Customer Reviews

Rough Dreams

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an intriguing band. "Rough dreams" sounds more polished than their first album on the production side, but remains imaginative. Ambrosia's voice is one of a kind and can be mesmerizing. Listen to the difference between the short opener "Wagers" where she sounds like a more than girly Gwen Stefani and "After the Prince and the Showgirl" where she turns into a Soul diva... You feel the girl's character and personality in her voice.

"Gone Too Far" is a little jewel of electro jazz with a touch of pop. "Thundercats" is a great rock track with electric guitars and recitative vocals. "Stealing Home" sounds a little bit country. "John, 2/4" and its tango rhythm makes me think about some Hooverphonic songs. With "Reseda Casino" (which reminds me of Garbage), it is one of the most radio friendly songs on the album. "Ten Minutes" and its urban feel is also a potential single. "Queen-sized Tomb" is a rock ballad with fragile and passionate vocals flying above the electric guitars. I wonder about some strange and cryptic lyrics though (murder, mental disorder?). Maybe they are connected to the album title?

Varied, changing, surprising, it is rare to find a band who dares to leave the beaten paths... If they keep on that way they might turn into a great original alternative band.

I first found Shivaree by accident when they were playing at student unions in London, and I have yet to find anyone in the US familiar with the band. It's a pity. Ambrosia's voice captures the eerie nostalgia of twentieth-century middle america perfectly. In fact, when I was writing my senior thesis on mid-twentieth century Appalachian poetry, I put their first cd on repeat and I credit Ambrosia with giving me the inspiration to finish my work. ROUGH DREAMS continues the nostalgic exploration of Appalachia, Southern California and all the campy, beautiful products of life in between. A constant sense of urgency and danger pervades the cd, and I'm pretty sure the strongest track, After the Princess and the Showgirl, is about seducing an underage girl. I hope this band, already seductively if tragically marginalized, will continue their work.

This is an amazing and, apparently, under appreciated album. If Capital would make any effort to sell this band in the US, everyone would be listening. Ambrosia has a voice like a goddess: it is all music and soul. The band explores music in a way that incorporates an array of different styles. For example, "All Because You Told Me So" sounds like a 1930's torch ballad, while "Reseda Casino" is as catchy as anything by the big names in pop - it just happens to be very well written and musically interesting. This album is truly like nothing else I have ever heard before - beautiful, melodic, exciting, and so diversified while still maintaining the total integrity of the band's sound. I can't recommend it highly enough.

I have a hard time writing these reviews, because I don't think my words ever do justice to the music that I am most passionate about. I seek adequate superlatives to describe records such as these, and come up only with all the words you've heard before: "brilliant", "amazing", "stupendous", etc. Yet they don't seem fit to describe Ambrosia Parsley and her profound grace, soul and wit, and her and her bandmates' (guitar maestro Duke McVinnie and keyboard wizard Danny McGough) unique and completely arresting music. "Rough Dreams" is a disc that I could leave on infinite repeat and never tire of. It's sad and utterly ridiculous that Capitol shelved the U.S. release of this record. I imagine that they declared that there was no "Goodnight Moon" on it and it was therefore unmarketable, and ignored or just plain missed the fact that this is incredible work.

Shivaree travels across the musical landscape like vagabonds on an epic journey, effortlessly creating charming waltzes, big ballads, indie rock, tangoes, and club jazz. Great music which is the perfect container for Parsley's wryly observed tales of wronged rich girls, lolita-lusting suburban men, ugly mornings-after and romantic thrill as well as romantic ennui. A hugely accomplished sophomore effort, this is just a great, great record and well worth paying whatever you need to in order to own it.

When a band has a lead singing named Ambrosia Parsley, how can you not take notice? After waiting and waiting for the CD to be released in the US, I lost patience and ordered the import. It was money well spent, as I can't seem to convince the CD to leave my stereo. It is the most infectious, coolest and most unique album I've purchased in years. Ambrosia Parsley, for those who have yet to be hear her voice, has an unreal voice--ranging from that of a pitifully sad child to a smoky sex kitten. Lyrically, the group approaches everything very tongue in cheek, but never to the point of losing relevance, and their latest project shows tremendous growth. I totally LOVE this CD and can't imagine why it's taken so long to hit the US shelves. To me, stand outs include the jazzy "Because you told me so", the punky "Thundercats", the sad "Queen-Sized Tomb" and the ultra-hip tango of "John 2/14". "Stealing Home" is, I think, one of the saddest, most tragic songs I have ever heard. The tenderness of Parsley's vocals, and the graceful elegance of the strings and chamberlain evoke such stirring emotions. It's sad that real music--a combination of songwriting, production and powerful vocals--gets so much less attention than most of the processed [junk] we hear on the radio these days. This album deserves to be noticed.

