Throwing Back the Apple [Single, Import]

Pale Saints | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 11, 1992)
• Original Release Date: 1992
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Single, Import
• Label: Bo
• ASIN: B00002DD5S
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #656,146 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Throwing Back the Apple

2. Blue Flower

3. Half Life, Remembered

4. Reflections from a Watery World

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The last great e.p., August 10, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Throwing Back the Apple (Audio CD)

This album is actually considered an e.p. if there is such a thing nowadays. The only reason to buy this c.d. is for the version of half-life remembered, it is a lot different than the album version. If they released that as a single they would have made a million bucks, but that's the beauty of "shoegaze" bands such as these. The Mazzy Star cover is pretty cool too.

4.0 out of 5 stars Pale Saints' three interim EPs should not be overlooked by fans, November 29, 2011

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Throwing Back the Apple (Audio CD)

Leading up to the 1992 release of their second album IN RIBBONS, Pale Saints released three EPs that should not be overlooked by fans, as they contain pleasures ranking with the best of the band's career. These EPs brought on Meriel Barham as second guitarist, and ushered in a brighter, less idiosyncratic sound. 1992's THROWING BACK THE APPLE was the last of these (Half-Life and Flesh Balloon were the other two).

"Throwing Back the Apple" appeared on the album as the opener. It's a bold, driving tune that highlights the talents of each of the band members, and Meriel Barham backs Ian Masters' vocals for the first time. "Half-Life Remembered" appears in a mix different from the HALF-LIFE EP, with a long ambient introduction and the lyrics in slightly different order. Listening to these two tracks, I'm especially impressed by Chris Cooper's drumming, which had a distinctive touch and a range missing from other bands in the shoegazing scene.

"Blue Flower", sung by Meriel Barham, is a cover of a Henry Cow tune but probably learned from Mazzy Star's take. The lyrics aren't in keeping with most of Pale Saints' work, but it's easier to look past them and be enraptured only by Barham's voice, which has a smooth, curiously abstract quality to it. "Reflections from a Watery World" is an instrumental lasting two and a half minutes, probably a solo track by Ian Masters in its references to classical music. It typifies the b-side as a throwaway.

For well over a decade I've viewed the Pale Saints albums THE COMFORTS OF MADNESS and IN RIBBONS as classic shoegazing efforts and have recommended them to all in sundry. If you've fallen in love with the band's sound, seek out the three EPs released between those two albums. Plus, if you've followed the design work of Vaughan Oliver and v23 for the 4AD record label, the Pale Saints releases feature some of that studio's best work.

4.0 out of 5 stars good, with a hidden gem., December 31, 2008

By 

Roger FitzAlan "Aranarth" (Ithaca, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Throwing Back the Apple (Audio CD)

It's tough to review old EPs. Do we judge them purely on their recorded merit, or do we have to see them through a certain kind of lens? I'm referring to the fact that it's now years later, and people reading this review are probably looking to complete a Pale Saints collection, rather than make an impulse buy based on a radio single. In that case, maybe "Throwing back the Apple" has to justify itself more on the strength of its supporting material than its eponymous single. I'll leave that up to the reader.
The song is certainly a good one, although if you've purchased the excellent "In Ribbons" album, you hardly need to buy this to hear it. It features one of the signature elements of the Pale Saints sound: a driving, hard rhythm guitar riff trading off with or coming up against pretty, dreamy lead guitar lines, with an idiosyncratic but catchy beat from drummer Chris Cooper. Bassist/vocalist/songwriter Ian Masters has the voice of a choral tenor. It's clean, oddly androgynous, and almost angelic. Guitarist Meriel Barham contributes ethereal, atmospheric backing vocals on the title track and the B-side "Half Life Remembered."
"Half Life Remembered' is the strongest of the bunch on this EP, and exactly the kind of track the music fan looks for in a purchase like this one. It's a redone version of an older song, and an improvement in every respect. The original had a great foundation, but suffered from poor production and strange arrangement. Their producer for "In Ribbons," Hugh Jones, makes all the difference in putting the right polish on "HLR," elevating it to excellence. An imaginative bassline combines with the aforementioned guitars, while Masters makes an odd contrast between the qualities of his voice and his disturbing lyrical theme of drug addiction. It's an enchanting song and tough to get out of your head once it gets in.
While I'm a fan of Barham's almost detached vocal delivery and her ability to create different moods, her solo effort on the second track, a wistful ballad cover, doesn't seep in like you'd hope. The instrumental closer, "Reflections From a Watery World," is nothing special. For whatever reason, Pale Saints seem to lose their way when they try instrumental tracks. It's not that their efforts at these kinds of pieces are bad; they are just rarely memorable. In this case they do absolutely nothing to justify the relative expense of an EP.
I highly recommend the album "In Ribbons," in any case, and can add that as a fan of that album I am still happy with my acquisition of this cd, despite the fact that I already have the title track.