Amazing elecronic soundscapes
11/15/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"With Machines of Loving Grace, it was most consistantly the textural synth treatments and the tasty keyboard hooks that helped certain tracks stand out in their catalog... It's been a while since Machines went AWOL, but I was happy to learn that Mike Fisher, the band's keyboard player/programmer was working on new material... His new realease, Fellow Prisoners, does not disappoint! The six original tracks on the CD (not counting the four remixes) are cohesive in overall tone, but each track brings something new to the mix... The description "fervid cinematic electronica... driving beats and ambient soundscapes" is very accurate... It's the juxtoposition of organic and ambient sounds (tablas, vocal samples, strings etc.) and the crisp drum programming that make it such a unique mix... It's worth mentioning as a positive that while the CD is very accessible it is not easily compared to other electronic acts...It's the attention to the little details that make the CD so enjoyable... And certain textures and noises stand out, like the bubbling electronic undercurrents in Sir Wellington Du Beuf; or the mixture of ghostly chanting and keyboard washes layed over crisp drum programming in Sonda; or the operatic voices underlayed throughout I, Croupier...I can take or leave the four remixes included at the end of the CD - though they do bring a few of the tracks closer to standard electronica/dance territory...It's a very effective mix, and one that stands up to repeated listenings... It seems like a heck of a lot of time, care, and meticulous programming was put into each of the tracks... Great stuff!I'm looking forward to ARF's future releases!"
Beautiful album
FrequencyBebop | cape elizabeth, me United States | 01/12/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"one of the top 5 electronic albums i own, and one of the few music purchases lately that didnt disappoint."
Track Listings (10) - Disc #1