Comsat Angels C or D/S&D

Anyone that links to A Certain Pitchfrock thread in here gets a Dirty Sanchez.

They've also got the entire band to answer various fan questions. Steve Fellows thinks "Hate It Or Love It" was one of the best songs of last year, interestingly.

I loved ‘La Ritournelle‘ by Sebastien Tellier. I like ‘ How To Be Invisible’ on the Kate Bush album.

I've been listening to The Outsiders a lot recently - possibly even better than The Sound.

Just thought you'd like to know x1000 into oblivion.

been listening to this song a lot.

A+++++++++++++++++++++++++

This years reissues are well worth it: _My Minds Eye_, which I sometimes feel is their best album, gets a mess of bonus cuts. _The Glamour_ gets expanded and reordered to a 2 disc set and the new tracks definitely improve it. The odds and ends set is for devotees only with some throw-away stuff and some "why hasn't this come out before" numbers.

Well well well...

http://www.o2academysheffield.co.uk/search.php?event=Comsat+Angels&allvenues=Sheffield

http://www.hotsdesign.co.uk/comsats/missing.htm

The Comsat Angels will be playing live for the 1st time since 1995, in Sheffield in April, as part of the annual Sensoria Music and Film Festival.

The concert will take place on Sunday 26th April 2009 at the 02 Academy in Sheffield. The band will be playing material from the first 3 albums for this show.

Mik Glaisher will never die

he is great

Listening to the "Time Considered" BBC collection and, damn, Mik Glaisher is god-like on the session that opens the album. "At Sea" and "Eye Of The Lens" just throb with unreleased energy and Mik's the soul of the band. As usual, many of these versions are my favorites.

I'm a big fan of these guys. Sleep No More has slowly become one of my favorite albums of all time.

Some things not discussed in here that I was curious about:

Did anyone get that two disc set on Renascent called To Before? Thoughts?

Is there a collective thought on the Dream Command album here? Terrible? Or undeserving of its bad reputation?

What about the band's more rockin' later output in the 90's? Redemption?

The Dream Command album is pretty weak. "Venus" is the stand-out track, maybe one or two more are ok but you're not missing anything by skipping it.

"To Before" is hit and miss, worth picking up if you've got everything else.

"My Minds Eye" is a stunning return to form, and I like "The Glamour" though it's definitely more guitar-driven than synth-driven (but it's a nice change of pace).

I'm only really familiar with Waiting For A Miracle, which I like. I take it from reading this thread that Sleep No More is the next one I should get?

Turrican:
Miracle is a bit more stock "new wave" sounding than the two albums that followed. Some really good tracks, but on the whole, they're just playing a lot faster on that album than they would for the next few years. Sleep is definitely one of the great post-punk mood albums, along the lines of the Cure's Pornography, Joy Division's Closer and anything that Bauhaus ever did. It's a bit more rockin' than any of those albums, but the sound of it is absolutely huge — the production is nearly the star of the show. Just one, completely unified and isolated atmosphere to lose yourself in.

Gerald:
I actually get a kick out of Fire on the Moon! It's certainly not worse than Land or 7 Day Weekend. I thought To Before was really good, but I definitely agree that it's for completists only. The early demos for 'Island' and 'Lost Continent' are definitely worth it though. I'm actually of the opinion that Mind's Eye, just because it is so much better than their previous four or five album, has become overrated. It's a good album and all, but the Glamour (especially Renascent's two disc edition) blows it away. But I'm in all over the place albums.

I think Fiction is my favorite record of theirs these days... But they've long been one of my favorite groups of the era.

Fiction has indeed opened itself to me over the last few years as being probably my second favorite of the band's albums (after Sleep, of course).

I actually get a kick out of Fire on the Moon! It's certainly not worse than Land or 7 Day Weekend.

I beg to differ - "Fire On The Moon" may not SOUND different, the production is equally as inappropriate, but the songwriting was much stronger on "Land" and "7 Day Weekend". I like the songs on those two records and they sound MUCH better on the Peel sessions disc or in demo form as you noted.

I'm actually of the opinion that Mind's Eye, just because it is so much better than their previous four or five album, has become overrated. It's a good album and all, but the Glamour (especially Renascent's two disc edition) blows it away.

No, "My Mind's Eye" has the reputation it has because it's the Comsats mastering their craft and giving us an album of atmospheric majesty. Every time I listen to it, it takes me on an inescapable journey from one song to the next, I just can't pull myself away.

