Customer Reviews

The Way Out

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

 

 

When you first heard Kid A, you knew you were listening to something new. Something that nobody else seemed to be doing, but also something that didn't neatly pull or incorporate elements from music you had heard before. When you listen to anything by The Books, you receive a similar experience. Their compositions are not difficult to enjoy, but difficult to imagine conceiving. They stand rather unrivaled in density, complexity, and ability to navigate moods within a niche in which they have little company. On The Way Out, they continue their thoughtful fusion of sampling and original material, maintaining their presence as one of the most imaginative artists around.

Collages can be a rather noncohesive art form. In contrast, it seems as though sampling in music can more easily escape such dangers, as each piece is presented sequentially, allowing each component to be digested individually. In other words the observer isn't blindsided by all the fragments at once since they're introduced and layered one at a time. The dangers that persist are those of disconnection and balance. Can all these parts be assembled in a way that is more than just interesting? Can the listener leave a track feeling something? Although The Books rely heavily on sampling, a distinct voice still glues the pieces together. They are as equally attentive to detail as they are to emotion. There are lines that amuse, such as "I was born with a teacup on my head" on "We Bought the Flood." But there are also tracks that are therapeutic ("All You Need is a Wall") and moments of inspiration ("A Wonderful Phrase By Ghandi"). These moments of transition and sudden buoyancy are what make the album resound.

To someone not intimately familiar with sampling, the precision in production is almost comical. Within 20 seconds of music, there can be anywhere from 3 to 100 elements introduced, yet you're rarely overwhelmed. The Books uncannily weigh and balance the flow and arrangement of variables to make every track sound organic. The frequency of stimulatory changes is similar to that of surfing the internet, making a short attention span no obstacle. However, the aforementioned changes in mood make it an album and not simply a collection of songs. They're also not just composers, but competent musicians. They meld the music, from a drumbeat to a bass line, to the mood of sampled voices in the way individuals score soundtracks to film. The interlocking threads between the samples and original material rarely leave a detectable seam.

I can't write anything more eloquently than the 1st review by Samuel Gentle. :-) But I will say that this is the 1st CD by the Books that I've heard, courtesy a friend of mine. It's fantastically different than anything else I've heard. Easy 5 stars.

Listening to the latest album from The Books is like absorbing a dose of lysergic acid diethylamide, while Ram Dass reads excerpts from a book he never had the time to write. Full of inner depth on the reflection of oneself, and kaleidoscopic hysterical psychedelia, The Way Out is a musical trip through genres, time and space between the microscopic atoms that make up your eyes. Nick Zammuto and Paul De Jong have been producing since their debut, Thought For Food (Tomlab, 2002). After two more albums on Tomlab, a split EP and a collaboration with Prefuse 73, Prefuse 73 reads the Books EP (Warp, 2005), the duo lands a release on none other than Temporary Residence Limited. At times playful, funky, and contemplative, The Books create a collage of found sound, abandoned recordings, and unclassified pieces that retain my listening attention for many consecutive listens. Like an instructional album on becoming awakened in this world of random rules and borrowed ideas, the music by The Books forces the listener to reflect on everything that is absurd around them... and then let one choose his own way out... Can't stop listening to this one. Be sure to also pickup their self released Music for a French Elevator.

I've listened to most of The Book's albums, after stumbling upon them via an iTunes genius recommendation. If you have never heard the Books, you should definitely give them a go if you are interested in a) sampling b) indie acoustic music. The Books are a fresh, eclectic and off the wall outfit that uses obscure found spoken voice samples and recorded sounds, as well as synthesised tones, to deliver both frantic breakdowns of sound and moments of solemn beauty. The group obviously has a fascination with the musicality of world around us, and its really something amazing to listen to.

I can say that while this is not my favourite of their albums (that one being Thought For Food), it is definitely very close to being so. The Way Out sees the Books return to the darker tone that stood out to me from the first album, with the music being both profound and at times subtly critical of the samples they employ - particularly tracks like "I Am Who I Am", which propels a sermon/seminar to a buzzing, hysterical cacophony. My favourite track on the album is the simple and beautiful 'Free Translator', which consists of a delightful vocal sample set to acoustic guitar and the band's own vocals, who whimsically drone cryptic lyrics extracted from running english passages back and forth through free internet machine translators. If every track was as engaging as this one on the album, it would easily be a 5-star.

"The hold-out boy and the weather girl,
know the wind moves in a patient way
Like a two-decade day"

Genius.