The Former Velvet Underground Keyboardist/Cellist and Legendary Record Producer ("Patti Smith-horses", "The Modern Lovers", "The Stooges" Debut) Delivers his Second Album for EMI. This Time Around, the Master Has Truly Out... more »done Himself with One of the Most Cutting Edge Albums to Arrive on the Market. The First Thing to Hit the Listener is the Sonic Excellence of the Recording, as Each Track Reveals an Aural Wonder! Cale Has Called on Every Artistic Instinct from Deep Within his Soul to Create What May Well Be the Defining Album of his Career. The Songs Defy Categorization; You'll Hear Hard Rock, a Tender Ballad, Hip Hop Inspired Grooves ("Hush"), Avant-garde Sounds...all With Melodies Written by Someone who Really Understands How to Use Poetry to Effect and the Tools of a Modern Studio. He Credits Inspiration from Dr. Dre, Pharrell (Of the Neptunes), Erykah Badu, Gorillaz, Doves, Curtis Mayfield and Beyond.« less
The Former Velvet Underground Keyboardist/Cellist and Legendary Record Producer ("Patti Smith-horses", "The Modern Lovers", "The Stooges" Debut) Delivers his Second Album for EMI. This Time Around, the Master Has Truly Outdone Himself with One of the Most Cutting Edge Albums to Arrive on the Market. The First Thing to Hit the Listener is the Sonic Excellence of the Recording, as Each Track Reveals an Aural Wonder! Cale Has Called on Every Artistic Instinct from Deep Within his Soul to Create What May Well Be the Defining Album of his Career. The Songs Defy Categorization; You'll Hear Hard Rock, a Tender Ballad, Hip Hop Inspired Grooves ("Hush"), Avant-garde Sounds...all With Melodies Written by Someone who Really Understands How to Use Poetry to Effect and the Tools of a Modern Studio. He Credits Inspiration from Dr. Dre, Pharrell (Of the Neptunes), Erykah Badu, Gorillaz, Doves, Curtis Mayfield and Beyond.
CD Reviews
It doesn't get better than this
Charles A. Miller | Baltimore, Maryland U.S.A. | 10/19/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"John Cale's career has covered quite a lot of musical genres. A classically-trained musician, he begun in the United States working with Aaron Copeland and John Cage. This translated well into the contributions he eventually would make as a charter member of The Velvet Underground. From there, Mr. Cale launched a solo career, which ranged from pop tunes, to hard rock and roll, to soundtracks for movies, which incorporated everything that has gone before.
He is perhaps most famous for a period in the mid-1970s known to many as the Island Years (the lable for which he recorded a number of hard rock albums). While any recording from John Cale is welcomed, many have yearned for a return to this particular style. Well, here it is. First off, one is struck by how similar the sound of this release is compared to those years, right down to the instrumentation. And, it moves from one track to the next much like it did in previous years... a mix of sweet sounding melodies, to some very dark tunes, to straight out rock, all of which Mr. Cale is famous for.
Perhaps one of the most interesting revelations is the very catchy single from the album, Perfect. Truly, if this were to get airplay, it would chart as it has that "anthem" quality necessary for popularity. After hearing it, it will play in your head all day. Check out his website for a preview.
This album has been called a follow-up to Hobo Sapiens, and in a way it is. However, it is also quite different from its predecessor, taking what started there and throwing in the Island Years style. Overall, a must-have for any Cale fan and a great introduction to those who are not familiar with his music."
"Pick Up The Word" John Cale's Finest Record To Date Has Arr
Allen Mann | Hattiesburg, MS USA | 10/23/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"In my opinion this is one of John Cale's greatest albums and my favorite. I am a big fan of his albums Paris 1919, Fear, and Slow Dazzle. I think that anyone who likes these albums or his material like Fragments or Walking On Locusts will enjoy this album. I really liked most of the material on 5 Tracks and Hobosapiens, but Black Acetate feels like it's a stronger record and more melodic. As well as being unpredictable and varied like much of Cale's material, this album also features some of his strongest vocal work and greatest songs: Gravel drive, Sold-Motel, Perfect, Mailman(The Lying Song)....
Definetely check it out.
