I probably differ from most fans, since I didn't think their middle period ('88-'93) was so hot. To me, their career was similar to the Comsat Angels and Throwing Muses in that they started hot, cooled off, and ended hot. That said, I maintain that the endless murk and cheap rhythms of Garlands are totally bitchen. Same regard is held for Milk and Kisses, which most people tend to sour on.
Paging Mr. Raggett...
― Andy, Thursday, 26 April 2001 00:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
There's more variety in their work than most give them credit for, I think, and while there are certainly patchy albums here and there, _Treasure_, _Victorialand_ and _Heaven or Las Vegas_ alone touch me and cut to the quick. Oh yeah, and "The Spangle Maker" single and the _Aikea-Guinea_ EP and "Pink Orange Red" and...
I like the meringue comparison, but no. The Victorian mentions, album title aside, can be laid at the feet of Vaughn Oliver's art. It's all about taking something dank and making it beautiful while keeping the heft, and about making something that *shouldn't* work -- incomprehensible lyrics, an emphasis on effects over clear melody -- work like a charm. Wouldn't change a single thing about 'em.
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 26 April 2001 00:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
― Dan Perry, Thursday, 26 April 2001 00:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
― Sean Carruthers, Thursday, 26 April 2001 00:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
― DG, Thursday, 26 April 2001 00:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
― fernando, Saturday, 28 April 2001 00:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
― jmh, Wednesday, 12 December 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― alex in mainhattan, Wednesday, 12 December 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Jeff W, Wednesday, 12 December 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Dr.C, Wednesday, 12 December 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― justin case, Friday, 18 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Sean Carruthers, Friday, 18 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― jess, Friday, 18 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Andy K., Friday, 18 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Ned Raggett, Friday, 18 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Curt, Friday, 18 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
I'm on a spree tonight - and I'm massively back into the Cocs. I think Treasure is one of my all time fave albums, but my knowledge of the rest of their stuff doesn't extend much past it, only to "Four Calendar Cafe" (which I realise is to Treasure as Sing when Your Winning is to Life thru a Lens).
So go on - lets speak of how awesomely great Lorelei is.
― Lynskey (Lynskey), Tuesday, 26 August 2003 22:59 (twenty years ago) link
― derrick (derrick), Wednesday, 27 August 2003 03:54 (twenty years ago) link
One of the great bands of the 80s.
― David A. (Davant), Wednesday, 27 August 2003 05:34 (twenty years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 27 August 2003 14:42 (twenty years ago) link
― DV (dirtyvicar), Wednesday, 27 August 2003 14:49 (twenty years ago) link
― David Merryweather (DavidM), Wednesday, 27 August 2003 16:09 (twenty years ago) link
some time last autumn i had a funny turn :
falling in love with the cocteaus again.
― piscesboy, Wednesday, 27 August 2003 17:23 (twenty years ago) link
― Leee (Leee), Wednesday, 27 August 2003 20:18 (twenty years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Friday, 12 November 2004 04:07 (nineteen years ago) link
― Seb (Seb), Friday, 12 November 2004 06:49 (nineteen years ago) link
― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 12 November 2004 06:50 (nineteen years ago) link
― Bimble (bimble), Friday, 12 November 2004 08:03 (nineteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Friday, 12 November 2004 08:31 (nineteen years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 31 January 2005 07:25 (nineteen years ago) link
― Bimble... (Bimble...), Monday, 31 January 2005 07:30 (nineteen years ago) link
― iang, Monday, 31 January 2005 07:38 (nineteen years ago) link
― fortunate hazel (f. hazel), Monday, 31 January 2005 07:52 (nineteen years ago) link
― Bimble... (Bimble...), Monday, 31 January 2005 08:03 (nineteen years ago) link
― Bimble... (Bimble...), Monday, 31 January 2005 08:06 (nineteen years ago) link
http://www.ambitious-outsiders.com/images/lineup05.jpg
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 31 January 2005 14:52 (nineteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Monday, 31 January 2005 14:59 (nineteen years ago) link
my heart just broke
― rentboy (rentboy), Monday, 31 January 2005 15:14 (nineteen years ago) link
― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 31 January 2005 15:19 (nineteen years ago) link
― DJ Martian (djmartian), Monday, 31 January 2005 15:26 (nineteen years ago) link
I have only heard Heaven Or Las Vegas. Wouldn't say classic, because I have to be in the right mood for her *glossolalia*. But it sure is pretty music.
