-
Rare
- ›
-
Customer reviews
- Rare
- ›
- Customer reviews
Top positive review
The hidden treasures of Asia
November 10, 2009
It's amusing to see some people complain that Rare "Isn't the real Asia." This truly shows where their ignorance lay. If they truly paid any attention to Asia's debut album, there was a song called "Cutting It Fine", which ended with a 2-minute symphonic/electronic outro played by Downes. So, as you can see, Rare is simply an evolution and extension to the existing Asia framework that was always there since the beginning. Post-1991 Asia was all about being progressive (you know, like prog-rock used to be) and experimental, trying new styles and techniques within the ever-present Asia trademarks of melody, harmony, and symphonic flourishes.
Recorded around 1995-97, this is a hidden side to Asia that not many fans are aware of. Judging from the track names and sounds, only the last two were recorded for the aborted Playstation game (does anyone know what game it was to be for?) "The Game" and "The Exodus" have an almost techno/indusrial flavor to them, with heavy distorted beats and screeching guitars. They wouldn't sound out of place next to a song by Nine Inch Nails.
The rest are softer pieces from the salmon nature documentary (does anyone know where a DVD or VHS is available?), and run the gamut from symphonic and ambient, to soothing and humourous. There's some truly gorgeous work in here, with a lot of keyboard, piano, and smooth wordless vocals from Payne. Occasionally an electric or acoustic guitar will flesh things out and keep things moving. Favorite tracks include the "Journey" pieces, "The Ghosts", "The Indians", and "The Angels." In some ways, the closest-sounding albums I can think of would be Downes' The Light Program (1986), The World Service (2000), or Shadows & Reflections (2003). Oh, and Rare makes a wonderful soundtrack for a road trip or going on a crosstown bike trek.
The ambient and MIDI keyboard patches of Geoff Downes have always been my favorite aspect to the Asia sound, and is a large part of what drew me in as a latecomer fan in 1998-99. Whenever I heard any of their music, it always subconciously reminded me of nostalgic, romantic memories of growing up in the 80's and 90's, playing videogames with my friends, not to mention all of the flowery "lost love" lyrics. Melodrama at its best.
Listen to the samples before you purchase. Rare is not for everybody. You have to have an appreciation for ambient/electronic music, an open mind towards the Asia name, and a willingness to put your trust in something good and beautiful. Don't listen to the bitter reviews by pseudo-fans with no girlfriends who are stuck in 1983. You can't trust anybody with a balding mullet.
Recorded around 1995-97, this is a hidden side to Asia that not many fans are aware of. Judging from the track names and sounds, only the last two were recorded for the aborted Playstation game (does anyone know what game it was to be for?) "The Game" and "The Exodus" have an almost techno/indusrial flavor to them, with heavy distorted beats and screeching guitars. They wouldn't sound out of place next to a song by Nine Inch Nails.
The rest are softer pieces from the salmon nature documentary (does anyone know where a DVD or VHS is available?), and run the gamut from symphonic and ambient, to soothing and humourous. There's some truly gorgeous work in here, with a lot of keyboard, piano, and smooth wordless vocals from Payne. Occasionally an electric or acoustic guitar will flesh things out and keep things moving. Favorite tracks include the "Journey" pieces, "The Ghosts", "The Indians", and "The Angels." In some ways, the closest-sounding albums I can think of would be Downes' The Light Program (1986), The World Service (2000), or Shadows & Reflections (2003). Oh, and Rare makes a wonderful soundtrack for a road trip or going on a crosstown bike trek.
The ambient and MIDI keyboard patches of Geoff Downes have always been my favorite aspect to the Asia sound, and is a large part of what drew me in as a latecomer fan in 1998-99. Whenever I heard any of their music, it always subconciously reminded me of nostalgic, romantic memories of growing up in the 80's and 90's, playing videogames with my friends, not to mention all of the flowery "lost love" lyrics. Melodrama at its best.
Listen to the samples before you purchase. Rare is not for everybody. You have to have an appreciation for ambient/electronic music, an open mind towards the Asia name, and a willingness to put your trust in something good and beautiful. Don't listen to the bitter reviews by pseudo-fans with no girlfriends who are stuck in 1983. You can't trust anybody with a balding mullet.
