Customer Reviews

Side Two (Dig)

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

 

 

"Side Two" is the second in a series of three CDs to be released throughout 2005 by the talented King Crimson guitarist/vocalist Adrian Belew.
Like "Side One", "Side Two" finds Adrian Belew performing the music in an near-entirely solo context. The main difference between "Side One" and the present disc is the experimentation heard throughout the entire album. For the most part, Belew puts his rock persona off to one side in favor of electronic elements and purely avant-garde experiments. The lyrics on "Side Two" are also an experiment. Instead of using the standard verse/chorus/bridge-style lyrics, Belew uses the Japanese Haiku writing as the basis for the lyrics this album.
The two opening tracks, "Dead Dog on Asphalt" and "I Wish I Knew", are almost purely instrumental and feature Kraftwerk-esque percussion alongside atmospheric backgrounds and minimalist guitar phrases.
"Face To Face" is a more typical Belew pop song with a conventional straight-forward beat, jangling guitars and Belew's soaring dynamic vocals.
The experimental/electronic element picks up again with the two-part mini-epic "Asleep". The first half of the piece is built around another Kraftwerk-style rhythm, a repeated bassline and sustained lead guitar phrases. The second part of the piece uses live drums, acoustic guitar and a string section. Although this piece does have lyrics, the vocals act as another instrument that enhances the mood of the overall structure.
"Sex Nerve" is a minimalist-style piece which is in the same vein as the German avant-garde group, Cluster. The piece is unchanging throughout focusing on a dry electronic rhythm, repeated chords and whispered vocals.
"Then What" is an instrumental consisting of a dance-oriented beat centered around a sequenced bass and some rock-solid lead guitar. The mood of the piece shifts towards the end as it shifts into an avant-garde sound collage with backwards effects, keyboard drones, a lone cello and finally, to close the piece, a single piano chord.
"Quicksand" is another typical Belew pop piece that shows off a slight hint of David Bowie during his Berlin-Trilogy period. The backwards drums and chords give the piece an odd off-balance feel but fits in perfectly with the overall mood and style.
The next two instrumentals, "I Know Now" and "Happiness", are both very short and are in complete contrast to each other musically. The former piece is centered around a wild acid-style guitar lead while the latter is a gentler keyboard-based piece that has a slight dissonant feel especially in the bell-like sounds that dance around the central repeated chords.
The closing piece, "Sunlight", features several different musical influences melded into one. The rhythm once again is very much in the style of Kraftwerk while the chordal structure and vocal arrangements are similar to the Beatles classic "Tomorrow Never Knows". The koto line heard throughout the piece not only gives an obvious oriental flavor but also is reminiscent of Bowie in the above mentioned Berlin-Trilogy phase.
Like "Side One", "Side Two" is a fantastic CD. Adrian Belew tackles several musical elements at once here and makes the album's 33-minute running time seem a lot longer. His experimentation with a variety of moods, textures and styles is also very successful on this album.
With the first two "Sides" now being available and including music of the highest standard, the final album in the trilogy "Side Three" is highly anticipated.
Excellent CD!!

Footnote: If some of the music on "Side Two" sounds familiar to some listeners, it was because some of the tracks were included as an instrumental backup to DC Talk singer Kevin Max on the Max/Belew music poetry collaboration "Raven Songs 101". Another Great CD.

Adrian Belew is a talented guy. Fronting two groups (King Crimson, The Bears)and with his own solo career the guy keeps trying new stuff all the time. "Side Two" is the experimental side of Belew with atmospheric songs and melodies decorated with lyrics and played (with the exception of two tracks) all by Belew.

Inspired by the way albums used to be made (such as "Revolver" one of Belew's favorite albums)with two sides that would sometimes have music quite different from each other on each side the record, "Side Two" showcases Belew's more experiemntal style melded with his songwriting instincts. "Dead Dog on the Asphalt" opens with Belew playing his guitar sythesizer creating different textures and then adding the unmistakable guitar work he's noted for. The evocative and moody "I Wish I Knew" is an eerie soundscape not unlike something you might hear on something by Brian Eno. "Face to Face" with its mix of a bluesy guitar lick that sounds almost Indian and Belew's expressive vocals is the closest this album comes to sounding like a conventional song. "Asleep" continues the sonic experiments with Belew's guitar work dominating the track. The fragmentary "Sex Nerve" is dominated by unusual percussive effects. Most of the rest of the album is a mix of unusual instrumental backing tracks, Belew's guitars and fragmented impressionist lyrics.

