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Avg: 4.0 (47 ratings)
- Date Released: July 26, 2005
- Genre: Alternative/Punk
- Style: Alternative
- Label: KOCH Records
The most fully realized transformation of a rock frontman into a cosmic bard since Van Morrison got starry-eyed on Astral Weeks.
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We Say...
Some consider new age to be heresy. In which case, former Stone Roses singer Ian Brown may well qualify as the most compellingly, even shockingly, heretical artist of the day. See, heretics break rules and shatter cultural norms. As such, they can be demons — or they can be prophets. Now, you may ask yourself, why is the new age guy at eMusic writing about some elfin English rocker dude from the '80s? Good question. But Brown’s 2004 release, Music of the Spheres, could be the most fully realized transformation of a rock frontman into a cosmic bard since Van Morrison got starry-eyed on Astral Weeks. Locking into a decidedly celestial vibe on Music of the Spheres, Brown destroys forms and creates new ones — a new age principle in action.
Taking a page out of Paracelsus’ cookbook, Brown alchemizes right away with "F.E.A.R.," transmuting the word into an acronymic state packed with powerful and empowering memes. Over a bed of synths/strings a la the Verve's “Bittersweet Symphony” and a coolly shuffling breakbeat, Brown chants, "Fantastic expectations and revolutions/ for everyman and religion/ Forget everything and remember/ Forgive everybody and remember/ for everything a reason/ free expression as revolution." You get the picture. Brown is re-defining F.E.A.R, turning it inside out; re-contextualizing it into an affirmation through the expression of his art. This is new age 101, but he does it in such a way that he crafts something beyond both rock and new age, an orchestral fusion of beats and a bold redemption of the state of limitation. -
They Say...
Before Music of the Spheres was released, Ian Brown touted it as a return for him to the peak form of his former band, the Stone Roses. As things go in the U.K., many members of the British music press jumped on the comments and appropriated Brown's views as their own. Realistically, Music of the Spheres is a strong, mature album, befitted with lush, exhilarating production that easily fits alongside Unfinished Monkey Business and Golden Greats, but it doesn't introduce anything revolutionary or match the excellence of The Stone Roses. The only thing that seems new for Brown on Music of the Spheres is that a number of the songs sound like minimalist tone poem explorations and that he sings in Spanish on "El Mundo Pequeño." One example of the minimalism is "Hear No See No," where Brown accompanies spare electronic notes with whispers of the title lyrics. But the album is at its strongest when he reaches for the inspired hooks and choruses that are his bread and butter. "F.E.A.R." is particularly compelling, with its lush string sounds and Brown's insanely catchy repetition of the letters that make up the song's title. "Stardust" and "Shadow of a Saint" are the album's other standouts, where Brown concocts frazzled poetry like, "I'm made from stardust/The same DNA as stardust," and intones about the "wings of an angel." Less bombastic than Golden Greats and more focused than Unfinished Monkey Business, Music of the Spheres is brimming with charm and accomplished, polished songcraft. There's no reason for Brown to abandon this style of music, and there's also no reason that he should feel the need to match the glories of The Stone Roses. Ian Brown's solo discography includes nothing but vibrant, organic albums. Each is worth exploring nearly as much as those of his former band. Considering the undeniable genius of the Stone Roses, that's extremely high praise. [The 2005 Deluxe Edition includes an additional disc of remixes and bonus material on CD-R.]
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| 01. |  |
F.E.A.R. |
4:30 |
|
| 02. | |
Stardust |
4:30 |
|
| 03. | |
The Gravy Train |
4:24 |
|
| 04. | |
Bubbles |
4:34 |
|
| 05. | |
Hear No See No |
3:29 |
|
| 06. | |
Northern Lights |
4:14 |
|
| 07. | |
Whispers |
3:56 |
|
| 08. | |
El Mundo Pequeno |
4:01 |
|
| 09. | |
Forever And A Day |
2:45 |
|
| 10. | |
Shadow Of A Saint |
4:45 |
|
10 Total Tracks, 41:08 Total Length
eMusic Tip
Paid downloads are counted towards an album discount but free downloads are not.
COMPLETE FOR FREE!
