Customer Reviews

Xuvetyn

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

First of all I just would like to say that the reason this album is 18 tracks long is because there are about five 30-60 seconds experimental guitar sound clips distributed all over the album, this acts a sort of transition from one track to next, they sound really experimental mostly composed clicks and noises alike.

So, if you're previewing the sound examples and have come across something really bizzare chances are these are one of them.

The songs in this album are all about 5-9 minutes long, and you really have to listen from the start until the end to truely appreciate the proggression. After listening to this album for the first time it is evident that "My Bloody Valentine's Loveless" album was all over it but in just a much more ambient feel.

Standout tracks are Valerian, Xarella Almandyne, Flowered Smother which are all sound like free flowing guitar soundscapes made to sound like a synth along with ambient noises coupled with Milissa Arpin's voice; it really is stunning.

The last 5 tracks in the album will just mesmirize you until the end of the album, my favorite track of all has to be "Ghosts That Swirl" it is an 8 minute epic that starts off sounding like a horrible guitar sound from a bad amp in a thunder storm but ends up sounding like something that "My Bloody Valentine" and "Sigur Ros" made together, a truely remarkable piece that sends you off perfectly to the goodbye sounds of "Mother of Pearl"

All I can say is that give this album a chance you won't regret it.

Recipe for "Xuvetyn": Take the mellower tracks from My Bloody Valentine's "Loveless" and put them in a blender with Cocteau Twins' "Victorialand" (the so-called "ambient album"). Add a handful of psychedelic mushrooms and puree until smooth. Serve chilled.

This really is a nice album; though MBV is an obvious point of reference, "Xuvetyn" doesn't feel derivative. I hear elements of shoegazer, ambient, psychedelia, tasteful goth (yes, there is such a thing!), and space rock, but Lovesliescrushing manage to avoid cliché (despite my tongue-in-cheek recipe).

Billowing clouds of heavenly noise, silken but indecipherable female vocals, wordless songs of love and heartbreak, crescendos that sound like God breaking down into tears...it gets REALLY noisy at times, even more so than "Loveless", but it's a blissful sort of noise. There are no drums, no hooks, no overt "message" - just rich textures and gorgeous melodies. And really, that's all you need.

This stuff is not for everybody. But if you're into texture and atmosphere, lovesliescrushing just might push your button. My taste in music has just gotten more and more exotic as time goes on, so this stuff fits my bill pretty dead-on. Here's where they come from, as I see it: where 'shoegazer' bands such as My Bloody Valentine use fairly traditional rock instrumentation, but with wildly processed and distorted guitar sounds and textures, llc takes just the textures and makes 'songs' out of them. Nothing else in the world sounds like they do. _Xuvetyn_ actually sounds more relaxed and serene to me than the more choppy _bloweyelashwish_, their previous release. There are so many beautiful, gorgeous pieces here, in such a unique and overwhelming brand of beauty. "blooded and blossom-blown", "flowered smother", and "ghosts that swirl" are absolutely breathtaking. I can't get enough of this stuff, and I sure hope there's more where it came fr! om!

Somewhat less aggressive in presentation then it spiritual predecessor (My Bloody Valentine's "Isn't Anything ), "Xuvetyn" presents the listener with a band that uses songs such as "Several Girls Galore", "No More Sorry", "Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside) and "I Can See It, But I Can't Feel It" rather than "SueisFine", "You Never Should", and "Feed Me With Your Kiss" to serve as a touchstone for their own heavily-processed, guitar-driven darkwave compositions, such as "Valerian","Mandragora Louvareen", "Xarella Almandyne", and "Virgin Blue-Eyed". Although many might cite MBV's "Loveless" as its obvious blueprint, guitarist Scott Cortez seems to me to be working more from the inspiration of the songs previously listed from "Isn't Anything". The waves of guitar that wash through "Xuvetyn" are shimmering and atmospheric rather than furious and propulsive, and rely more upon texture than dense, oceanic riffing to drive each soundscape ( a term I prefer to song, as the whole CD sounds to me like some sort of suite). Completing the gestalt is the inclusion of what might be termed "vocals" by the singer Melissa Arpin, but what really put one in mind of glossolalic stylings. The "songs" are all created in drumless space, giving them an overall ambience that extends and refines some of the possibilities hinted at on "Isn't Anything", but with its own unique spin. If I were to start somewhere with lovesliescrushing, "Xuvetyn" would be the place.

