Customer Reviews

Stateless

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

 

 

This is one of the better and more interesting records to come out this year. I found out about this because the lead singer, Chris James (who sounds uncannily like Coldplay's Chris Martin, but writes better lyrics) collaborated with DJ Shadow on his new album "The Outsider." James fronts this Leeds 5-piece, the lineup of which is missing a noteworthy instrument: guitar. Instead they have drums, bass, vox, keyboard/programming and turntables. The result is that the band's debut full-length album captures all the Britrock melancholy of Radiohead, Coldplay or Elbow but, freed from guitars, it explores all sorts of other scapes that makes it entirely distinct from those bands. The sound is dominated by pianos, samples, strings, etc., and the drums loom large in the mix. And in hindsight, the DJ Shadow connection is natural, as the band employs some of his nostalgic sampling, subtle scratching, and especially his funky tempos and breakbeats. As with Radiohead and their ilk, I wish these guys would occasionally strike a slightly less gloomy and world-weary tone, just to change the pace, but this is an album to get by a band to watch.

This song is so Hot! I first heard this song on The Vampire Diaries and immediately fell in Love with it!

If you like RadioheadIn Rainbows, Death Cab for Cutie Codes And Keys, maybe even Daft Punk, you will like this group and the album. I would recommend "Bloodstream" if you only have a dollar.. but if you can, go with the whole album, it's easy, mellow, funky music you will enjoy in your library.

I could just play Bloodstream on repeat and be perfectly happy but the cd is great as a whole and was in good shape. Loving it!

I can't quite put my finger on it, but there is something about the dark warmth of this album that resonates with me. Normally I burn out on an album pretty quickly, but I've been able to listen to this one over and over again without losing interest. All in all, this is a solid debut and it's worth listening to.

One of the most amazing cds I've ever heard. Original and unforgettable. Why haven't I heard more about this group before now?? Thank you Vampire Diaries for featuring "Bloodstream" at the end of last season. I can't enough of this cd. Best song ever is Inscape. Stateless you rock - encore!

...because each song is phenomenal. Beautiful and somber, heartfelt and soulful, this album is a perfect balance of musical and lyrical complexity. I literally do press play from the first track and let the entire album play over and over again--and I find something new to appreciate each time.

I also found this band after Chris James collaborated with DJ Shadow. The self titled album has one great track after another. Any DJ Shadow fan will appreciate the mixing and the vocals sound great.

If you haven't heard the song on the DJ Shadow album - Outsider I highly recommend it.

The music just flows.

I heard one track on an tv show and had to look it up immediately. I checke d out the album on Amazon and thought, what the heck, it sounds good.
Turns out I was right.

The album isn't really comparable to anything I've heard before.
It's rich audio and cool vocals sit on a deep river of bass.

Awesome music to calm you down, even better loud. I can't help feeling like it evokes the emotions of jazz--that smooth smoky sensuality.

Great!

Stateless deserve to be much more well-known than they are. I discovered this album about 6 mths ago and fell in love with the first single - 'Bloodstream'. Comparisons to Keane, Coldplay, Elbow, even Muse, etc. will be inevitable, but I think Stateless deserve to be considered a little more on their own terms. Less commercial than these bands, but benefiting from 'pop-quality' production, the album borrows ideas from trip-hop, blends record-scratching with violins and overtly electronic pianos, and runs smooth - at times almost operatic - rising vocals over poetic lyrics. In short, its been a long time since I have found an album of this quality and originality. Why isn't this band on my radio??!!