Customer Reviews

Yesterday Was Dramatic Today Is OK

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

There is a lot of music out there that is really good. Unfortunately, it is surrounded by all sorts of filler. Like anyone that heads out in to the hills with a tin pan and a dream, I have spent a ridiculous amount of time searching for musical gold. This is one album that qualifies. It is the type of album that I will put on when I am in the mood for chilling out with a nice glass of scotch and a book. It is mostly instrumental, and takes a couple listens to get the feel for the flittering beauty it lays out. A lot of people have compared this band to Sigur Ros but, other than being from Iceland, it is not a fair comparison. Having said that, if you are the type of person that likes Sigur Ros, you will probably like this album (don't expect it to sound like them, though).

I think the first thing that needs addressed in regards to Mum is that their constant association with Sigur Ros is a bit misleading. This group is often mentioned to fans of Sigur Ros as another band that they might like. But in all honesty, the only two things that these groups share is that they are both from Iceland and neither band is a mainstream "soundalike" of any other band.

Sigur Ros's sound is very warm (due to the heavy use of string instruments) and is very much characterized by it's vocalist. Jonsi is a very emotional and unique singer.

Mum, on the other hand, are an almost entirely instrumental techno group. Although they do play some of the most emotional electronic music that I have heard (no repetitive dance beats here), the digital nature of the sounds used to create the music gives it a distinctly cold feel and helps it to come across as less heartfelt and less emotionally powerful.

In short, this is a good cd. There is room for improvement but on the whole it is a very worthwhile album. Just don't expect Sigur Ros when you buy it. The two groups really don't have much in common.

Mum is more like a cross between the British techno group Hybrid and electronic new age relaxation music like ForrestFang. And they somehow manage to bring together the best elements of those styles.

From where i come from in Iceland people have been talking about how great ta band called Múm is for a very very long time. I never paid that much atention to it bescuase i had never heard anything from the band, all I knew was that hey had been a warmup band for the great band mogwai. Then when i heard that múm was going to play in my school I just HAD to see them, this great band that everybody had been talking about, the band that impressed mogwai so much that they wanted them to warm up for them, the band that are friends with Belle & Sebastian and with the twin systers that are on the cover of Belle & Sbeastian's "Fold your hands Child, You walk like a pesant" album. Then the day came, and the concert began. And I was moved by this very beautifull, touching music. There music is unbelivable. It's like nothing i've ever heard before. It's one of the greatest things I've ever heard and will ever hear. Right nerxt day after the concert i went out and bought the cd. And it was even better then the concert. Although seeing them play is the most beaustifull thing you can see, I almonst felt like crying becaude there music was so good. The tonly thing that I could think was "Oh my god! they are not humans they are gods". And every time i listen to this CD , wich is about 2 or 3 times every day or more often i experience it in a new way. This CD is the best CD i've ver bought. Not even Sigur Rós's Ágætis byrjun, Mogwai's Younge Team or Godspeed you black emperor!'s Slow Riot For New Zero Kanada EP are as good as this. So i give this CD 5 stars, although i want to give it 10 stars out af 5 because how good it is. Two thumbs up for Múm. I,m alldready excited about a new cd from them.

Review by: R_Garcia, Igloo Magazine (www.igloomag.com)
(10.09.05) I will begin this review with a paraphrase from the included one-sheet: "This album was recorded very shortly after me and Gunni met Kristin and Gyda and became a four people band... It was originally released on an Icelandic label called Thule but early on a number of disputes came up which ended up dragging on for many years... We have the rights for the record back now and are really happy to be re-releasing it on our friends label where it seems to fit in like home."

If not for that disclaimer, one might take this re-release as new compositions from Múm (which I accidentally did when I tossed the CD in my car's player without reading a word.) If this indeed was to be a new release for Múm, it would most certainly be a step back. The sound quality is not exactly on par with what a Múm fan might be used to, and the major-scale over clicky-click beats thing has been beaten to death by a zillion aspiring laptop rockers in countless indie and net-releases for the last five years.

But... this release was recorded in 1999, which if memory serves, was around the time that the clicky movement was first being born (that would place Múm at the vanguard, where they belong.) This disc also provides a candid look into the Múm toolbox; the clean, patient sounds, ethereal keyboards, live instrumentation and pulsing rhythms are all there in infancy, offering up a missing link in the evolutionary story of Múm.

Highlights are "Asleep on a train" which features a hypnotic drum loop, melodica, and bells weaving in and out of a sinewave bass and water-drop melody; "The Ballad of a Broken Birdie Records" which highlights a wispy female vocal over lethargically crunchy clicks and synths; and "Sunday Night Just Keeps on Rolling" which forces the user to wait in anxiety for six of eight minutes before delivering an ejaculatory, up-tempo, bit-degraded drum rush.

All in all, this disc will find its way into my car collection and will most definitely get spins alongside other Mum discs like Summer make good and Finally we are no one. It will also serve as a stopgap until the next collection of new Múm tunes is born.

while in iceland in 2000, some friends introduced me to this band, and prefaced the introduction by saying that Mum had been greatly inspired by the american composer Raymond Scott, who had embarked upon an attempt to make electronic music for babies and young children. from what i understand, Mum built their debut album around Raymond Scott's Soothing Sounds for Baby.

I was greatly charmed by the album's playful yet reclusive presence. Yes, it is like Sigur Ros - though much more introspective on one hand, and not as ambitious on the other. It is childlike music - curious and at times impatient. Later on, I told my young niece and nephews that this music was created by trolls - which seemed to fit perfectly into their imagination.

Unlike another reviewer, I feel like Mum's music might just be life changing.