You can download the rest of the tracks from this album for free! Just click the Complete Album button.
We’re sorry this album can only be downloaded using paid subscription download credits.
We recommend you Save it for Later by clicking the Save for Later button shown just above this message. For a list of related albums you can download right now, check out these recommendations.
We'll give you 22 additional free credits to download this album and start your paid subscription.
Get 22 bonus credits on us if you download this album. Sweet!
| 01. | |
F.E.A.R. (U.N.K.L.E. Mix) |
5:54 |
|
| 02. | |
Northern Lights (The Freelance Hellraiser Mix) |
5:42 |
|
| 03. | |
The Gravy Train (Nightmares On Wax Mix) |
5:00 |
|
| 04. | |
Forever And A Day (CedarBlue Mix) |
4:12 |
|
| 05. | |
Shadow Of A Saint (The Boy Bierton Mix) |
6:26 |
|
| 06. | |
Supertar |
4:50 |
|
| 07. | |
My Star 2002 |
4:05 |
|
| 08. | |
Hear No See No Speak No |
5:26 |
|
| 09. | |
Cokane In My Brain (DJ Mek Nurnburg Scratch Mix) |
1:45 |
|
| 10. | |
The Gravy Train (Nightmares On Wax Mix Instrumental) |
5:04 |
|
| 11. | |
Stardust (Instrumental) |
4:34 |
|
| 12. | |
El Mundo Pequeno (Live Acoustic Version) |
2:47 |
|
| 13. | |
F.E.A.R. (U.N.K.L.E. Mix Instrumental) |
5:51 |
|
13 Total Tracks, 61:36 Total Length
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Credits
- John Hicks - Piano // John Hicks - Piano // John Hicks - Piano // Mark Berrow - Strings // Roger Chase - Strings // Keith L. Cooper - Management // Dave Daniels - Strings // Francis Dunnery - Bass // Francis Dunnery - Guitar // Francis Dunnery - Vocals (Background) // Steve Fitzmaurice - Mixing // Steve Fitzmaurice - Photography // Martin Loveday - Strings // Rita Manning - Strings // Inder Matharu - Percussion // Maciej Rakowski - Strings // Howie Weinberg - Master Vibrator // Kate Wilkinson - Strings // Dave Woodcock - Strings // Dermot Crehan - Strings // Bill Hawkes - Strings // Peter Lale - Strings // Tony Pleeth - Strings // Ian Brown - Producer // Philippa Ibbotson - Strings // Patrick Kiernan - Strings // Boguslaw Kostecki - Strings // Frank Schaefer - Strings // Jackie Shave - Strings // Bruce White - Strings // James Lavelle - Programming // James Lavelle - Remixing // James Lavelle - Processing // Perry Montague-Mason - Strings // Philip Dukes - Strings // Aziz Ibrahim - Guitar // David Lieberman - Vocals (Background) // Dave McCracken - Keyboards // Dave McCracken - Programming // Dave McCracken - Producer // Mark Sayfritz - Keyboards // Mark Sayfritz - Programming // Robin Taylor-Firth - Keyboards // Robin Taylor-Firth - Producer // Matt Pegg - Guitar (Bass) // Everton Nelson - Strings // Damon Iddins - Engineer // Damon Iddins - Mixing Assistant // Miffy Hirsch - Strings // Steve Price - Engineer // Andy Green - Assistant // Emlyn Singleton - Strings // Paddy Lannigan - Strings // EASE - Mixing // EASE - Remix Producer // Marc Lane - Mixing // Tom Jenkins - Assistant Engineer // Dan Bierton - Producer // Dan Bierton - Remixing // Dan Bierton - Mixing // Inda Goldfinger - Percussion // Tim Wills - Guitar // Tim Wills - Engineer // Shawn Joseph - Mastering // Euphemia Dunnery - Assistant // Michael White - Assistant Photographer // Fabiola Quiroz Brown - Photography // Fabiola Quiroz Brown - Portraits // Charlie Waddington - Producer // Charlie Waddington - Remixing // DJ Mek - Remixing // Robert Maxfield - Drums // Shawn McMann - Guitar (Bass) // Mary Sculty - Strings // Kennedy - Cover Design
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