Since I also don't hang out at incense booths or massage parlours, I never hear this song. When I was 11-12, it sounded weird and hard to make sense of, in a somewhat exciting way, on the top 40 station. Now it sounds like decent chillout.
― EveningStar (Sund4r), Sunday, 20 March 2011 16:09 (thirteen years ago) link
shd leave to max to poll it but
1. Return To Innocence - Enigma2. Orinoco Flow (Sail Away) - Enya3. Sweet Lullaby - Deep Forest4. Oxygene Part lV - Jean Michele Jarre5. X-Files Theme (DADO Paranormal Activity Mix) - DJ Dado6. Tubular Bells Part 1 (Edit) - Mike Oldfield7. Sadeness - Enigma8. Adiemus - Adiemus9. Crockett's Theme - Jan Hammer10. Theme From 'The Mission' - Ennio Morricone11. Main Title Theme (The Last Emperor) - David Byrne12. Wishes Of Happiness & Prosperity - Sacred Spirits13. Theme From Twin Peaks-Fire Walk With Me - Angelo Badalamenti14. Makambo - Geoffrey Oryema15. My Wife With Champagne Shoulders - Mark Isham16. The Promise - Michael Nyman17. Lily Was Here - David A. Stewart
― "biggest asshole on ILX" (history mayne), Sunday, 20 March 2011 16:18 (thirteen years ago) link
This song is still Top 40 in Eastern Europe, it is ubiquitous
― Odult Ariented Rock (Ówen P.), Sunday, 20 March 2011 16:50 (thirteen years ago) link
oh man i remember pure moods
― SBlendor in the grass (bernard snowy), Sunday, 20 March 2011 16:55 (thirteen years ago) link
Mark Sinker's further elaborations on the subject.
Though the yogic flying sentiment of the music is surely "NAFF"I don't think anybody could debate that the record is a significant technical achievementJust not as cool in hindsight as The OrbI mean, even now, I have no idea how Cretu made that record in 1989.
― Odult Ariented Rock (Ówen P.), Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:09 (thirteen years ago) link
Owen did you catch those links up there? Be interested in your take on Mark's thoughts in particular.
― Ned Raggett, Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:10 (thirteen years ago) link
Haha my apologies, that crossposted EXACTLY with your response.
this songso sexyyet mystical
― plax (ico), Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:11 (thirteen years ago) link
I like Mark's writing, I like "The Ethos Of Suture". But I look at music more technically, I guess, and in this article, the synapses Mark sees and the conclusions he draws are one's that interest me, and make for awesome writing, but feel rooted in critique of the past-tense. I listened to Enigma a lot when it came out, both this record and the second record, which was described by my older brother excitedly as being "all about the Indians", lol, and in comparison to other "electronic" music at the time, whether it was Jean-Michel Jarre's MIDI-oriented stuff*, or rap, or The Orb, all of which was on my 12-year-old radar, hesitantly leaving my friends in the reggae section as I slipped over to "New Age", Cretu is a progressive producer. At least, he seemed so at the time. I remember even back then caring "not at all" about the Revelations quotes, the Callas references, the "This Is The Voice Of Enigma" monologue, and instead being smitten with the synth pads, the samples, just the sound of everything. Sentiment aside, and forgiving the inescapability of it, this is some well made music. I cannot say the same about Enya, jeez.
* If you want something that sounds dated, you should listen to "En Attendant Cousteau"
― Odult Ariented Rock (Ówen P.), Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:35 (thirteen years ago) link
Whoa, that got a little nostalgic, sorry.But yeah, good article. I just think that decrying the track as "NAFF" is forgetting the landscape at the time.
Re: the panpipes... synth or not synth? I'm pretty sure it's just a flute, and the harmonic-heavy performance is misleading the listener into thinking that it's something "ethnic", and the flute is performed live, but then sampled, probably by an MPC-60, at a low sample rate, which explains why it sounds the way it does.
― Odult Ariented Rock (Ówen P.), Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:42 (thirteen years ago) link
enya is amazing
― plax (ico), Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:43 (thirteen years ago) link
Enya is amazing, but not "well made" in the same way. It's economical in the sense that it could be made with a single Radioshack keyboard and a MIDIVerb.
― Odult Ariented Rock (Ówen P.), Sunday, 20 March 2011 17:48 (thirteen years ago) link
are any of Enigma's records worth owning?
I have MCMXC A.D. and it's decent but if this is as good as it gets...
― frogbs, Thursday, 18 August 2011 19:20 (twelve years ago) link
second one is worth it
― Rob Based and DJ EZ God (DJP), Thursday, 18 August 2011 19:46 (twelve years ago) link
lol ok "Return to Innocence" brings back some memories
this sound really died a horrible, horrible death
― frogbs, Monday, 3 October 2011 21:49 (twelve years ago) link
Until Moby brought it back and made a bajillion dollars off of it.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 4 October 2011 00:42 (twelve years ago) link
I love when I open a six-year-old thread and have the same instantaneous response as I apparently did six years ago.
