Customer Reviews

This Is the Dream of Evan & Chan

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

 

 

I'll admit it upfront, my heart lies with the indie rock and blips and breakbeats must work especially hard to impress me. And if you come from the side of the fence that ooh's and aah's in the face of quirky electronic chirps and whistles, you will love this single. I guarantee it. But if you come from the ever loving Ben Gibbard (read: Death Cab for Cutie), you also might find something to love here. What I found most intriguing is the lyrical segment of the original song and the Barbara Morgenstern remix. If you fall in this camp, you may also want to check out the Postal Service's full length album, Give Up. But for the love of Fred, don't overplay it. You'll hate yourself. I did.

this is a great album with great remixes and a new song (your hill). this is the dreamm... has to be one of the best songs this year. I can't wait for their full album as The Postal Service.

The title track is brilliant.

I had the original album - what I can only describe as Brian Eno-inspired, amazing almost-ambient Electronica - and when I listened to the intro of the original track, I instantly turned it off and checked my audio equipment. I even downloaded the Amazon MP3 to be sure the CD wasn't damaged. Sure enough, that was it. Dntel (Tamborello) modifies and distorts the sound throughout the CD to the point that it is blown speaker noise, and he takes that effect to the limit on "The Dream of Evan and Chan". This isn't a bad thing. It's just the first time I've heard it done so precisely that I didn't think it could possibly be intentional - had to be an equipment fault, I thought. But nope, it's all very meant-to-be.

Anyway, that's why I bought this single. I wanted to find a version of the wonderful track without its expertly-crafted distortion effects - as I'd rate said distortion as firmly * unsettling *. And sure enough, none of the other mixes on this single include any heavy distortion effects. Thus, mission accomplished in that regard. If you're looking for the same thing, you'll be happy.

But the other mixes don't really live up to the (also included) original track, because ultimately Dntel is making his points and his musical references WITH those unsettling effects. They're as purposeful as the rest of his musical decisions. And while I'll never be a huge fan of the distortion, I can't deny that it suits the track beautifully. It's smart composition.

The New Mixes ---
* The Safety Scissors Mix is laid-back and interesting, but a bit TOO laid-back for my taste; it sounds very late-90s, which isn't bad, but doesn't bring enough to the party in my opinion.
* The Barbara Morgenstern Mix is a (comparatively) light and sunny duet - the best and most unique of the new mixes here.
* The Kompakt Remix is, it seems, The Dance Dream of Evan and Chan, but club dancing doesn't exactly fit here.
* To end the cycle, Lali Puna removes the vocals and creates an EXCELLENT level-headed experience. It's lacking several of the threads that make the original so precisely textured, but Lani makes plenty of good decisions to weave a great (short) track of electronica that definitely stands up.

This single also includes a track not found anywhere else:
"Your Hill" is very nice. It's a kind track, and very sweet. It reaches back and has some very classic childhood musical references from Dntel, and it melds VERY well with this singles compilation. I'd say it's the best thing on here besides the original "Dream of Evan and Chan".

Overall, if you like Dntel, Ben Gibbard, or any of their many compatriots and collaborators, you'll probably love the track allegedly inspired by a dream Gibbard had involving Chan Marshall (Cat Power) and Evan Dando of The Lemonheads. And if that's the case, you're going to want at least two of the other mixes included here, because as another reviewer noted (and as a general guideline), you should always treat the quality tracks with the respect they are due and avoid over-playing them. And this one certainly deserves respect.

An indispensable companion to the original album. The surprising thing is, it's also a unique CD that stands on its own. 74,281 out of 100,000. Or, uhh, 4 Stars.

Dntel are just begging for crossover status with their single (THIS IS) THE DREAM OF EVAN AND CHAN, and they rightfully deserve it. The vocals of Benjamin Gibbard (the frontman of Death Cab for Cutie) give the right amount of emo cred to the track, but if you need more, Erlend Øye of the Kings of Convenience lends his voice on the Safety Scissors mix. The addition of extra singers is usually a recipe for disaster, but on there and on Barbara Morgenstern's version, the new voices add a nice counterpoint. But the real winner here is the Superpitcher mix, which gives the track a firm dance beat beneath a blissful hum. As in with the best house music, real emotion is extracted from the vocals.