Customer Reviews

Mind Fruit

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

 

 

Kirsty Hawkshaw and her former bandmates have made one of the best trance/techno/house albums. Besides a terrific cover of the Edward Barton penned "Its a Fine Day", there is also a great King Crimson cover ("I Talk To the Wind") and an original song called "Evolution Rush". This album definately is better than their follow up album and is one album I always recommend to any electronic music lover.

Chances our few of you remember Opus III who released two albums in the early 90's . 1992's " Mindfruit " is a beautifully-crafted , atmospheric dance music cd . Opus III acted smart enough to sit and write structured songs and didn't lost control over their music flirt with techology . So , as a result we have a strong tracklist to cherish and not some techno delerium stricly for dance clubs . More important of all though , we have Kirtsy Hawkshaw , a woman with an angelic voice whose solo album " on Ultimate Things " is one of the best pieces of music i ever had the chance to hear . Songs like " I talk to the wind " , " Stars in my pocket " and " Up " could have easily topped the charts if they were released today .

I loved this CD for the sheer beauty and range of Ms. Hawkshaw's voice and for the "way out there" atmosphere that Opus III created as a backdrop for her vocals. Opus III generates strong rhythms throughout the better part of the tracks and that fact just makes this CD all the more danceable and well, listen-able. I look forward to hearing more of her and Opus III's work!

I, personally, have been listening to Opus III for the past 7+ years and have purchased this particular album (CD format) 4 times and am about to buy another one because once again i've worn it out! This is absolutely without a doubt the best Techno/Trance I have ever come across and suggest it for anyone's collection. While I do in fact enjoy the re-mixes (be they a few years late), they do not, however, come anywhere close to the awesome sound and feel of the original thing. Her voice is enchanting - her music is enthralling - 5 stars isn't good enough, but I guess it will have to do!

For refrence, these also top my list:
-Opus III, Guru Mother (of course)
-Aphrodite
-Ultramarine, United Kingdoms
-Sunshine State of Mind, Various Artists
-Hardkiss, Delusions of Grandeur
-Josh Wink, Higher State of Conciousness (single)

This is without a doubt one of the foundations that paved the way for trance artists of today. It's a Fine Day is such a classic track, and Kirsty has quite possibly one of the most amazing voices a woman could possibly have. A great cd for any aivd trance collector :)

I heard "It's a Fine Day" the other day playing from a Toyota 4-runner filled with upscale suburban kids from Houston. "Fine Day" was redone by Miss Jane and played earlier in Y2K over Houston radio. Opus III had the foresight to produce a timeless, haunting, classic club anthem- "Fine Day", which should be in any cool person's cd collection.

I remember working at Wherehouse Music about 8 years ago and I heard this CD playing and immediately fell in love with it!!! "I Talk To The Wind" segues so beautifully into "Flow"; something that Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, Aphex Twin, and Telefon Tel Aviv would be proud of.... Nice atmospheric and ambient-textured electronica music overlayed with a beautiful female vocalist in Kirsty Hawkshaw!!!

This is a precursor to the current rush of techno-ambient CDs of this flavor. This was extremely new in style and sound in 1992. Lots of nice synthy drones and textures, a good techno clip throughout. Nothing too hard, nothing too commercial or cheezy. Extremely pleasant with an alternative or even slight goth edge. "It's A Fine Day" has an extremely captivating element to it. Although released in 1992, it would fit in right next to any avant-garde electronic release of 1998. It was very progressive and didn't go sour like the music of other acts of that time (see Utah Saints).

If you need more of Kirsty Hackshaw, be sure to check out BT's "Movement in Still Life". Kirsty lends her voice on "Running Down the Way Up".

It's unbelievable that this CD was released almost 15 years ago. The tracks still sound fresh, and rival most if not all of the trance CDs released today. As all of these reviews indicate though, Opus III's trump card is the incomparable Kirsty Hawkshaw. Today, there are many electronica efforts that are fronted by female vocalists (among my favorite are Tiff Lacey, Tina Dico, Colette, Omi (Way Out West), and Nicola Hitchcock), but Kirsty sets the bar IMO. If you buy this CD, you should also check out Meta Message which is a compilation of her fine work over the years. If you can get your hands on it (it's out of print, although you can purchase it from her web site...), also check out <o.u.t> that has the awesome track "Leafy Lane". On this CD, a must have track is the classic "It's a Fine Day".