"
It ain't Perfect... but I love it
Omer Belsky | Haifa, Israel | 01/24/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"For two nights in January 2006, (the 18th and 19th, to be exact), I was there with hundreds of other John Cale fans to witness the opening of the European tour, in support of Cale's newest album, Black Acetate.
As a big, but not obsessive, Cale fan (I have to confess I prefer Cale's Velvet Underground partner, Lou), I expected a lot - but I got more than I bargained for.
Backed with three musicians young enough to be his daughter's boyfriends, Cale, armed with guitars (electric and acoustic), keyboards, and his trademark electric viola (sadly only for one song - the Velvet's "VENUS IN FURS"), delivered a 2 hour something set, that was better then we had any right to hope for.
Covering everything from Velvet Underground Classics (the aforementioned Venus, as well as Nico's Femme Fatal, delivered in a weird Jazzy version and mixed with another song) to Primal Punk songs (the brilliant, murderous and hillarious 'GUTS'), from experimental avant-guard music ('HUSH', 'VIRGIN MARY') to beautiful Ballads - 'BUFFALLO BALLET', 'CLOSE WATCH' (Introduced with the classy "This is a love song, so hold on to someone you love"). Cale's show featured Pop ('THINGS' from his comeback album 'Hobosapiens', 'PERFECT' from 'Black acetate'), Punk jams ('GUN' utterly deconstructed, and 'PABLO PICASSO', a set closer, merged with 'Mary Lou'), and straight to the bone Rock'n'Roll ('DANCING UNDERCOVER', from 'Walking on Locusts', was one of the highlights, as was the second night's closing tune, 'DIRTY ASS ROCK'N'ROLL').
Considering how much I enjoyed the concerts brought upon by the album, how could I possibly not love it? 'Black Acetate' is not as good an album as Cale's 'Hobosapiens' - but that was one of the best albums of Cale's career. 'Actate' has its share of duds - OUTTA THE BAG is a silly pop tune, BROTHERMAN a spoken word tune with too much synthesizers, HUSH is experimental but slight, and while SOLD MOTEL works well live, the Studio version is not nearly as menacing.
That said, there is still a lot for the Cale fan to love here: TURN THE LIGHTS ON, the first single, is a hard rockin' tune with a catchy lyric, while WOMAN, another live favorite is a menacing track about a woman who "wants me in a prison".
Right now, my favorite tracks are the oh-so-poppy PERFECT ("I can't help it/You're Perfect for me"), with a strange chorus in an otherwise completely Popular tune, and IN A FLOOD, which manages to convey the feeling of them blues, without actually being a blues song.
"Black Acetate' is the kind of album in which you will still discover new meanings years after you first listen to it. I'm sure I will. It Ain't Perfect, but it's great John Cale."
Greatest record of all time
electroncloud | northwest new jersey, USA | 12/24/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It's hard to know whether the uninitiated will enjoy this album as much as the long-time John Cale fan. His rich history adds to the experience, helping one's understanding and appreciation of what's to be heard. Regardless, 'Black Acetate' is a wonderfully varied, emotional, intellectual and, most importantly, enjoyable contribution to the world's catalog of recorded sounds. Exciting, too, in that it explores and expands the existing musical universe, and even points to a few spots outside. Tour de force, big daddy. Thanks!"
Cale keeps moving.
Michael Stack | North Chelmsford, MA USA | 10/28/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"John Cale seems to have been revitalized in the past few years with respect to pop music-- "Black Acetate" is the followup to 2003's "Homo Sapiens", just two years later. In the 18 years prior to that, Cale had recorded but one pop album (1996's "Walking on Locusts").
One thing is clear about this album-- at 63, Cale is still not standing still and he's not "maturing" into an adult contemporary environment-- the album finds him again flirting with electronica and alternative music. The sheer level of diversity of the material is stunning, Cale covers chugging pop (falsetto-rendered "Outta the Bag"), spoken-word sample-driven electronica ("Brotherman"), minimalist po (the stunning "Graveldrive") and explosive alternative (the downright fierce "Turn the Lights On"). In fact, there's precious little on here not to like (closer "Mailman" with its downright irritating backing vocal is probably the best example).
Admittedly, this album is not going to win over any new fans, but old ones will probably find a lot to enjoy-- Cale's audiences seem to respect his evolution, and this one is a continued growth. Recommended."
Track Listings (13) - Disc #1