Customer Reviews

A Sphere in the Heart of Silence

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

 

 

There are not too many artists around who can create such a wide variety of music. Especially none like John Frusciante or Josh Klinghoffer who together have created a very special album with 'A sphere in the heart of silence'. All six songs on this album, which runs for around 35mins, are completely different to any other John Frusciante release.
The album opens with 'sphere' - an 8 minute instrumental layered over the top of synthesiser and a lot of noise. The first guitar solo is John's and its brilliant. This song would have been better left at its original 30minute length, cos its quite a ride.
'The Afterglow' is probably the grooviest song on the record. A techno like song, this is John's vocal painted over the top of Josh's genius.
'Walls' is a great lyrical effort and the angriest song on the record with John's screams piercingly good.
The next song 'Communique' is one of the greatest songs I've ever heard. It is worth buying this CD for this song alone. The first I heard it I swear I had an out of body experience, it is amazing. This is Josh's song and it sounds like it is being performed live in your room. Any one who has heard it will know what I mean...
The next two songs both feature Josh on vocals yet again and sound brilliant, this guy can sing. John's guitar blends nicely into these two songs which again contain a lot of synthesiser.
The final song is a short, soft, 2min track with John providing vocal and piano. It is a nice way to round out the album. I hope to hear more from these two guys in the same mould as this album, it deserves an encore.

If you like experimental music or electronica then chances are you will enjoy this album quite a bit, but if you don't and are just a Frusciante fan or a new fan altogether than try to listen to this before you buy it.

1. Sphere - This song isn't bad par se, but the opening part of the song lasts a good four minutes and if you're looking for something that gets it over with quickly, this isn't it.

2. The Afterglow - This song has a funky little guitar piece that plays throughout and it's overall feeling is very techno-ish. Unfortunately, it is sometimes hard to decipher what John is singing and it doesn't help that this record comes with no insert containing lyrics.

3. Walls - This is one of my favorites on the album. The drum machine sounds really neat as does the distorted riff that plays throughout. The singing is also very cool with John's voice being complimented by Josh's whispered singing style. Very nice.

4. Communique - This song is pretty interesting. Between the two tracks that are very piano driven on the album, this is probably the better of the two.

5. At Your Enemies - This is another song where Josh does the vocals. The effects are really nicely done and I think a lot of it is done on a synthesizer. Josh's singing here is very hard to understand, but equally beautiful. It's pretty good overall.

6. Surrogate People - This song starts out with an interesting synthesizer part that will continue through the song. The acoustic guitar riff that is played is very beautiful and relaxing. This song sounds like it was written for Shadows Collide with People which John said it was in his album bio. The lyrics sung by John are interesting and thoughtful.

7. My Life - This song is good, but it shouldn't be on this album. It feels totally out of place with the rest of the electronica style songs on the rest of the album. This is the other piano-driven track on the album.

Overall, A Sphere in the Heart of Silence is pretty solid. It's a little shorter than I would've liked, but the material is creative and unique.

If you like the style this album is in than it is for you, otherwise it might not be.

Sphere in the Heart of Silence is more of a electronic-techno album, but it is still great! I bought this album today at Borders and listened to it in my car on the way home. It reminds me of To Record Water for Only Ten Days (at least some of the drums do). Josh Klinghoffer sings more on this album, which is is good if you enjoy his vocals. If you are John Frusciante or Josh Klinghoffer fan get this album, it is the different when compared to all the other albums released, but it is still great!!!!

Many who listen to England's electronic art rockers Autechre, the ever-eccentric Bjork, or to Radiohead's more recent catalogue editions like "OK Computer," "Kid A," and "Amnesiac," merely sit in awe of the intricate digital textures, rhythmic programming, inventive synthesizer manipulations, and the surrealistic atmospheres which they create. Others, like Chili Peppers' guitarist John Frusciante and his long-time friend, Josh Klinghoffer, are inspired to the point of imitation. Luckily for us, they do it well.

