Moon Safari

Air | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 27, 1998)
• Original Release Date: January 20, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Astralwerks
• ASIN: B000003S5H
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (314 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,400 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #8 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > Ambient Pop
  • #13 in Music > Indie Music > Dance & DJ > General
  • #24 in Music > Dance & DJ > Trip-Hop

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

French duo Air's debut album is a superlatively happy collection of experimental disco-mood sound nestled between ambient soundscape and breathy pop. It's jazzy and melodic, and mostly laid-back, but not excessively so. There are a few shake-it, shake-it numbers, too, like the absurdly daft hit "Sexy Boy." It's snap your fingers and hang out (while reading) music or dance around sexy-slow with your mate music. It's also the perfect music to do your ironing or some other chore to; it's hypnotizing wallpaper music. It slips in and out of your consciousness, forcing you to move around with a relaxed smile before you even realize it. Oh, and contrary to sampler fashion, Nicolas Godin and Jean Benoit Dunckel played the instruments themselves. Bravo. --Mike McGonigal

Product Description

EU LP pressing. French postmodernists Air raid every aspect of retro pop music, from the sublime to the ridiculous, in fashioning their sonic bricolage. Everything from Krautrock-inspired electronics to 1960s lounge music is incorporated into the work of Nicolas Godin and J.B. Dunckel. Their full-length debut, 1998's Moon Safari, earned massive critical plaudits and put the duo at the forefront of modern, electronic-oriented pop. --This text refers to the Vinyl edition.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

151 of 156 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite ambient music albums of all time., April 18, 2004

By 

Christian Hunter "Christian Hunter" (Austin, Texas Santa Barbara, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Moon Safari (Audio CD)

I heard a bunch of wonderful things about Air through the musical grapevine and in reviews such as this one, it wasn't until I bought the CD and listened that two things were confirmed:

1. This is among the best ambient music CD's of our time; and

2. I'd been listening to this CD for years.

As it turns out, the owner of a local lounge (Blue Agave in Santa Barbara CA.) has had it on rotation for the last few years. I'd been intoxicated (literally and figuratively) to (and by) this music for quite some time now standing outside on their little patio, drinking, smoking, carousing...

I usually like to call out certain songs on CD's I review as noteworthy. I won't in this case however because every track is excellent. They did a wonderful job stitching their arrangement too, each track, while different, blend seemlessly into each other.

Unlike allot of ambient music, this CD will chill you out, lift your mood, but won't put you to sleep. I'm sure this was by design....a noteworthy accomplishment in that unlike the equivalent to musical smelling salt, whenever a faster paced track comes on, it doesn't offend with overly loud or obnoxious beats.

If you love this album, consider trying a few other similar artists. The first one that leaps to mind is Zero 7. Their new album "When it Falls" is a brilliant and similar comparable. Another wonderful new talent is Solar House, they have a newer CD called "Magic of the City" that is a bit more upbeat, but still very seductive and ambiance friendly...

Hope this was helpful.

Enjoy.

44 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sonic Masterpiece, May 16, 2003

By 

David Rapavi (Laurel, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Moon Safari (Audio CD)

Not to go over board with this, but in my opinion, Air's Moon Safari is, hands down, the best electronic album made to date. Jean-Benoit Dunkel and Nicholas Godin, the french duo that makes up Air created a sonic masterpiece that captured a style and atmosphere there transcends time and place. This album has stayed as fresh sounding and vibrant as the day it came out; and this is quite a feat in a genre where most music sounds dated within 6 months. This is not cheesy kid's electronica - these compositions will embrace you like a warm summer day and move your soul.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars DYNOMITE!, March 22, 2000

By 

Jonas Uber (?) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Moon Safari (Audio CD)

This one is destined to become a classic. The music can only be describes as Futuristic jazzy lounge pop.The band keeps you hooked the entire Cd;I really dont know what else to say about moon safari other than it rules