Customer Reviews

So Tonight That I Might See

5 star:		(69)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This album has been in constant rotation in my cd player for years and years now. It really is a beautiful album. I never understood the people who said that all Mazzy Star songs all sound alike. I never thought that in any sense at all. they all are so subtle and subdued but yet all have their own personality. The album really coheres in a sense, but each song tells it's own story. It isn't simply a collection of random songs but more a book of short stories held together by a common thread.

From the first track, Fade Into You, a sort of surprise hit single on the radio with its country tinged, folk psychadelia to the grand finale, So Tonight That I Might See, a Doors inspired stream of conscious masterpiece, the entire album shimmers with emotion and feeling and dreamy landscapes. David Robacks sweet guitar playing and lush arrangements provide the perfect backdrop to Hope Sandovals detached but angelic voice and an almost faceless backing band provides the perfect foil for the dark, laid back duo who are fronting the show.

Fade Into You is a beautiful tune, filled with desertlike folk country-ish sounds, that never seems to wear thin. Bells Ring which is next, keeps the same spirit as Fade Into You, albiet with a more heavy, electrified spirit and then Mary of Silence And Five String Serenade bring the band closer to a funeral type atmosphere, but it's Blue Light, the fifth track that lifts the band out of it's misery. This almost tone poem, is filled with an aquatic organ sound that is perfect, almost with it giving you the feeling of a soft, blueish light shining through the window on a what was rainy afternoon during a hot summer's day.

She's My Baby is nice and is next, but it's the seventh track, Unreflected that has consistantly moved me and been one of my favorite songs of all time. It's gently ringing acoustic guitars, soft shaker and echoey vocals by Sandoval remind me of lying in a field in the desert on a clear summer's night with the brightest stars against the darkest backdrop circling above. This is a song that could simply be called cosmic... something which not many songs truly are.

The album then shifts gears with the coarse and tripped out "Wasted" only to find it's way back to dreamy folk on "Into Dust," which gives way the powerful closing track, So Tonight That I Might See. In similar fashion to The Doors, "The End," Sandoval sings with detached fashion almost unceasing string of words whih sound almost like an uninterupted thought from beginning to end.

So Tonight is a fantastic album. You may have heard Fade Into You on the radio at some point. Give it a try if you haven't already. It isn't music that you want to race cars to (effectively atleast) but it is a great cd. The playing by the band (except Roback) is nothing to run to the store about, but they do managed to create a dreamy atmosphere which is unbroken throughout the show. Highly Recommended.

If you like either of the other Mazzy Star albums, this one is a little different... in a better way. If you have never heard of this band, but like mysterious, sultry, and deep music, running the gamut from acoustic guitar with female voice, ranging to psychedelic electronic, then maybe it's for you.

This is the best of all Mazzy Star's albums. I really wish the group would stick with this style, which is a little darker at times, and a little more acoustic at others, than either 'Swan or 'Brightly. There is only one song on this album (track 2) which I do not truly adore (and it just happens to be the one song which sounds EXACTLY like most of the songs on the other 2 albums).

The sound on this album reminds me in an odd way of early Pink Floyd and The Doors, with a sultry female vocalist. It makes great mood music for a make out session. It is good for combating depression. Then again, it also gets me riled up. The title track makes think of what would happen if Jim Morrison was reincarnated as a woman and tried to play "The End" in the 90's. "5 String Serenade" is one of the softest, sweetest, and most gentle songs ever.

Also, the recording quality is FANTASTIC! I use this CD as a test/reference whenever I try out new audio equipment.

Twelve years ago I was sitting on a porch in a college town in the early fall, waiting to go to a party, and the song "Fade Into You" came over the radio. I can still remember the way the plaintive sound of Hope Sandoval's voice, woven into those languid guitar strains, settled over my nervous system with an effect that can only be described as hypnotic. It was a bright, sunny day, but all the sudden I felt like it was half past midnight, and I had nothing to keep me company but a candle and a big bottle of red wine. I was so haunted by the song that at the first opportunity I went out to a record store and bought the CD, "So Tonight That I Might See." It remains my all-time favorite, a bottle of "the good stuff" that I break out only on special occasions.

People have a tendency to discuss albums song by song, but "So Tonight That I Might See" is, to me, just one long piece of music, performed in an unvaryingly mellow and often longing tone of voice. The mood weaves its thread through every track, binding them together into a singular piece of music that is wierdly and intensely beautiful. I would never insult this dark masterwork by skipping ahead to a certain song; I either listen to the whole album (on repeat, drinking some good absinthe if possible and letting the grooves take me where they may) or I don't listen at all. There are rules to drinking the good stuff, you see.

Cheers.

I recall hearing "Fade Into You" a few times on the radio, late at night, during the 90s -- never found out who the group was, and it haunted me. The female vocalist's voice was so full of sadness, and I couldn't even make out half the lyrics 'cause it sounded like she'd washed down a handful of painkillers with a bottle of wine, but it was one of the greatest songs I'd ever heard. . . .

A few years back, I was drowning my sorrows at a local pub when I heard this song over the satellite radio. "Who is this?" I ask the bartender. She doesn't know, but calls the waitress and cook over. The waitress thinks it's "The Sundays" and the cook thinks it's from "The Pallbearer" soundtrack. They were both wrong, but after a bit of research at Amazon, Wikipedia, and the local record store, I FINALLY -- after a decade of wondering -- discovered Mazzy Star.

I've since gotten all 3 albums, but "So Tonight I Might See" is -- by far -- the best. Since Mazzy Star, I've gotten a number of other albums from the "trip hop" and "dream pop" genre -- some of which were quite good -- but this will always be at the top of my list.

