Search - Piano Magic :: Writers Without Homes

So Beatiful, Deep & Intense!!!!!

Rafael Cova | Caracas, Venezuela | 10/02/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The amazing new album from Piano Magic, 'Writers Without Homes'.Here's what the press are saying:"Startlingly beautiful and haunting melodies, creepily intriguing textures, thrumming tribal drums, and appearances from a vast array of guest stars , including a former Cocteau Twin and mysterious ex-60's starlet Vashti Bunyan."
Careless Talk Costs Lives - June 2002"Found sounds - rain - bells, a thunderclap - are used to fashion subtle 'musique concrete' textures, but they're always carefully employed to further a tracks atmosphere and temperament."
Independent - 7th June 2002"Some people have friends in high places. Piano Magic have friends in sad ones, and they serve them just as well"
NME - 8th June 2002"These are brave intentions justly rewarded. Fanatical culthood beckons."
Guardian - 7th June 2002"

Rainy Day Music

Phil Avetxori | 12/29/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This far into Glen Johnson's career, people should know better than to expect continuity from a Piano Magic album. There's a reason that the band's best album so far has been the "Seasonally Affective" compilation (with "Low Birth Weight", perhaps the closest they've come to a unified statement, a close second). The very nature of Piano Magic's revolving-door membership has kept their music consistently fresh and exciting. Picking up any of their cds, you're assured a diverse collection of sonic curios framing Johnson's evocative, bleakly beautiful lyrics. His depressed, poetic memories and ponderings, delivered by a multitude of vocalists (but rarely Johnson himself) are the common thread uniting the lush goth-pop, whirring electronica, and whimsical Pram-like soundscapes that constitute this prolific group's output. That said, the complaints heard from some quarters about "Writers Without Homes" being a disjointed, meandering affair miss the point entirely. The rusted autumnal electro (with Tarwater guesting) of "Modern Jupiter", the relaxed folk rock of "The Season is Long", and "Dutch Housing"'s French vocals and wind-up toy ambience could be the work of three different bands, but they hang together nicely in the wistful regret of Johnson's lyrical musings. As for meandering, well, if you're already averse to the 4AD aesthetic, then you're likely to find this music unbearably precious. However, fans of the ethereal languor of Cocteau Twins or very early His Name Is Alive will feel right at home. This might also be worth checking out for Sigur Ros fans looking for something a bit less sweeping. Piano Magic is similarly hyperemotional, and has comparable echoing ambience and post-MBV guitar textures."