Customer Reviews

Sing to God Parts 1 & 2

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

 

 

this is the most frightengly amazing album you will hope to hear.
Prog Punk Fairground Sally Army Spaz Neo classical Funfest of utter genius...you must buy this album. The Beatles would've killed for the hooks, The Sex Pistols would've killed for the sheer power and production that this baby commands. This is like NOTHING you will have ever heard before...or hear again.
Trust Me......Sing to God...GENIUS.

Yes, charming is just one of many words I would use to describe this band. Previous - all I heard was their amazing samples from their website. The samples alone were so delicious, that I gave in and bought this double disc at the import price. I was not disappointed. Hard to describe their music; sounds to me like the cast of the Rocky Horror Picture Show got together with the Smurfs to jam out and make some music. But thats just my assessment, everyone should judge for themselves. IMO the first disc is the more intense of the 2, only cause the 2nd has some of their more mellow yet beautiful tunes. But there are still many of their ultra-melodic adrenaline-ized tunes on the 2nd disc that seems to dominate the 1st. Truly, a FUN band to listen to that radiates a lust for living! Metal is a dead scene, Hardcore is a dead scene, Indie rock is a dead scene, pick up a Cardiacs album for something truly original and inspiring!

I kid you not. This 2-CD set is the peak of genius that is Cardiacs, the greatest band you've never heard of. Trimmed to a lean, mean, music machine of 4 dazzling musicians on this set- down from a previously larger ensemble of 7, this is a band that references rock music's greatest bands throughout their music, fusing them together to create their own uniquely intoxicating brew. Take equal parts Queen, Abbey Road-era Beatles, Mongoloid-era Devo, Gabriel-era Genesis, and a bit of avant-garde noodlings here and there for measure, and you might begin to describe this CD set. It rocks. It soothes. It's weird. It's danceable. It's Cardiacs. Your CD collection sucks without it.

Sing to God is, I think, Cardiacs' pinnacle of achievement and definitely among my 10 favourite records ever. A double album of unparalleled brilliance. Its not easy-listening, of course, but on the other hand its not as difficult as many people make out. Give it a few listens and you'll see why the Cardiacs is one of rock's best-kept secrets. It's bold, beautiful, progressive, punky, nostalgic, avant garde all at the same time. It's fast, furious, rocky, poppy, quirky, arty, catchy, totally unique and - most importantly - it is music with a BIG HEART and lots of SOUL. To sum up the Cardiacs as quirky English pop doesn't do the band justice - the influences I can hear are Gabriel-era Genesis, Sex Pistols, Gilbert & Sullivan and the London Symphony Orchestra after someone's poured half a kilo of angeldust into their lunchtime beers. All the tracks are great, though the suite of songs ending Disc 1 soars to hitherto unscaled heights of creative genius. Alas, the Cardiacs will never reach the MTV big time, simply because pop music nowadays is no longer about quality, originality or uniqueness. The music industry wants products that appeal to the mass market. And the mass market's tastes have, of course, been fashioned by the - surprise, surprise - the MUSIC INDUSTRY. But I digress. This is an amazing record. Please buy it.

This is quite simply the best album ever created. Having been a fan of Cardiacs previous long-players I actually missed this one first time around, stupidly listening to someone's opinion that it 'wasn't that good'. What a fool I was. Every track is perfect, beautiful, shimmering in loveliness and gorgeosity. Quite frankly worthy of laudation.

I was overjoyed to hear that the Cardiacs were back on form after the slightly disappointing 'Heavenborn and Everbright' but I see no mention of what I regard as there greatest album - 'On Land and On Sea'. Seriously folks, there is not a record that I have listened to this much and not come close to getting bored with. The second side of the album in particularis almost faultless.

All the normal Cardiacs range is in 'On Land and On Sea': Spikey and adreneline charged through epic and grand to those fleeting moments af actual (that is non-ironic and non-pretentious) beauty and grace. There is nothing in Rock/Pop that comes close to this in complexity or just plain melodic invention. If they weren't so damn irritating to the casual listener, they would be better recognised. If you come to the Cardiacs as a first time listener, don't be put off. They are not a gimmock band. The gimmick is all surface. There is REAL music under that strange surface.

Ho-hum.

Oh and go and see them live while you still can...

I came across the Cardiacs on youtube- after reading a reference to them at the bottom of a Sparks video. I watched Tarred & Feathered and then Jibber & Twitch (the "modern" rehearsal version) and quickly realized that these were works of genius. The group has gotten its direction from Tim Smith since the late 70's, but he has surrounded himself with perfect musicians- all parts together make the Cardiacs the gem it is.
Most of the references to other groups are apt (as unlikely as such a combination might seem), yet fail to convey the astounding transformations these people make to existing sounds and styles.
If I had to choose a word to put on the Caridacs, it would be relentless- that is meant as the highest possible compliment. Unlike- say the Japanese wall of noise outfits (and I do like them)- the Cardiacs create inviting traps of emotion-laden sound deluges. They pull you into the swirls and chunks, beat down your resistance, throw you out and then pull you in again.
They are very good at this. It is very complex and complicated stuff- maddeningly delightful in its abrupt changes. And- it is beautiful- lush & lovely- to boot.

This would have to be one of the greatest albums of all time. The depth and variation within the songs is untrue, and the composition of each masterpiece will have you coming back for more and more every time. Totally unique sounding, Cardiacs defy description, and this is considered by many to be their finest work. A must for any serious music fan, casual listeners however: handle with care.

Part One being the first part of this two part album is marginally superior to Part Two being the second part of this two part album but both are doggy and putanglishly tonguey.