Picking up where they left off on their debut album, "Bloweyelashwish", Lovesliescrushing take their unique sound to a new, quite elevated height with "Xuvetyn". The band consists of only two members: Scott Cortez on guitar, and Melissa Arpin on vocals. Scott's guitar sound, however, is unlike any you've heard before. Through heavy processing and lo-fi prodution, his guitars sound more like washes and waves of sound. Melissa's vocals are employed more as an instrument than a narrative device. In fact, her voice is so airy and ethereal that it's virtually impossible to make out any definite words. Despite this potentially insubstantial combination, there is real emotional power at work here. The album opener, "Valerian (her voice honeyed)" sets things in motion, with Scott's fuzzy guitar rising to a gentle, quiet plateau as Melissa's vocals enter the song. This is one of those great opening tracks of an epic album, sounding like dawn breaking on a winter's morning. The next track, "Aquan 1", is a very short, almost experimental, piece. There are several tracks like this sprinkled throughout the album, and they tend to act more as segues, rather than as songs proper. "Blooded and Blossom-Blown" is, perhaps, the track that is the most representative of the band than any other on the album. Melissa's vocals and Scott's guitar blend beautifully here, and the passion brought across to the listener is strong. A couple of tracks later, on "Virgin Blue-Eyed", percussion appears in the form of a drum machine. Rather than anchoring the song, or driving it forward, however, the percussion sounds more like bells made of ice, adding another interesting layer of texture to the mix. The climax of the album emerges a few tracks later, and what an impressive crescendo it is! A huge wave of guitar breaks over you, cleansing and healing your very soul. The epic momentum of this wave carries the album to its conclusion. "Mother Of Pearl" is an immaculate closing track, leaving you yearning for more. I honestly cannot say enough good things about "Xuvetyn". The pieces on this record are more like sound paintings than anything else. The music is vivid and colorful, matching the booklet artwork wonderfully. Between the song titles and the gorgeous, epic quality of the music, you are free to come up with your own story for "Xuvetyn". The genuine greatness of this work can only be appreciated through multiple listens and an open mind. The rewards are bountiful.

This is an excellent CD. It picks up where the last album by another band, My Bloody Valentine (MBV), left off. I hope that Kevin Shields will eventually deliver on his promise of coming out with a new MBV album, but am not sure if it will ever happen. All the members have left the band but him. If he needs a backup band, this would be the band to hire. Another consideration would be the band called Flying Saucer Attack. Anyway, lots of beautiful Ambient Noise Rock here. This album is hard to find because of it being on a small label, but it is great nonetheless, and worth the search and cost of it easily.

lovesliescrushing....beauty, emotion, artistic experimentalism, boldness. Xuvetyn is in my opinion, one of the best and most inspiring collections of music ever released! Far beyond shoegaze and any other pointless classification, this music stands alone. Thank you Scott and Melissa for these beautiful sonic blessings!!!! a.s.

I can only echo the glowing reviews already posted here -- this is enveloping music, sounding like a swirling snow storm of electricity & seductive stellar whispers & silken siren voices, as if the listener were suspended in the depths of the sea & the Arctic skies at the same moment. It's experimental & uncompromising without being the least bit off-putting, even though it won't be for every taste. It permeates your very cells with trembling & intense beauty, utterly transporting. And if you like this, you'll want more, because the band only gets better with each new release. Highly recommended for those who aren't satisfied with the ordinary!

This is like the soundtrack to a really strange and beautiful movie. Great background music if you want something different. Personally I can't find any really stand-out tracks, but I like it a lot as a whole.

I disagree with the review below only in that Xuvetyn is "less choppy" than Bloweyelashwish. I guess that makes sense in a way, but my primary qualm with Xuvetyn is it's irritatingly abrasive progression as an album. Xuvetyn, like Bloweyelashwish, has many short tracks interspersed with longer ones, but where as it worked nicely on the first album, here it's just sort of jarring, and additionally some of the shorter tracks strike me as very similar. BUT, other than that, this is still a wonderful album, surreal, noisy-pretty, dreamlike, and all the things that Bloweyelashwish was. For the aforementioned reasons I think I like Bloweyelashwish a little bit better, but both albums are very nice.