"So Tonight I Might See" is, IMHO, the best album of all time. Nothing else is comparable. It is truly in a class of its own.

In order to truly enjoy this CD, try to appreciate it for what it is, rather than focusing on what it is not. It is not for fanatical audiophiles who demand sonic perfection from the record producer. It is not a party record, unless your idea of a wild time is to nod off in an opium den. Above all, it is not for those who cannot appreciate the creation of a sustained, languid aural mood for the course of a full-length album.

This CD is a more gothic version of the landmark "Trinity Session" CD by the Cowboy Junkies; a stylish, languid exploration of the time-honored themes of love, loss, and the fears and apprehensions that connect the two. The lyrics are vague and amorphous, which can also describe much of the sound, but don't let the comments of some others mislead you: the tempos of the songs may be similarly slow, but there's significant variation in presentation.

"Fade Into You" "Into Dust", and "Five String Serenade" depend upon simple, but elegantly performed acoustic guitar hooks, while "Mary of Silence" and "She's My Baby" are more dense and ominous. "Wasted" stands most apart from the other tracks, with its focus on lazy bursts of discordant electric guitar.

The overall result reminds me of Salvadore Dali's portrait comprised primarily of blocks of single color which, if you relax your eyes and look upon from a distance, fuse themselves into a likeness of Abraham Lincoln. "So Tonight That I Might See" is similar, in that the individual sounds that comprise the album seem unremarkable, as if the effort to make them was uninspired, but taken as a whole they result in a surprisingly cohesive, focused session of mood music.

Yes, there's a bit of pretentiousness here, but it seems to be more a result of well-intentioned earnestness than haughty delusions of grandeur. "So Tonight That I Might See" is by no means a masterpiece, but certainly deserves a place in your CD rack if you like to turn the lights down and let music slow your world down for you.

Hope Sandoval knows where you are and she can help you find your way again. Every time I come to a point in my life when I really feel disconnected, Mazzy Star is always there to help me through.

Some reviewers state that this disc is pretentious, but I disagree completely. Sometimes people mistake honesty for pretentiousness and this is one very honest collection of songs. I have no idea what Hope Sandoval and David Roback have been through in their lives, but I do know they are deep and feeling individuals that have managed to pour themselves into their work. So Tonight That I Might See is truly a masterpiece of sorrow, pain, sadness, death, loss and true love. Spiritual. Honest. Devestating. Hope.

I havent heard much of Mazzy Star, but from what I know its amazing and beautiful. Hope Sandoval has a wonderful singing voice. The lyrics are so beautiful and sad. Her voice can make you fall asleep and have dreams about the music. I was impressed when I heard my 1st song "Fade Into You" I was so stunned, that I had to hear more songs. Its a must have album.

"So Tonight That I Might See" is another cd I haven't listened to in a few years that I thought I would throw into my stereo. I have always loved the haunting ballad "Fade into You". I guess Mazzy Star is what a lot of people would consider to be shoegazer. The music is mellow and soothing to relax to. Now that I am listening to the cd for the first time in 2-3 years, I find myself completely enjoying the music much more than I initially did. Hope Sandoval has that little girl voice which isn't a bad thing. She obviously left an influence in music, namely with Allison Shaw of the band Cranes and maybe a little with Sharin Foo of The Raveonettes. I still don't care for the tracks "Mary of Silence" and "Five String Serenade". Maybe because of the lack of melody and Hope Sandoval's monotonous vocals is what turns me off from the song. I love the acoustic guitar on the latter track but there isn't a real sense of melody or emotions in either song. I still think that the best tracks on the cd are "Fade Into You", "Bells Ring", and "Blue Light". I particularly enjoyed the gospel influence in "Blue Light". Hope's vocals actually doesn't sound so monotonous on this track. Although not perfect, "So Tonight That I Might See" is still a solid album to chill out to after a long day at the office.

I was lucky enough to catch Mazzy Star performing this album LIVE at the legedary Fillmore in San Francisco soon after it was released. It was one of the most riveting, magical sets I have ever witnessed. Suffice it to say that if Hope Sandoval and company had performed that set on that stage in the late '60s, she would have ruled the San Francisco music scene just as surely as Grace Slick did in the day.

If you're a fan of psychedelic music, you simply must add this fog-shrouded diamond to your collection.

My favorite Mazzy Star album, for reasons not completely clear. Or are they? Clarity, after all, is the quality that Mazzy Star achieved on their sophmore effort to an extent not quite found on their other two albums. Clarity of production sound, as compared to the fuzzier debut 'She Hangs Brightyly', but more importantly, clarity of song construction. It's a bit tricky to pick up on, but what you're listening to as this remarkable group drones along, like the soundtrack of a swinging wristwatch, is a batch of songs both brilliantly conceived and recorded.

Don't believe me? Well, if you got a little too used to hearing the opener 'Fade Into You' - which unfortunately became a sort of '90s cliche - then do yourself a favor and listen with a bit more intent next time. And speaking of time, wait until you have a proper 45 minutes of distraction-free listening set aside to do it. Dave Roback's guitar parts are so easy to fall for, and as you know by now Hope Sandoval's voice is sweet as maple syrup. Did she have occasion to act a bitch onstage? Well, yes. I was witness to it myself. But I like to think she just took the music seriously is all, and I could never in my life fault someone for that. Oh, and to the guy before me who is sadly mired in the '70s and pining for his Lou Reed, time to move on, bro.

And lest you think that because the neighbors aren't banging on the walls means this is music to fall asleep to, well, wake up and pay some attention. You'll be glad you did. The final three tracks, shifting from psychadelia to tender classical and back, are enough to leave me in a cold sweat. And that trio is but the conclusion to what I call a brilliant little record from a band that I wish woulda never broken up. RIP, Mazzy Star.