Promise of Love

American Analog Set

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 17, 2003)
• Original Release Date: May 20, 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Tiger Style
• ASIN: B00008YJCV
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #92,078 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Promise Of Love showcases the bands ability to pen a rock song, a sad song, a dance song and a slow burner, juxtapose them all and come out with a flawless album. Eight captivating, swirling, enigmatic and heartbreakingly beautiful songs. For fans of Death cab For Cutie, Bedhead and Stereolab. Tiger Style. 2003.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good..., June 24, 2003

By	Simone Oltolina (Morbio Inferiore, TI Switzerland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Year by year AAS become less "drone-pop" and more pop! The process had already begun with their previous effort ("know by heart", also an excellent album) and is brought even further on this release, their latest.
Even if the sound retains AAS' trademark elements (for example the breathy vocals everyone familiar with the band we'll recognize...) the album is more varied, drawing at times from rock and even funk!. Don't get me wrong, there are no rock anthems or funky numbers on the album but elements from both genres seep through several tracks.
On the whole I found this album extremely good, arguably the best in their career.

[...]

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Promise of Love, January 30, 2006

By	Kurt J. Fieser (Naperville, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The American Analog Set's first two albums, The Fun of Watching Fireworks and From Our Living Room To Yours, are full of long and simple, but lovingly hypnotic songs. With The Golden Band and Know By Heart, they shortened the lengths but kept their signature sound and musical sensibilities (quiet is the new loud). To me, Promise of Love is a mixture of these two kinds of albums.
The lengths run from 2:13 (Promise of Love) to 8:02 (Modern Drummer/Continuous Hit Music reprise). The album starts with "Continuous Hit Music," one of their loudest songs. "Hard to Find," with it's rubbery guitar and circuitous drum beat, is the most accessible track on the album and best displays their strengths; repetitious melodies, vibraphone, and whisper vocals. The middle of the album sags because the flow of the album is broken; The slithering "You Own Me," the quick flash "Promise of Love," and the funky drumbeat of "The Hatist." My favorite track, and the album's closer, is "Modern Drummer." The song rides on hi-hat, guitar and keyboard for a bit, then adds vibraphone, a hint of cello, and the vocals. It's a very peaceful ending to a nice, yet uneven album.
If you are an AmAnSet beginner, it's best to start with Know By Heart. If you're already a fan, you'll find something to like on this record.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the best of AAS..., July 31, 2003

By	Grant Regan "GrantR" (Oslo, Norway) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I've been listening to AAS since the release of 'From Our Living Room to Yours'. For me, that remains their finest album, followed closely by 'The Golden Band' - sparse, exquisitely moving 'drone pop' as another reviewer here has called it. The departure towards what I would deem more conventional, accesible pop is not a good thing in my opinion. Yes I'm the part-pooper

Most bands worth their weight in salt become more experimental, avant-garde in their later works - a la the Radiohead model. AAS on the other hand, have become more conventional from what was a unique, rich, restrained and definitive sound. While its still a good album, I'm disappointed. Tracks like Magnificent Seventies, Blue Chaise, and Weather Report herals what might-have-been if AAS had been more confident in their sound...