5 people found this helpful
Top critical review
Pure drivel
August 21, 2000
To call this tripe "Asia" is to offend anyone whoever cared about the band that once spawned such hits as "Heat of the Moment," "Only Time Will Tell" and "Don't Cry". It's a shame that the latest incarnation of the band feels it necessary to issue any sound their instruments emit in the hopes of plucking cash from a truly gullible fan base. This notion that newcomer John Payne is an improvement to the band is beyond silly - it ignores the fact that while John Wetton & Co. put out great rock music that sold albums and puts fans in arena seats, Payne's works have generally under-whelmed the musical public. Some consider post 1992-Asia's musical meanderings evidence of the band's "evolution." Personally, I consider it evidence that this band has no clue where it is headed. My advice - avoid works such as this which exist solely to capitalize on fans who will buy anything. Get yourself a few of Steve Howe's or John Wetton's solo albums - "Homebrew 2" or "Arkangel" are a vast improvement over dreck such as "Rare."
4 people found this helpful
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Showing 1-8 of 9 reviews
November 10, 2009
It's amusing to see some people complain that Rare "Isn't the real Asia." This truly shows where their ignorance lay. If they truly paid any attention to Asia's debut album, there was a song called "Cutting It Fine", which ended with a 2-minute symphonic/electronic outro played by Downes. So, as you can see, Rare is simply an evolution and extension to the existing Asia framework that was always there since the beginning. Post-1991 Asia was all about being progressive (you know, like prog-rock used to be) and experimental, trying new styles and techniques within the ever-present Asia trademarks of melody, harmony, and symphonic flourishes.
Recorded around 1995-97, this is a hidden side to Asia that not many fans are aware of. Judging from the track names and sounds, only the last two were recorded for the aborted Playstation game (does anyone know what game it was to be for?) "The Game" and "The Exodus" have an almost techno/indusrial flavor to them, with heavy distorted beats and screeching guitars. They wouldn't sound out of place next to a song by Nine Inch Nails.
The rest are softer pieces from the salmon nature documentary (does anyone know where a DVD or VHS is available?), and run the gamut from symphonic and ambient, to soothing and humourous. There's some truly gorgeous work in here, with a lot of keyboard, piano, and smooth wordless vocals from Payne. Occasionally an electric or acoustic guitar will flesh things out and keep things moving. Favorite tracks include the "Journey" pieces, "The Ghosts", "The Indians", and "The Angels." In some ways, the closest-sounding albums I can think of would be Downes' The Light Program (1986), The World Service (2000), or Shadows & Reflections (2003). Oh, and Rare makes a wonderful soundtrack for a road trip or going on a crosstown bike trek.
The ambient and MIDI keyboard patches of Geoff Downes have always been my favorite aspect to the Asia sound, and is a large part of what drew me in as a latecomer fan in 1998-99. Whenever I heard any of their music, it always subconciously reminded me of nostalgic, romantic memories of growing up in the 80's and 90's, playing videogames with my friends, not to mention all of the flowery "lost love" lyrics. Melodrama at its best.
Listen to the samples before you purchase. Rare is not for everybody. You have to have an appreciation for ambient/electronic music, an open mind towards the Asia name, and a willingness to put your trust in something good and beautiful. Don't listen to the bitter reviews by pseudo-fans with no girlfriends who are stuck in 1983. You can't trust anybody with a balding mullet.
Recorded around 1995-97, this is a hidden side to Asia that not many fans are aware of. Judging from the track names and sounds, only the last two were recorded for the aborted Playstation game (does anyone know what game it was to be for?) "The Game" and "The Exodus" have an almost techno/indusrial flavor to them, with heavy distorted beats and screeching guitars. They wouldn't sound out of place next to a song by Nine Inch Nails.
The rest are softer pieces from the salmon nature documentary (does anyone know where a DVD or VHS is available?), and run the gamut from symphonic and ambient, to soothing and humourous. There's some truly gorgeous work in here, with a lot of keyboard, piano, and smooth wordless vocals from Payne. Occasionally an electric or acoustic guitar will flesh things out and keep things moving. Favorite tracks include the "Journey" pieces, "The Ghosts", "The Indians", and "The Angels." In some ways, the closest-sounding albums I can think of would be Downes' The Light Program (1986), The World Service (2000), or Shadows & Reflections (2003). Oh, and Rare makes a wonderful soundtrack for a road trip or going on a crosstown bike trek.
The ambient and MIDI keyboard patches of Geoff Downes have always been my favorite aspect to the Asia sound, and is a large part of what drew me in as a latecomer fan in 1998-99. Whenever I heard any of their music, it always subconciously reminded me of nostalgic, romantic memories of growing up in the 80's and 90's, playing videogames with my friends, not to mention all of the flowery "lost love" lyrics. Melodrama at its best.