I heard them for the first time by accident on an excellent radio program called "Spinning on Air" with David Garland on WNYC in New York. Contrary to WNYC's typical weeknight classical music schedule, they will play some groundbreaking and original music on Friday nights. One such friday night last summer, they played and interviewed one of the most wonderful bands I've ever heard, Mum.

I have been fascinated every since.

Both of their albumns are absolutely magnetic. They will gently lull and sometimes assertively lull you into a musical fantasy land where everything is beautiful and just a little bit off center.

Even the frightening and lonely music is at the same time comforting and lovely.

Mum's music is at the same time incredibly new and incredibly familiar.

I feel as though they are true artists hitting upon a greater truth with their work.

Somewhat (and underdine the somewhat) related to the following:

Brian Eno: Music For Films
Boards of Canada: Music has the right to bear children
Sigur Ros: ()

In a way I hope you don't check them out because I like thinking that I'm one of a few people to know and appreciate them... but that just isn't fair.... to you or Mum.

If anyone out there reading this knows of any other music that could be conisdered similar to Mum, please post it!

my love of electronic music is endless, and though my collection seems the same, i always felt like there was always one album missing.

i first discovered múm with 'finally we are no one', which was a very accessible album that showcases all the unique elements of múm's style: electronic, traditional, and vocals. next was 'summer make good', which in my opinion had a much darker feel to it and moved into a more traditional and less electronic style with more vocals, although still equally as good. finally i obtained a copy of 'yesterday was dramatic today is ok', and i finally felt that the missing piece in my collection had been found.

'yesterday...' is on the other end of the spectrum from 'summer make good', in that it is much more electronic driven while still retaining the qualities that make múm so distinct. the whole album creates a beautifully psychedelic, dreamy recreation of the space between dreams and waking consciousness. as other critics of múm have stated, their music is very reminiscent of (fleeting) memories of childhood, and this album is especially moreso than the others. each song stirs up mental imagery so vivid that it's rivaled only by aphex twin's 'selected ambient works vol. 2'. the standout tracks are 'smell memory' and 'asleep on a train', which absolutely take you to another place entirely.

if you have the opportunity to get a copy of this album, don't hesitate. it is a must have for any electronic fan... even worth the pricey import cost. this album delves into areas of your mind that you didn't know existed. highly recommended.

Dear All,

I often use these the reviews here...to make choices on my CD purchases. So I write this review so I can influence you. When I wrote this review, the average score was - SHOCK and HORROR, 3 stars.

I must say, I am an appalling CD reviewer but I do have my own electronica show on a local radio station and a compostion degree - I know a little about music. And this CD is fabulous. It has an immediacy that makes you feel at ease from the first listen even though its unlike anything I've heard. Perhaps that is how "Mr. OneStar" got confused.

Take Track 6 (my favourite) is a most beautiful work of art, with so many ideas and subtle mood changes. A piece that takes us on a 'journey' from start to end, yet it is always self referential. The track is also spiced with live instruments and rates in my exclusive great electronica tunes.

Download that, and see what you think. If you dont like it, then you won't like the album or similar artists Plaid and Mouse on Mars. If you do - write a review because its got to better than mine!!!

Love Cheesy

As a fan of all types of electronic music, I first came across Mum when I purchased "We Are Glitter" (an album of remixes) by Goldfrapp. Two of it's tracks; "You Never Know" and "Number 1" were remixed by Mum and were given a totally new sound which I loved (Especially "Number 1" - fans of Mum or Goldfrapp must check this remix out!) So, I googled Mum and found that they had already released four albums and a number of EPs. I Went to HMV the next day and purchased "Yesterday Was Dramatic - Today Is Ok".

I didn't really get into it initially. Not that I'm saying I didn't like it because I did. I just found it a bit hard to listen to as it is very minimal and "light" and there isn't any conventional structure to these songs. I did listen to this album regularly as background music and found it quite relaxing and stimulating at the same time.

A month has passed and I'm now so in love with this album. I was alone at work today (it's a Saturday) and therefore could play what I wanted to hear. I listened to this entire album on repeat ALL day and really got the chance to listen to it properly in it's entirety. It really is a beautiful, charismatic, and atmospheric album. it really does make me feel alive and positive. It puts me in a very good mood.

If you enjoy, calm, tranquil, relaxing music and/or electronic music this is definitely recommended. It's hard to define this music. I guess it's got a "modern folk" sound that is mainly made of electronics. Very small, "insecty", gentle beats with some traditional instruments added for some tracks. Don't expect someting you can dance to (unless you're a bit of a hippy and plan to dance around the fire with your friends or something, he he, that actually sounds like fun) or play to your friends at a party (most people will not appreciate this music - unless they're deep thinkers or open minded, "arty" people). If you liked the instrumentation on Bjork's "Vespertine" you should love this album as much as I do.

If you do get this album and are initially dissappointed, just keep listening to it and try to really LISTEN. Light candles, burn some incense, put headphones on and listen to this with your eyes closed is what I'd suggest. And try listening to it when youre in a calm mood too.

I've just ordered Mum's second album "Finally We Are No One" and I can't wait to hear what it sounds like!

Hope my review helped (",)

It's rare that a musician creates a masterpiece that manages to weave originality, beauty and emotion into such a fine tapestry. But that's exatly what Mum has done with this, easily their best album to date.

It's the atmospherics that make this album. Lyrics only comprise a small (but stirring) portion of one song, but they really aren't missed. The atmospherics are so masterfully done that they wrap you within a spell: the almost giddy motif immediately calls to mind the fuzzy, positive memories of childhood: listening to it for the first time is like experiencing the joys of childhood again, with the excitement of a child.

Light-hearted, beautiful, seamless, this album is a must-have; trust me. And here's a little hint: if you buy it directly from amazon.co.uk and have it shipped, you can save yourself money and time. (Or at least that was the case before the dollar collapsed.)