― stevie nixed (stevie nixed), Monday, 31 January 2005 15:30 (nineteen years ago) link
― Baaderonixxx le Jeune (Fabfunk), Monday, 31 January 2005 16:06 (nineteen years ago) link
― Leeeter van den Hoogenband (Leee), Monday, 31 January 2005 16:16 (nineteen years ago) link
There must be UK dates, surely.
― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Monday, 31 January 2005 16:25 (nineteen years ago) link
― Rob M (Rob M), Monday, 31 January 2005 16:27 (nineteen years ago) link
mdma
together
― terry lennox. (gareth), Thursday, 5 January 2006 23:27 (eighteen years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 6 January 2006 03:15 (eighteen years ago) link
try sampling the EPs as opposed to album tracks
― Perverted By Linguiça (sleeve), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 01:28 (one year ago) link
If you like “Pearly…” specifically, then I’d recommend ‘The Pink Opaque’ which is a US compilation of key tracks from that era.
― Spencer Chow, Tuesday, 25 April 2023 02:25 (one year ago) link
Thanks to both, those were good tips for finding a groove (this track "Millimillenary," dang...)
Wish I had been hip to this band in high school; they would have fit so tightly in my taste profile at the time.
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 02:35 (one year ago) link
(this track "Millimillenary," dang...)
so great and only available via the Pink Opaque comp, not released anywhere else which is a travesty obv
― Perverted By Linguiça (sleeve), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 03:20 (one year ago) link
“Wax and Wane” remix is decent too, in that 80s 4AD dance mix vein
― assert (matttkkkk), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 03:26 (one year ago) link
It also contains my favorite Cocteau’s track - “Aikea-Guinea”
― Spencer Chow, Tuesday, 25 April 2023 03:49 (one year ago) link
"Aikea-Guinea" is my favorite CT track too :)
I think you would probably enjoy the album Head Over Heels, which is close in sound to "Pearly..", especially the song "Sugar Hiccup".
― LeRooLeRoo, Tuesday, 25 April 2023 15:46 (one year ago) link
Thanks, will queue that up next (I'm almost thru The Pink Opaque this morning; "Aikea-Guinea" happens to be playing right now... great collection)
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 15:55 (one year ago) link
This group sure had a way with song titles! haha
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 15:56 (one year ago) link
That's all Liz Fraser. Wait till you see the ones on Blue Bell Knoll !
― LeRooLeRoo, Tuesday, 25 April 2023 16:07 (one year ago) link
"Sugar Hiccup" was a good call!
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 16:23 (one year ago) link
I feel like the Sugarcubes def. took some inspiration here (tho I imagine this is a bog-standard observation)
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 16:42 (one year ago) link
I remember an early Sugarcubes interview where Björk said she often got compared to Kate Bush, Siouxsie Sioux and Liz Fraser.
― LeRooLeRoo, Tuesday, 25 April 2023 17:49 (one year ago) link
And just that slow-tempo groove, echoing drums, and chiming gtr of some of these tracks (although I guess that would describe a lot of '80s acts!)
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 18:13 (one year ago) link
morrisp, you gotta check out the Love's Easy Tears EP. Their single best release for me, has kind of a 60s-pop-beamed-through-interstellar-space vibe
― J. Sam, Tuesday, 25 April 2023 18:16 (one year ago) link
Thanks – just listened, and liked it a lot (perfect description, too!)
― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Tuesday, 25 April 2023 18:40 (one year ago) link
I found this in a cutout bin of unsold Record Store Day stuff - Sun's Signature (Frasier and Damon Reece)
HOLY SHIT THIS IS GREAT why didn't anyone freak out about this
feels like a mix of Cocteau's and Portishead Third
https://sunssignature.bandcamp.com/album/suns-signature
― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 20 June 2023 14:21 (ten months ago) link
waht
― out-of-print LaserDisc edition (sleeve), Tuesday, 20 June 2023 14:40 (ten months ago) link
I thought this already made the rounds! Yeah it's fine stuff.
― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 20 June 2023 14:41 (ten months ago) link
I must have missed it, just saw the cover in the bins and googled it, was only $8 so I figured why not, super blown away by how great this is, beautiful tracks, feels a piece with CT but has its own identity
her voice has held up remarkably!
― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 20 June 2023 14:44 (ten months ago) link
plus Steve Hackett!!
― SQUIRREL MEAT!! (Capitaine Jay Vee), Tuesday, 20 June 2023 17:00 (ten months ago) link
Woah. Thanks for info. Had no idea.
― anatol_merklich, Tuesday, 20 June 2023 20:55 (ten months ago) link
Happy 60th to Liz!
― a man often referred to in the news media as the Duke of Saxony (tipsy mothra), Tuesday, 29 August 2023 21:59 (eight months ago) link
Yesterday in the northern suburbs of Chicago there was a blue minivan with Louisiana plates and a bumper sticker that said "STOP HONKING I'm trying to figure out what Cocteau Twins are saying" over the Heaven or Las Vegas cover art.
It's sold out
― j.o.h.n. in evanston (john. a resident of chicago.), Tuesday, 29 August 2023 22:16 (eight months ago) link
https://i.imgur.com/pI7Yi4b.jpgJohn Bonham is all over this album huh
― calstars, Saturday, 27 January 2024 21:56 (three months ago) link
Yessir.
"1984’s Treasure was a landmark album for the Cocteaus that saw improvements in both their songwriting and Guthrie’s production—it also marked the debut of their multi-instrumentalist Simon Raymonde. They worked in some new gear, including an E-mu Emulator sampler and Yamaha DX-7 for bell sounds, but they stuck with their E-mu Drumulator with an important upgrade.
The change? Guthrie swapped out the original eproms for Digidrums’ Rock Drums chips, which featured samples of John Bonham from “When The Levee Breaks.” It gives the backing tracks a distinctive sampled edge but with a Drumulator feel.
In the magazine One-Two Testing, Guthrie explained how he used the Drumulator on the record. “We start with a very basic guide drum on the Drumulator. I’ve tried all the drum machines and that’s the most straightforward machine to work with. Examples? Well, supposing you wanted to erase a particular drum from a song. On some machines that would take you ages. With the Drumulator it’s straightforward. Tuning of the drums on it would be helpful, I suppose, but you could always varispeed them once they were on tape. I’ve got some of the new chips for our Drumulator—the Rock chips sound great. I’ll stick with that machine.”
― MaresNest, Saturday, 27 January 2024 22:56 (three months ago) link
Also Shout by Tears For Fears
twins becoming one of my fav bands
― Swen, Sunday, 28 January 2024 17:24 (three months ago) link
https://i.imgur.com/QFFJGor.pngThe first 20 seconds of this sound like music for a secret super Mario brothers underworld level
― calstars, Sunday, 28 January 2024 20:17 (three months ago) link
https://thequietus.com/articles/33528-cocteau-twins-head-over-heels-anniversary
― Robert Adam Gilmour, Monday, 29 January 2024 19:29 (three months ago) link
never picked up on either of those drum samples, good excuse to play treasure at a very loud volume when I clock out.
― brimstead, Monday, 29 January 2024 21:07 (three months ago) link
That Record Got Me High - Cocteau Twins 'Treasure' with Miki Berenyi
― j.o.h.n. in evanston (john. a resident of chicago.), Tuesday, 30 January 2024 20:37 (three months ago) link
Ugh, that Quietus review gets 721 words in before it mentions the band or the album
― enochroot, Thursday, 1 February 2024 17:20 (three months ago) link
Thanks, john
― irerisered, Thursday, 1 February 2024 20:56 (three months ago) link
rock out with your clock out
― blazin' squab (NickB), Thursday, 1 February 2024 20:58 (three months ago) link
https://i.imgur.com/1sNGV7D.jpg
― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Thursday, 11 April 2024 20:45 (four weeks ago) link
Feel like“Slip Away the Chicken Slice” needs a comma. Slip Away, the Chicken Slice
― Naive Teen Idol, Thursday, 11 April 2024 23:36 (four weeks ago) link
I coulda sworn "Bitter Gourd Grasping" was a BBK outtake but I guess not
― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Thursday, 11 April 2024 23:37 (four weeks ago) link
also, ATTN Swen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaOlNfC8_xQ
― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Thursday, 11 April 2024 23:39 (four weeks ago) link
Damn those clips were so laid back. I miss 80s news
― sawdust lagoon, Friday, 12 April 2024 00:05 (four weeks ago) link