Recorded at Belew's home studio the album is unusual to say the least combining the best elements of Belew's instrumental albums with that of his more conventional prog rock albums. The beautiful "Sunlight" closes out the album with a bright melody underpinned by the sound of drum machines and sythesizers. "Side Two" is a nice companion piece to "Side One" and completely different.

At 33 minutes "Side Two" would have fit on the same disc with "Side One" (which also was about the same length)but the purpose was to break up the experience much as you had to do with vinyl as each side would end. While it is a bit overpriced considering how short it is, it's still a compelling bit of music to listen to.

I'm a fan of mr belew's music and i honestly haven't found all of his recordings to my liking. This one or "two" is very intrigueing and listenable. i don't own alot of music made with loops, electronic drums and whatnot. belew really makes this stuff very musical with his mastery of all of the instruments here, mostly the employment of guitar. I'd like it if there was at least a list of instruments used. I realize he's sort of a minimalist. yet this is a rich full bodied cup. His voice is clear. I like it a little better than "side one" which is also very good but different and sometimes same

The middle disc of a 2005 trilogy, 'Side Two' follows hot on the heels of 'Side One' which was released in January. The concept of the three 'sides' being that short albums make for better listening, kind of like each 'Side' is the side of a LP. Kinda like getting side one of Abbey Road on one disc and the other half released as a whole other disc. Or you could just call them EP's. Like the first 'Side', this one also barely reaches the 34 minute mark.

Where SIDE ONE was more diverse and wacky, with abrasive jams, power trio workouts and Crimsonesque fretwork, SIDE TWO is the more trippy, experimental avant garde Side, and for me more musically satisfying. There is little 'song' verse/chorus type formula here, and Adrian has downplayed his more Beatles tendencies this time around. The guitar effects are more diverse here, and draw from many phases of his past career without really retreading anything. Lyrics are minimal, sometimes only reciting the title of the track. Any 'song' material follows in the hikyu style he first unveiled on King Crimson's HAPPY WITH WHAT YOU HAVE TO BE HAPPY WITH. This minimalist approach works well with the experimental music on this disc. The drumming is also different. Rather than the 'tribal'/world drumming he had employed in the past, SIDE TWO incorporates mostly loops and electronic rhythms. This also gives SIDE TWO a flavor of mystique, almost like a return to the out-there approach of his DESIRE CAUGHT BY THE TAIL album(1986), just with vocals. The trax:

DEAD DOG ON ASPHALT - Adrian layers up the guitarwork, including his trademark 'squealy' solos straight out of Crimson's BEAT.

I WISH I KNEW - the percussion rhythm reminds one of one of King Crimson's PROJEKCTS. Acoustic guitar and a lone vocal line give this track a haunting quality.

FACE TO FACE - a more 'song' structure with verses and a more 'rootsy' guitar sound.

ASLEEP - a different version of a track which was available for downloading on Adrian's website. Here we get a droning bass, some Kraftwerk-type percussion and ADrian's trademark 'violin' sound guitar fx. At five minutes plus, this is actually the longest track on offer here.

SEX NERVE - more loopy percussion. Not too unlike some of Peter Gabriel's similar material. Kinda Gabriel meets Talking Heads Remain In Light.

THEN WHAT - the first half is a little Construkction Of Light and the second half is a lot of Desire Caught By The Tail.

QUICKSAND - this one boasts electronic guitar shimmering with cold light. Another of the few 'song' format tracks, the vocals here recall the Adrian we know.

I KNOW NOW - Adrain brings back his V-Drums from his PROJEKCT TWO days and adds guitar squeals to bring to a simmer.

HAPPINESS - a weird, twisted music-box type pattern here recalls some sort of distant 'dark playground' type imagery.

SUNLIGHT - drum box and synth-like koto sounds sound closer to David Bowie's BUDDHA OF SUBURBIA than anything remotely King Crimson.

A welcome addition to Belew's large body of work, and for me an ultimately more interesting listen than SIDE ONE. After almost ten years away from making solo albums and more involved in King Crimson and producing/guest spots with other artists, it's nice to hear some more from Mr. Belew, one of the most identifyable sounding guitarists alive today. Even if the albums are short. He should wrap it up with SIDE THREE sometime in the fall 2005.

