Stars on Esp / Nice Day [EP, Original recording reissued]

His Name Is Alive | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 7, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: EP, Original recording reissued
• Label: 4ad / Ada
• ASIN: B000007SPY
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #228,521 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #51 in Music > Indie Music > Alternative Rock > British Alternative

Track Listings

1. Dub Love Letter

2. This World Is Not My Home

3. Bad Luck Girl

4. What Are You Wearing Tomorrow

5. The Bees

6. What Else Is New List

7. Wall of Speed

8. Universal Frequencies

9. The Sand That Holds the Lakes in Place

10. I Can't Live in This World Anymore

11. Answer to Rainbow at Midnight

12. Famous Goodbye King

13. Across the Street

14. Movie

15. Last One [*]

16. Nice Day

17. Baby You Feel Me Up

18. Hot Tonite

19. Wet

20. Come

See all 21 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars something else, April 6, 2001

By 

Micah Newman (Dallas, TX United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Stars on Esp / Nice Day (Audio CD)

His Name Is Alive sort of took a leap and entered Phase Two with the album _Stars on E.S.P._ Departing significantly from the atmospheric This Mortal Coil-like abstractions of early albums as well as the brash fusion of the previous album _Mouth By Mouth_, the main influence here seems to be Oldies, Motown, and folk spirituals, albeit mutated in their own inimitable way into something uniquely His Name Is Alive. "This World Is Not My Home/I Can't Live in This World Anymore," what sounds like a black spiritual, is a refrain and a theme on this album, appearing in different forms on three different songs. "Universal Frequencies" is basically a remake/remix of the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations." Echoes of the past can still be heard in songs like "What Are You Wearing Tomorrow" and "The Sand That Holds The Lakes In Place," however. I didn't understand or particularly care for this new sound at all at first, but it's grown on me quite a lot, and I can now confidently say that I consider this album utterly brilliant-one of my favorites. It all fits into their greater ethos of rootsy, earthy sounds that are emotionally evocative, sometimes chillingly so. The music seems to vibrate in time with the life in one's very bones, a panorama of aching time and humanness. This is the sound of AM Radio, the Great Lakes, summer creeping into fall, a lone guitar plugged into an amp in a wooden room in an old house somewhere in Ypsilanti. The whole thing is not what you'd call "immediate," though. A lot of strange sounds and weirdness creeping out from unexpected nooks are to be found, as is standard fare with His Name Is Alive. It may take you quite a few listens to fully appreciate, but once you do you just might understand life a little better.

The tacked-on _Nice Day_ e.p. is similar to _Stars on E.S.P._, but with more straightforward soul-rock tunes. It's a lot simpler, and for that the subtleties are bit tougher to dig out. These two fit together nicely; I bought them separately, as that was how I found them when they were released, and I've always wanted to put the two CDs onto a changer and hit `shuffle', except I don't have one. So, great value, for a mind-altering, soul-shifting experience.

1.0 out of 5 stars reinterpreting the stars doesn't mean you have to be derivitive, November 18, 2010

By 

Keir H. Fogarty "funkarty" (fort collins, colorado United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Stars on Esp / Nice Day (Audio CD)

I'll be honest. I bought this album because I heard universal frequencies and thought the production and harmonies were very reminiscent of Pet Sounds, that truly magnificent album by the Beach Boys, and I had always wanted to find a band that was capable of following in their footsteps. This turned out to be a bad move, in my opinion.

Why does this album get only one star? I appreciate the effort to pay homage to sounds that influenced your thinking on music. Hell, I bought the album based on that idea. My problem is when your "tribute" is to basically lift the exact musical phrasing of good vibrations and add a few new lyrics. I mean when I am sitting there, listening to a song and say to myself, "at this rate I'm gonna hear the theramin come in just like in good vibrations," and then have that prediction come true in almost embarrassing fashion, then your "tribute" becomes, "I wanted to make this album, but I haven't actually brought anything fresh and new to the table to demonstrate any originality I am able to contribute"

In addition, the description of "multi-instrumentalist/producer" for Warren Defever is one of the most fitting descriptions I have ever heard. If, by "multi-instrumentalist" one means, "amateur at everything, master of nothing"--I listen to every instrument on the album, except for the drums, and what I hear is amateurish musicianship but with excellent production. Warren Defever IS an excellent producer--the way different parts of songs blend in and out, the way electronic effects are used, is truly masterful--in fact, I'd say that the first few seconds of every song makes you say to yourself, "AH, this one sounds like it is going to be good" but then you listen with an attentive ear and say, oh wait, actually the instrumentation simplistic and repetitive

except for the drums, the drummer is good--probably because that is one instrument Warren Defever doesn't play---too bad he de-emphasizes the most skilled musician in the production (his one production flaw

Now onto the singer--she's the type of singer that if you had a friend who was a singer like that, you'd say, "boy, you are a pretty good singer" but if she was in a choir, she would never be chosen for a solo, because, yes, she is a "good singer" in an amateurish type of way, but she is not, indeed, a professionally good singer--

and the lyrics are terrible. I mean I can barely stand to listen to them. Why? because they sound like they're written by a depressed twelve year old girl--"I can't live in this world anymore"--repeat 25 times in a row, follow with "just passing through" 5x in a row
SERIOUSLY? repetition, when used in the right context, is an excellent technique--the problem I have with the repetition of lyrics on this album, is the songs sound like "we're trying really hard to be serious singer-songwriter types" when the singing and songwriting leave alot to be desired

overall, this album is incredibly amateurish in every aspect EXCEPT drumming and production--which is why I have listened to it several times, absolutely sure that at some point I'm going to "get it" and realize, "I've just been a jerk, this is actually good, one just has to listen a few times to understand the artistic mission"--but no, I've listened over and over and the excellent production just can't hide the fact that they don't know how to craft cohesive songs that hang together as a whole and can engage in themes without becoming boring and repetitive

4.0 out of 5 stars bubbly sounds, October 22, 2005

By 

J. Holmes "blood+whiskey" (yokohama, japan) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Stars on Esp / Nice Day (Audio CD)

another interesting development in the growing mystery of His Name Is Alive. what started off as a ethereal and ghostly tribute to Cocteau Twins old sound, turned into a bit of a brilliant pop band. now with Stars On ESP, this group has embraced the sounds of vocal harmony groups and some folk and gospel influence as well. the Beach Boys references seem to pop up within the first few moments of the album as the bright, sunny stylings of "Dub Love Letter" dribble out from the stereo. then the gospelized stomp of "The World Is Not My Home" comes through to reveal a bit of a theme (seeing as this melody and chorus is repeated a few times within this record). i was a bit taken back by the record when i first heard it and it took me some time to grow on me. i missed some of the mysterious aspects of this band; but i always loved the unique and weird production of this record, which has an underwater and bubbly feeling. overtime, this album serves as a great addition to an interesting catalogue by this fascinating band.