Ritual Union

Little Dragon | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 26, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Peacefrog
• ASIN: B004W2MF6E
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,756 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

2011 album from the Swedish Electronic quartet. Ritual Union finds the experimental, late-night charm of their debut LP colliding with the more upfront and danceable sounds of Machine Dreams. Already a blogger's delight, the first single 'Nightlight' sounds like Erykah Badu fronting the Psychedelic Furs, with a healthy smattering of digital Funk and Alt.Soul. 'Brush The Heat', their most club-friendly track yet, is a dancefloor detonator with the most infectious cowbells since Jay-Z told us about his '99 Problems'. Title track 'Ritual Union' is sleek and soulful Electronic Pop at its best.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Little Dragon - Enter the Dragon July 26, 2011

By Red on Black TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Audio CD

Its good to see that the wonders of Sweden's Radio Dept are starting to be recognised in the States, a move across the country from that bands home in Lund in the extreme south to Gothenburg on the West coast is now order. Here we find located the equally wonderful "Little Dragon" comprising the intriguing and forthright Swedish-Japanese singer Yukimi Nagano (vocals, percussion) plus fellow band members Erik Bodin (drums), Fredrik Källgren Wallin (bass), and Rashik Aryal (keyboards). Like Radio Dept this band specialise in creating bold electronic landscapes but probably owe a greater debt to the pop sensibilities of Blondie and Prince than the shoe gaze preoccupation's of the former. This is unsurprising not least with the enchanting vocals of Nagana who can sound like Prince, Bjork and a myriad of other artists. Listen to the title track "Ritual Union" with is sparkling electronic rush and you quickly release that it could have appeared on "Graffiti bridge" and by doing so increased the quality of that album tenfold. When she rather cheekily asks in the song "If you want him, girl, could you share?/Cuz that's the deal now, if you dare" you sense that she is not going to take "no' for an answer. The pounding "Cystalfilm" is fundamentally great pop music with a dance floor ethic. It is that sort of track that heads down your musical burrow like an old stoat and refuses to leave. Moreover it's effortlessly cool and destined to be mixed by a thousand aspring producers.

Throughout the electronic backdrop is never intrusive and as with the considerable restraint shown in the new Wild Beasts album many songs build slowly but surely with careful layer upon layer of sound, controlled to perfection without a note out of place.... On one of the albums standout tracks "Please turn" a ticking almost Kraftwerk style opening mutates into a sinister yet erotic dance track with Nagana's yearning vocals at the core. Indeed we are probably watching a star being born in a insteller burst in front of our eyes and many of you will have already heard hear voice playing a key part on Gorillaz "Plastic Beach LP (Damon Albarn knows a good thing when he hears it). The weird noises in the backdrop of "Brush the heat" should not distract from what is a brilliant minimalist electronic funk track which Fever Ray would give her right arm to have penned. Granted on "Little Man" the frothy side of the band comes to the fore but it is very catchy and you suspect could be huge hit. the band are careful to vary their plays, thus on the albums two concluding tracks we have firstly the shimmering beats of "When I go out" which would equally be at home on a Panthu du Prince album while "Seconds" is a quirky ambient instrumental which sadly ends the album on a bit of damp squib. This misstep is subject to very able redress with the bell like clinical funk workout of the excellent "Summertearz" and most of all the rolling noise synth fest that is "Precious" which reminds me of Janelle Monae (yes its that good) plus "Nightlight" which Prince should be drip fed to regain his muse.

Overall "Ritual Union" is smart pop music with a first class honours degree, it is every bit the equal of that other attention grabbing 2011 album of Swedish electro pop funk namely Lykke Li's polished diamond "Wounded Rhymes". Why Sweden has come to such predominance with its many and varied bands of supreme quality in recent years requires a PhD level inquiry, what is certain is that Little Dragon on "Ritual Union" (their third album in four years) proudly sit in that sterling linage and deserve huge international success. All quite remarkable really. Read more ›

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't strain your brain, paint a train August 11, 2011

By K. D. Kelly

Format:Audio CD

You don't have to worry about Swedish synthpop band Little Dragon sounding like a knock-off of ABBA or Ace of Base. For starters, this is a no-guitar band.

True, this is dance music, and Little Dragon is fronted by the sweet-voiced Swedish/Japanese singer Yukimi Nagano, but "Ritual Union" is injected with dense, zig-zagging rhythms. Nagano, a highly confident soul singer, keeps everything tightly in orbit. She's gifted with a voice that can easily raise as much Cain as Erykah Badu is able.

A particular standout is the Oingo Boingo-like "Nightlight," all the parts chugging along nicely, Nagano fluttering like a butterfly right through the center of the melody, Atari blips and bleeps filling any gaps. The hip-hop-incensed "Brush the Heat" is another -- sleigh bells, alarm bells, dial tones and toy whistles beaten into the background by window-rattling bass and Nagano's breathy utterances. It's one of many tunes here that share a trip-hop sensibility with The Knife and "Blue Lines"-era Massive Attack. There are no duds on "Ritual Union."

Fans of Goldfrapp, Blondie, Frou Frou, Morcheeba -- Madonna, even -- should find something to clean their ears with here.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshing! December 30, 2011

By Mark W

Format:MP3 Music|Amazon Verified Purchase

I was tipped off by some other radio DJ friends (KAXE) that this was a fine cd that I would like. It did not dissapoint. In a strong year for fine releases, this was my pick for cd of the year.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Encapsulated November 29, 2011

By David Humphrey

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Very unique sound. Beautiful vocals, and refreshingly relevant lyrics. A crisply audible energy that will weave it's soundtrack into your own personal narrative. Not afraid to say that my own intrigue with this group has spilled into full blown obsession.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Stuff October 25, 2011

By J. Prins

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Love this album for long flights. It's a perfect balance of mellow and lively. Little Dragon is also an excellent "chill out at home" Pandora channel!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars good sound, so-so songs October 14, 2011

By Usuallee

Format:MP3 Music

I like their overall sound. The singer is great, and the use of unusual sounds for melody makes for a good electro sound. Unfortunately, aside from the excellent first song, these songs don't make much impression on me. I don't think the songwriting is that strong, and hooks are lacking.

5.0 out of 5 stars Smooth May 2, 2013

By Barbara Ochoa

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a well thought out album. The each song builds into the other. Sometimes there are albums that randomly place the songs, but not this album. I would definitely recommend this album to those who are looking into new indie music.

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant April 29, 2013

By Robert J. Burgoyne

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

A superb album. Simply irresistible, with melodies full of pleasure and joy emerging from deep abstract sequences. I keep discovering new hooks in this album. My favorite album of the last several years.