Through everything Adrian's done in the music world, from catchy pop to brain-twisting experimental lunacy, what's in his head has been just as important as what comes from his instrument(s). He's concerned not just with music but sound itself. He does great things with harmonics, but the emphasis is on how he can make things *sound*, whether it's creating beautiful synthscapes, simple elegant melodies or animal-like skronks and squeals. His drumming isn't nearly as virtuosic as his guitar ability, but he's at least got a good understanding of rhythm as well.

So where does Side Two fall in the catalogue? Firmly in the experimental camp. There are a couple hooks and gripping melodies to be found, but we're mainly dealing with electronic loops, abstract sounds and minimalist lyrics. Like Side One it's quite short (33:14); enough not to seem excessive, although it really should have been priced as an EP instead of a full-length. Anyway, to me it comes across as much more successful than the mishmosh that was Op Zop Too Wah (his last album in the avant-garde vein), possibly because it doesn't overstay its welcome. Even if some of the electro-beats are a little cheesy, it's a fine middle segment to this trilogy.. and anyway, the best is still to come with Side Three.

While this disc is more experimental than S1, it's paradoxically more cohesive & accessible as well. Even going from soft balladry with an abstract edge ("Asleep," "Face to Face") to upbeat electronic grooves ("Sunlight," "Dead Dog on Asphalt") to sneakily catchy guitar work (the disc's high point "Sex Nerve"), there's a definite overall vibe that stays in place without roaming all over the map. There's almost always a pulse to follow, but it'll take some good time (and good headphones) to really get into the details.

Side Two fittingly falls in the middle of the scale - not his best album but far from his worst; not essential for all fans, but not just for completists either. If nothing else, AB can never be accused of standing still or falling into a rut. Come here sooner or later to complete the trilogy.. just try not to pay the full list price if you can help it.

part two of the genius trillogy by adrian belew, "side two", does not dissapoint.

it starts out with "dead dog on asphalt". funny story for me, adrian's daughter sent me a message on myspace, and told me adrian ran over a dog in his truck, coming home one night. he was so depressed, that he wrote this song about it!


all songs on this album were done with the looper, an apple computer and software instruments, as well as guitar and adrian's unmistakable vocals.

"asleep", which was originally a download only track, was inspired by the tragic world trade center bombings, 9/11/01. this version, however is longer, and a different mix than the other, so you are in for a treat!

"sex nerve" sort of builds on a track from the king crimson e.p., "happy with what you have to be happy with" called "she shudders".

"sunlight" has a sort of 70s europop feel to it.

i feel this release is the strongest of the trillogy, though none of them dissapoint!

The second part of Belew's "Side" trilogy, finds Belew in a more experimental context than the first album. Lots of uses of electronics here as Belew almost sounds like a more modern day version of Kraftwerk in spots. There are also several of Adrian's patented pop tunes to kind of round things out. Almost all of the instruments are played by Belew and his lyrics are supposedly written in the style of Japanese haiku poetry. Belew has always been a bit off center with his lyrics so these here fit right in with what he is known for. Like the first album this one clocks in at only 33 minutes so it is not much more than an EP selling for full album price. Overall it is a nice little disc from Belew.

then again, i'm partial to adrian. been listening to it since i got it after work yesterday on the way home.

if you've heard Kevin Max/Adrian Belew's "Raven songs 101", you'll hear mixes of some of those trax on "I wish I knew" (Oh The river so deep, so wide), "Face to face" (Black leather and a microphone), "Asleep" (Raven song 101), and "Then what" (And you tremble at his feet).

I like this better than "Side One." Whereas "Side One" had several great songs ("Ampersand," "Matchless Man," and "Beat Box Guitar"), I find "Side Two" to be a more consistently compelling listen. There aren't any straightforward pop songs on this album, but every cut has something of interest. Belew works with some fascinating textures, and the largely programmed percussion parts allow him to play over some different and intriguing rhythms. I find this to be one of the better marriages of Belew's abstract and popular halves.

The disc is a smoother listen than "side one". In addition to what the previous reviewers noted, a few of the songs had hints of Thomas Dolby and the 80's new wave. Good, but overall not as strong as side one (accounting for the differing styles). The haiku's are emotive, strong and succinct. Much of the instrumentation is compelling, but some just feels incomplete.

The best: Face to Face, Sex Nerve
The really good: Dead Dog, Asleep

I found Happiness and Sunlight to be rather slight, and the rest somewhere in between. Worth getting, but not essential.