Those expecting a disc chockfull of Frusciante guitar solos should look for one of the other six, yes six, solo albums the Chili Pepper string magician is putting out this calendar year. "Sphere" is a highly electronic, synthesized, beat driven, heavily layered, and groove oriented album. "Sphere" trades in the Chili Pepper sing-a-long offerings for atmospherically catchy rhythms and dance-inciting grooves. Yet, it still owns its share of melodic licks, and, an intoxicating two-minute Frusciante guitar run starting four and a half minutes into its first track to satisfy Chili Pepper fans salivating for such.

Frusciante and Klinghoffer weave beautiful vocal harmonies on the lazily paced and melodic "Surrogate People," while the beautifully symphonic "At Your Enemies" sounds perfect for background for a Blue Man Group performance with its xylophone runs, helicopter like interjections, and captivating Klinghoffer vocals.

Klinghoffer takes the reigns in the highly atmospheric "Communique," seemingly setting up his piano atop the windy Alps with Frusciante experimenting with his modular synthesizer a few steps behind.

Frusciante's raspy vocals shine in the dance provoking standout "Walls" as Klinghoffer's Thom Yorke-like undercutting backing vocals compliment brilliantly.

Infused with a groovy PJ Harvey-esque bassline and raspy Frusciante vocals, the catchy "Afterglow" is enough to make any rhythm-less person attempt what he or she should never: dance.

The short and simple piano-led "My Life" is the only track that leaves anything to be desired, but still tugs at the `ol heart strings.

This short yet magnificently eclectic EP is a welcome departure from the Chili Peppers' increasingly pop rock orientated releases and is a must for any music connoisseur who appreciates rich textures, heavily layered rhythms, captivating soundscapes, and well... good old- fashioned "boogeying."

I am ashamed to admit this, but when I heard the CD was going to be all "electronic" style music, I didn't expect to like it much. Strange considerring I LOVE 99% of Frusciantes music. Well, I deserve hell for that foolish asumption! I liked this release a lot and can listen to "Afterglow" a hundred times in a row and not get sick of it. "Afterglow" and "My Life" are highlights on this release. A couple tracks reminded me of the weird instrumental synthesizer tracks on "Shadows Collide..." Johns voice blew me away on this CD too. He gets better and better with each Cd and that's saying a lot considering he released 6 CD's in the past year! If John falls down a flight of stairs while carrying his guitar, I hope someone is there to record it ...cause it'll most likely sound brilliant!

This is John's experimental electronic based album. It's cool that he warned everyone of this before releasing it. That said, if you are to buy this, listen wiht an open mind. There's not much in the way of guitar heroics but it's an overall interesting piece of work. Josh Klinghoffer has more of a prominent role on this album providing more vocals than on previous Frusciante releases and in fact singing some songs himself. Sphere is an amazing opener with a four minute intro reminiscent of the soundtrack to old Atari/Nintendo games from the '80s. At about four and a half minutes, John's one and only real definite guitar solo for the entire album kicks in and goes for somethin liek two minutes over the synthesizers. The song ends up being 9 minutes long as opposed to the original half hour version John had written and contains no vocals or drums. The Afterglow is probably the catchiest song on the album with techno-sounding drums and synths over a funky guitar lick played by Josh. John's vocals at times sound similar to disco singers liek donna summer during this song. Walls is a relatively good track with some cool synth strings being played. Communique and At Your Enemies have so little involvement from John that one would barely notice his presence. These songs are boring and non memorable. They have their occasional good moments but just aren't up to par. Surrogate People picks it back up with John back on the vocals with Josh. This song has a cool acoustic guitar lick and is an overall cool song to listen to. My Life is a short piano and vocals ballad entirely done by John live. It reminds me of beatles songs liek "Let it Be" and just overall feels out of place on this album. Also, it has a feeling liek he could have made it longer and placed it on a different solo record such as The Will To Death. Overall, this album is about number four or number five in rank of the Frusciante solo releases.

