume II" and have been listening to it all week.
This is, maybe, an emo album, but not in the laughable sense that has created such a stigma attached to the genre. This is not a Jimmy Eat World, Linkin Park, or Stained CD, thank god -no white bread spasms, or screaming, or childhood crybabies. Instead "low Level Owl: Volume II" is 12 tracks of thoughtful music in the fashion of emo godfathers Sunny Day Real Estate. In fact, Sunny Day is a noticeable influence on this album . The vocals soar in and out, the lyrics are poetry, and at just the right moments Appleseed Cast lets open the gain and rocks. The band has done some diverse listening and has covered their tracks, taking subtle and not so subtle cues from Radiohead, Sunny Day Real Estate, Wilco, Depeche Mode, (the list could be endless) and blending them into a dense and interesting sound. The drums bang loud in the mix, riveted ride cymbals sizzle continually. One guitar is driving and prominent, propelling the band with constant 8th notes, the other guitar crackles and feeds back adding noise and texture. The bass is subtle - the droning weight holds the other elements in place. Keyboards add space, ambience, atmosphere. And the vocals are relatively low in the mix, the lyrics disappear in the layers and the voice become another instrument instead of the focus. So the melodies are haunting and infectious and repetitive, catchy and satisfying.
For Appleseed Cast the overall sound is key. No one song on "Low Level Owl: Volume II" is extraordinary on its own; the album stand as a whole with melody and noise pushing one song through the next. The entire CD breathes and moves as a single entity, with every track responding to the track previous and introducing the track to come. The tone varies with plenty of instrumental tracks answered by out and out rock and roll. This is not an album to put on shuffle or skip a track. Next album they put out will be brilliant, they're getting closer.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Simple, but aesthetically pleasing melodic rock, February 21, 2008

By 

IRate - See all my reviews

This review is from: Low Level Owl: Volume 2 (Audio CD)

3 1/2

Hopefully you will be able to differentiate between this influential production and many bands who casually "borrowed" by now and helped give the genre Appleseed helped create a bad name. Lush, slightly distorted, and definitely repetitive, the album is oversold as being excellent (sometimes riding a beautiful melody into sheer boredom save some occasional understated drumming), but within the tool set we are given from this band they present enough intoxicating flow to push many songwriting complaints aside.