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22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The indie kids can finally dance, October 24, 2003
Alright, hype machine...you terrible thing.Let's get the "influences" thing over with. Yes, like everyone says, they sound a lot like The Gang of Four, and many of those post-punkers from the late 70s and early 80s. But don't let that get ya down! These boys have a great sound! "Sister Saviour" sounds like a modern version of The Police, with danceable jangly Jamaican guitars and a kicking bass. And the pace and echo guitars resemble "Run" by Pink Floyd. Definitely one of the album's strongest songs. There is of course "House of Jealous Lovers" which either makes or breaks a fan. Some can't get into the repetition and high pitched squeal, but damn me if I'm wrong, the song WILL make you wanna hit the nearest dance floor and shake your ass. Every song reminds me of The Stone Roses, but with a much darker aura and without the psychadelic nonsense. There are even slow ballads to allow you to catch your breath. "Open Up Your Heart" is a good example. The vocals wisp here and there, wavering sharp and flat from emotions. Some may not like that style of shaky vocal chords, but I think it is quite refreshing. This band puts their all into their music, as if you were hearing it live. Not to sound pretentious, but The Rapture isn't for everyone. There is quite a bit of shrilly falsetto that would even make Brian Ferry blush. Many people can't stomach a band like Mars Volta simply for the glass-shattering vocals, so if a voice like Elliott Smith (R.I.P.) is your cup o' tea, then perhaps The Rapture is not your band. However, if you're one of those music freaks that never got asked to dance at the local suaree, then The Rapture is your calling. Guitars echo in and out of consciousness as if in a dream, and the ever-present pulsating rhythm, fronted mainly by the amazing bass licks, makes you wanna get freaky. Finally, to emphasize, don't let similarities to past influences get ya down. Did anyone knock The New York Dolls for copying the swagger of the Stones? Certainly not. Did anyone smirk at the Stones for copying Muddy Waters? Was Lou Reed patronized for sounding like Bob Dylan? I would hope not. The point is, influences are everywhere in modern music. There is a taste of the past in absolutely every band out there, no doubt. The Rapture took their influences, and made a modern go of it, and they succeeded! This album will get you in the groove, and you will certainly dance a dangerous dance.
Cheers.
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18 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
phantasmagoria, October 23, 2003
You can't go wrong with The Rapture. Of the disco-punk movement, they and Radio 4 are at the top of the heap.This has been a highly anticipated album. Little leaks of songs have been released here and there for the last several months. DFA had put out a number of fantastic 12" singles that I have been able to snatch up while I was waiting and the Yes New York compilation contains the glorious new vamped-up version of Olio. Is it any real coincidence that both Blondie and Siouxsie had songs called (The) Rapture? You can hear elements of both that New York disco that Blondie was doing and that spaced out goth that Siouxsie was sculpting back in the day. But, if you can stomach a few more references, what really stands out to me with this album in particular and their two earlier ones is the following scenario: What if Robert Smith stepped up and volunteered his vocals to Joy Division after Ian Curtis ceased to be? Imagine that cusp, where New Order split off and continued with the anxiety Joy Division had but cloaked in a soothing atmosphear of early electronica. I know it's a lot to consider, but I can hear all of that and Robert Smith circa Faith ... All that said, it is unfair for me, just a fan, to heap all of this mystique onto a band like The Rapture. If nothing else, Echoes proves that this band is responsible for it's own dynamics. Now onto the tracks (or, a few of the ones I like best): Olio has grown tremendously since The Rapture's first album. Listen to both and after a while you will gravitate to this one.
The Coming Of Spring has the familiar "get yourself together" that they used on Out Of The Races And Onto The Tracks. The rest of the song is completely different though. House Of Jealous Lovers seems to be their hit, though I can't quite say it is better than, say Olio, or Killing. Great cow-bell though. Killing is the best song on the album and probably one of the best songs ever made. Of the disco-punk movement, I'd say it is the best. If you don't know anything about The Rapture, buy this album just for this song alone. It's that good. Infatuation is haunting, melancholy and will stay with you in your head for the rest of the day. Echoes as an album is built up of contrasts, the band seem to be able to do lots of different musical styles but the most interesting thing about it is it blends together so nicely. You hardly notice when one style changes to another. I buy albums all the time but this one is the best I have picked up in several months.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
after multiple playings, one of my all time faves, March 9, 2005
people that have trashed this album that said they listen to "diverse" music listed off a bunch of radio bands. and people that complain about them ripping off other bands are naming bands that haven't put out an album in 15-20 years. time to move on, my stalwarts, the rapture, unfortunately for you, is progress.
ok, first off: if there's one word i could use to describe the rapture, it would be: difficult.
difficult because it's so in-your-face, and not in a traditional distorted punk-rock sound or any other sound you've been listening to for decades. but there's a lot going on under the surface here- and it takes a few listens to realize it.
sure their lyrics are a little asanine. but i'd be willing to venture that 75% of lyrics are as well. sure, the lead singer's voice is a bit much at first, but if we wanna talk irritating vocalists, let's please move on to michael mcdonald's swallowed vibrato. the fact is that the rapture is going for an edgy, nearly obnoxious sound in the fashion of all the great art-house punk before them, and everything, from the vocalist's voice to the distorted high-pitched twang of the guitar accomplishes this sound amazingly. but the rapture are also not afraid to tread onto new ground by adding super-processed electronic beats and by stretching out to slow, melancholy balads.
it's a lot to take, and you know why?
because you haven't heard it before.
they have a long way to go before being a really memorable and influential band, but after one true full length album, they are already obviously on their way. i own their older stuff, and i can see in this album that they have come a long way, especially in terms of writing really well-written dynamic songs. and they are already a huge part of the dance-punk scene, and if they gain notoriety in any circle, it will be because they've earned it- not because they're so difficult that everyone thinks they're cool enough saying they listen to them.
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by The Rapture 