Summer is here at last. The long awaited second album from Ambrosia Parsley and Co is a breath of fresh air. More up-tempo than the debut, the album grows on you and becomes addictive. Ambrosias voice is as hauntingly sexy as ever and she proves she can adapt to any genre of music. Best tracks are Gone Too Far, Thundercats, John 2/14, the excellent Reseda Casino and Ten Minutes.
Buy this album this Summer and you'll be singing along to it till Spring.

Shivaree was Darling Of The Month with her second record ROUGH DREAMS at Germany's issue of the Rolling Stone, Aug 02. Absolutely right! ROUGH DREAMS is exactly what it calls: ROUGH - but in the sense of disordered, and DREAMS - in the sense of fantastic.
ROUGH DREAMS is more rhythmic, and more pop in contrast to Shivaree's first record I OUGHTTA GIVE YOU A SHOT IN THE HEAD FOR MAKING ME LIVE IN THIS DUMP - are there awards for record titles? Maybe a little pity because the record has lost the typical Shivaree-Patchwork-Music-Style, the band's trade-mark. However, ROUGH DREAMS is an unusual record. Very varied, intelligent, very good arrangements, very good lyrics.... all made by very creative and competent musicians. If you shouldn't hear that at once use the CD player's replay button and you'll love the record, Shivaree's music more and more.
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....Parsley, that is, not that 70's "How Much I Feel" group. This CD is not for the unimaginative, so if you like being told what music to like, skip this..go listen to Brittany and Lindsey and whoever radio is force feeding you nowadays. If, however, you don't musically scare esaily, like a bit of quirkiness in the songs, and have a thing for a singer who can look through you while all the time laughing, then pick up this CD, or any CD that Shivaree has out. The songs here are not commercial enough to have earned a US release (and that may actually be a good thing in the long run), but you also get the first version of "Gone 2 Far" (the song is also recorded in a different form on the 'Who's Got Trouble' CD) as well as a few other memorable taunts, my favorites being Thundercats, John 2/14, After the Prince and the Showgirl, and my favorite track on this CD, "All Because You Told Me So." I must admit I like "...Shot in the Head....." and "Who's Got Trouble" a touch more, but this is a must for any Shivaree fan...and I might have like it more if I didn't hear Trouble first. Anyhow, it is a listen worth remembering and repeating.

This band is very popular in Europe (especially France) and somewhat popular in South America but not in USA. Ironically this is an American band. Because this band is not you're typical radio music it has had the success it really deserves.
For mainstream pop listeners this can be discribed as "No boubt" perhaps Johnny Cash put together. Abrosia's voice sounds similar to Gwen stefani's but with more charm and sensitivity. If you like No Doubt's "Don't speak" or "running" then you'll love Shivaree becuase all of their songs are that good.

As for this Album in particular.... It its full of wonder. It's magical and unusual yet pleasing to the ear. A must have.

My first outing with Shivaree came several years ago when I heard the album Who's Got Trouble? in a favorite Austin music emporium. I got back into that recently and realized that I liked it so much I had to hear more. So I went into the band's back catalog and ordered a few more CDs, Rough Dreams among them.
There is no denying that lead singer Ambrosia Parsley has one of the sexiest voices in modern music. Though many may be unfamiliar with the comparison, I put her voice in the same league with that of Paatos' Petronella Nettermalm. It just drips with a rare combination of sexy and innocent that should drive the discerning listener wild.
While I don't think Rough Dreams is up to what Shivaree achieves with Who's Got Trouble?, there is still a lot to like. Songs I find particularly compelling are Wagers, Gone Too Far, Thundercats, John 2/14, and Flycatcher. On the downside, there are a couple of commercial-sounding tunes like After The Prince And The Showgirl and Reseda Casino that just don't pass muster with me.
Overall, Rough Dreams is a strange brew of an album that calls you back again and again. The CD comes with a useful booklet featuring lyrics and all pertinent album info. If you are tired of the fecal matter that passes for music on commercial radio and yearn to hear something with a little bite, maybe its time to check out Shivaree.