If you asked John's fans 12 years ago that he would be making an electronica album in the future, they would probably burst out laughing. As he was not even in a fit state to play the guitar never mind venture into territories you wouldn't associate with Frusciante back then. But times have changed and `Sphere' sees Frusciante and Klinghoffer make a successful venture into the world of electronica. This is the fifth album out of the six albums Frusciante released in 6 months on the Record Collection label, and his 9th overall. I would say this is the most challenging and experimental album Frusciante has ever produced. Using a range of different instruments from synthesizers to string ensembles, making the complexity achieved stand out amongst his other albums. With 7 tracks it is difficult to know whether this classifies as a full length album or an EP. It certainly does not have EP in the title which seems to be customary for EP's. Furthermore at just over 38 minutes it certainly looks as if it is long enough to classify as a full length album.

The album has a good flow to it. Starting off with `Sphere', and then turning it up with the funked up `Afterglow'. The pair then take it to the next level with `Walls' which at points is just insane, as its just feels they are out of control creating a frenzied wall of sound . Due to the sheer intensity of `Walls' it is as if their energy levels are gradually decreasing through the rest of the songs, as they gradually get slower and slower because John and Josh used all their energy up all in this track. By the time the last track comes around it feels like its crawling along at snails pace with album closer `My life'. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, in fact quite the opposite. It works really well, and even though `My life' comes in at 1 minute 23 seconds; by that time it's like they have nothing more to give. Even the vocals have slowed right down when John sings "Life was never what you thought". It is an appropriate pace, which makes the listener hone in on the deep and meaningful lyrics.

The experimentation and the sounds the various sounds achieved by Josh and John on this album are a testament to how they are always looking to keep things fresh and to keep pushing the boundaries of their music. A fine example of this is in `Communique' which sounds like wind channelling through a small passage, accomplishing a kind of whooshing effect which adds an air of eeriness to the track. Likewise `At your Enemies' has some nice effects through it, like the echo effect used on the synthesiser. Combined with Josh's vocals, this is yet another great chilled out track, but at the same time has that ghostly feel to it like `Communique'.

The album is unique in the sense that is the only Frusciante to release which is credited to not only John Frusciante, but Josh Klinghoffer as well. It does surprise me a bit because Klinghoffer has appeared on at least 5 albums by John, and while he does get credited in the sleeve notes, this is the first album that the artist is `John Frusciante and Josh Klinghoffer'. It could be that this is the first time where it was felt that Josh contributed to the song writing, production etc in an equal proportion to the Frusciante. Maybe it was Josh who didn't want to be accredited in the artist title because compared to Frusciante, as he is a lot lesser known than Frusciante and it would be more like `Frusciante and who?'. Who knows, but one things for sure, like Ataxia, Josh's vocals add so much to tracks like `Surrogate people'. This track in particular, I think is the best vocal combination song they have done. The two of their vocals combined just works so well.

Overall this is a really good album. I would say out of all the albums he has done, it is the one requires the most patient in order to fully appreciate it. It's album which stands out as John's most adventurous, which is saying a lot considering some of the experimentation on his other albums. So much so, that although I've listened to this album a lot, I still think I need to listen to it more, as I think there are more layers I still haven't unearthed. This though, is where the real beauty of the album lies.

This I feel is one of John's best works so far, next to Inside of Emptiness. My favorite song off of this album is song six, Surrogate People. It has an amazing acoustic guitar in the background with dual vocals by both John and Josh. I think this album shows the more creative side of the artist through experimental electronic synthesizing. Though I think it would be best to start at the beginning and work toward the newer releases.

The synthesizer skill that John and Josh have on this CD are something compared to those Euphoria Chill-Out CD's. I've been lovin Johns work since Niandra, and this is probably my favorite of his recent solo works. "Sphere", the first song, is truly unique that may be my favorite from the album. I highly suggest this for any Frusciante fan.

This album came out of nowhere, and the style had totally changed. Instead of a rock album, this was an experimental partially techno partially piano dominated album. The opening song is wonderful. It's a 10 minute song and has a beautiful guitar part that John made in the song. This is more of Josh Klinghoffer's album more than John's. Josh sing's a dominant amount of the tracks. Communique is the best song on the album, along with sphere. Also the final track is just John and piano. "My Life" is the song, which at times sounds like "Let It Be" by The Beatles. very pretty song