Listen to the samples before you purchase. Rare is not for everybody. You have to have an appreciation for ambient/electronic music, an open mind towards the Asia name, and a willingness to put your trust in something good and beautiful. Don't listen to the bitter reviews by pseudo-fans with no girlfriends who are stuck in 1983. You can't trust anybody with a balding mullet.
August 22, 2001
I didn't really know what to expect when I bought this album, but it blew me away when I first heard it. Some say that this album shouldn't be marketed under the name Asia since it is all instrumental mood music. I don't know why - Instumental mood music has been a staple of Asia since Aqua in 1992. The tracks run the gamut, from the soft, relaxing background music of "The Whales", to the pulse-pounding rhythms of "The Game" to the fast-paced "theme" music of the closing track. Definitely different for Asia, but also definitely worth it. This is a feast for those who love good keyboard work. I hope that Asia continues to make this type of music, and perhaps another similar release in the future. It's a shame that Asia is no longer filling up stadiums, like they did in 1982 and 1983. Their musical ability is just as strong as it was then, even if their sound has changed somewhat.
August 21, 2000
To call this tripe "Asia" is to offend anyone whoever cared about the band that once spawned such hits as "Heat of the Moment," "Only Time Will Tell" and "Don't Cry". It's a shame that the latest incarnation of the band feels it necessary to issue any sound their instruments emit in the hopes of plucking cash from a truly gullible fan base. This notion that newcomer John Payne is an improvement to the band is beyond silly - it ignores the fact that while John Wetton & Co. put out great rock music that sold albums and puts fans in arena seats, Payne's works have generally under-whelmed the musical public. Some consider post 1992-Asia's musical meanderings evidence of the band's "evolution." Personally, I consider it evidence that this band has no clue where it is headed. My advice - avoid works such as this which exist solely to capitalize on fans who will buy anything. Get yourself a few of Steve Howe's or John Wetton's solo albums - "Homebrew 2" or "Arkangel" are a vast improvement over dreck such as "Rare."
October 28, 2000
If you enjoy newage-style instrumental music in general (eg. Tangerine Dream, Vangelis) and have an appreciation for the higher artistic element of early Asia & ELP art rock...I'm betting that you will like "Rare". This album contains no lyrics and is almost purely instrumental, with one track flowing into the next as you journey through its generous 22 tracks inside of 50 minutes. This is definitely Asia for the new millennium....spiritual, beautiful, hypnotic, aesthetically engaging, and very well done.
December 25, 2000
Asia is a band that has had a long and tumultuous history. Many great musicians have passed through Asia since 1982, and all have left their mark. Not just Steve Howe, Carl Palmer and John Wetton, but Al Pitrelli, Mandy Meyers, Elliott Randall, Michael Sturgis, Aziz Ibrahim and Pat Thrall to name a few. The band has never stopped evolving and the music they leave behind is never short of amazing. Since 1991 Asia has been led by Geoff Downes and John Payne, and it is this modern era which has proven the most creative if not the most commercially successful. I fear that QUALITY does NOT equal sales, a sad fact but true nonetheless. As for this cd called <Rare>, it is without a doubt Asia's most hauntingly beautiful album to date. It leaves behind the progressive-rock leanings of the band in favour of highly ambient instrumental tracks that strongly feature Geoff's marvelous keyboard talents. John is here as well, but it is mainly Geoff's show, and while <Rare> is totally unlike anything that Asia has ever released before, it is real, true Asia. And that is saying enough. Don't make the mistake of believing the bad reviews!
December 14, 2000
Thank God someone else realizes that this is NOT Asia. The real band, the band that made some truly fantastic songs, broke up for good after a brief early 90's reunion. They made Three albums; a self-titled debut, Alpha and Astra. If you want to hear good music, buy one of those. All that asia is now is Downes and a bunch of rejects trying to score money off of the Asia name. If the band doesn't have Wetton, Palmer and Howe, or at least two of those three; don't call it Asia.
June 1, 2000
This is a great CD. When you are down or need to just reflect on the day this is the CD. Track 21 I feel is an attempt to try and gain a dance club genre. If you are going to buy a CD buy this one.
August 8, 2012
I would love to hear this but can't afford to pay eighty dollars !! Good Heavens thats high
sad because now I have to find a contact to make a dub for me, I won't pay a kings ransom for it either.
sad because now I have to find a contact to make a dub for me, I won't pay a kings ransom for it either.