Sleep is definitely one of the great post-punk mood albums, along the lines of the Cure's Pornography, Joy Division's Closer and anything that Bauhaus ever did. It's a bit more rockin' than any of those albums, but the sound of it is absolutely huge — the production is nearly the star of the show. Just one, completely unified and isolated atmosphere to lose yourself in.

I agree that the sound/production bit is key here - all of those comparisons make perfect sense but (as you suggest) I think Sleep No More is less stark and more all-enveloping e.g. I'd probably compare it to albums like Disintegration or (esp) The Church's Priest = Aura as much as or more than its actual peers. In this sense it sounds very ahead of its time, I think.

Just... that bit in "Gone" where Stephen intones "WHAT WAS HIS NAME" over and over again and then the whole thing explodes into that wracked, trembling guitar line. One of my favourite moments in music.

:-) I remember first hearing the song through Martin Gore's cover on the original Counterfeit and wondering what the heck it was, who did and where from. Back in 1989 that was not exactly easy to find out.

I've never heard that!

haha this sounds exactly how I imagined it would.

Well, yeah. Part of the charm. :-D

Just... that bit in "Gone" where Stephen intones "WHAT WAS HIS NAME" over and over again and then the whole thing explodes into that wracked, trembling guitar line. One of my favourite moments in music.

― Tim F, Monday, July 16, 2012 10:47 AM (11 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I've always felt the same!

New vinyl reissues are damned expensive, but Chasing Shadows though. . . !

feeling this song today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6CPvcvxzmc

Was digging for comsats deep cuts and this dream command song is fucking great imo fuiud etc

http://youtu.be/B4qvS9hQJc0

^ someone needs to hook up brad with that, think he would dig

Rest of the album is not good, but that is numbed out mondeo rock perfection, almost even blue nile-esque

Actually I like 'ice sculpture' quite a bit too

Big fan of this one too, strongly approve of the comsats when they're in this moody ferry-esque mode

http://youtu.be/aiTC56ZVPXk

I like Fire on the Moon. Really don't see anything wrong with it, honestly.

"Fire On The Moon" has some decent bits but it's clearly a band that has shaved off all the edges. "Ice Sculpture" and "Venus Hunter" are my picks, with "Transport Of Delight" and "She's Invisible" also being ok.

I think The Comsat Angels' Blue Nile-ish tendencies peaked early with "After The Rain".

Man Sleep No More really is the best album ever made.

just noticed that the first three albums have disappeared from spotify but now there are two volumes of 'lost sessions' up there instead. not sure what these are, sound quality isn't great though.

eeek, these sound like they've been taped straight off the radio (and then the tape's gone a bit funny)

Wow, the audio quality of these is dire. Still great to hear, though.

(Peering into the Spotify catalog, I see that the first 3 Comsat Angels albums are there, but currently available only in GB. Nothing else other than these two Lost Sessions comps.)

we need to keep this Cure vs New Order thing contained or it'll take over the whole site

i can't wait to check out the later stuff! however i may never get over how bottomlessly great the first three records are

just listening to "monkey pilot" and thinking WOW WHAT A SONG today

also like.... "real story"!!! who were these guys???? their basslines never quit

Their rhythm section was something else, what an amazing drummer.

yes!!!!!!

I don't believe I've gone a single night DJ'ing without playing "It's History" at some point. Secret favorite band!

i may never get over how bottomlessly great the first three records are

to be fair, not even the band could get over this.

I've been meaning to make a Comsats anthology to put on my phone. And it wouldn't all be from the first 3 albums!

hey gerald, curious what you ended up going with?

my un-obvious (read: non-first three lps) comsats 'best of' picks would be:

'lost continent'
'citadel' (yes i know it's a cover; don't care, it slays)
'driving'
'i hear a new world'
'ice sculpture'

Not gotten round to it yet, but thanks for the reminder, will add it to my queue of music projects.

I completely missed that Stephen Fellows released an album this year and it's very very good. Fave "welcome back" album of the year for sure:
https://stephenfellows.bandcamp.com/album/slow-glass

!

Thanks for the heads up! One of my fastest purchases of the year

The new album is ok, doesn't knock my socks off or demand multiple listenings. He released a bunch of stuff on Myspace eons ago like "Helicopters 111" that had great potential but that stuff appears to have been shelved.

thank you, e t! definitely going to check this out.