― jaymc, Tuesday, 4 October 2011 03:29 (twelve years ago) link
heyyaheyowoahhey
― Master of Treacle, Tuesday, 4 October 2011 03:44 (twelve years ago) link
Return to Innocence is amazing
― Master of Treacle, Tuesday, 4 October 2011 03:46 (twelve years ago) link
and then, from the ashes rises:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4ITY5hGzAM
― Chris S, Tuesday, 4 October 2011 04:15 (twelve years ago) link
It seems the indie folks have sort of appropiated some of its feats for chillwave or dronepop or whatever the fuck it's called but I sense new age might have a comeback in the mainstream this year or maybe next. Moby could finally get his second breath of life if he plays his cards right.
― Moka, Thursday, 26 January 2012 09:21 (twelve years ago) link
Well, that last post is terrifying. I haven't heard Sadeness in the wild in a while.
― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 17 July 2018 01:44 (five years ago) link
bugger.
tried to open and read the mark s article linked upthread :
"Error 503 Backend fetch failedBackend fetch failed
Guru Meditation:XID: 96950946"
i have decided that i am now old enough to enjoy enigma.never used to, but on a chilled out sunday with a glass of wine, their albums totally hit the spot.oh, and i enjoy this stuff far more than anything i have by enya.
― mark e, Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:24 (three years ago) link
Haha is this entire board on a collective mind-trip back to 1990 right now, or just the 2 of us?
(I’m kind of afraid of what lurks behind the cut on this thread)
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:35 (three years ago) link
some of us never left!
― avellano medio inglés (f. hazel), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:39 (three years ago) link
ha.indeed.basically, i read the recent pitchfork article re enya, so thought i would give the album i have a spin.got bored within 4 tracks, then remembered i have a few enigma cds in the archive from my charity shop digs.and yeah, enjoying them far more than i probably should.
― mark e, Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:41 (three years ago) link
Enya's first four albums are flawless, Watermark is better than Loveless
― avellano medio inglés (f. hazel), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:50 (three years ago) link
Freaky Trigger apparently (not) running on a broken Amiga seems appropriate.
― grebo shot first (Noel Emits), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:52 (three years ago) link
ahh, i only have the 6th Enya album in the archive.guess i need to address such an oversight.
― mark e, Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:54 (three years ago) link
Watermark is the starting point, the the Celts and Shepherd Moons... Amarantine is probably their worst album, it's very dull.
― avellano medio inglés (f. hazel), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:57 (three years ago) link
I just put MCMXC on and had almost Pavlovian response within about 20 seconds of The Voice of Enigma...
This whole thing is just so perfect - those horn hits during the second part of Sadeness - what is that reminding me of? Tom’s Diner or something?
I’m just coming over all nostalgic about goth chicks’ candlelit bedrooms in which I have lain, listening to this song - which seems a common refrain on this thread hee hee?
I am pretty sure that our Sys Admin has a thumbnail of this album as his Microsoft avatar (mine is Kraftwerk of course - trying to get through to the IT department is like, what do you want? Technologically pristine Germans of Gregorian Chants?)
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:57 (three years ago) link
LOZl, my phone just tried to autocorrect “Gregorian” to “Grebo”?!?! Knock that off!!!
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:58 (three years ago) link
*LOL not LOZI
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Sunday, 13 September 2020 18:59 (three years ago) link
ned on engima:
something that shouldn't exist
i keed, i keed.
― Totally different head. Totally. (Austin), Sunday, 13 September 2020 19:12 (three years ago) link
Enigma less good that Enya, but that's just me....
― healthy cocaine off perfect butts (the table is the table), Sunday, 13 September 2020 19:45 (three years ago) link
My parents would listen to their first three albums a lot when I was a kid (presumably the fact that Michael Crețu is Romanian had something to do with it) but I can't remember a single thing about them other than NEW AGE.
― pomenitul, Sunday, 13 September 2020 19:49 (three years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ib7g_6PywA
hugely enjoyable, but not exactly new age is it ?
― mark e, Sunday, 13 September 2020 20:01 (three years ago) link
I'd never heard that one before but it's pure nostalgia bait nonetheless.
― pomenitul, Sunday, 13 September 2020 20:16 (three years ago) link
Diminishing returns on Enigma records, but I think 3/4 of Cross of Changes is great
― Vinnie, Monday, 14 September 2020 00:00 (three years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z18HWWX6yYM
This is really weird and confounded me when I was 10!
― flamboyant goon tie included, Monday, 14 September 2020 01:50 (three years ago) link
sade can i get your sister email why because she look intersting― NAthaniel, Friday, July 8, 2005 3:32 PM (fifteen years ago) bookmarkflaglink
― NAthaniel, Friday, July 8, 2005 3:32 PM (fifteen years ago) bookmarkflaglink
― flamboyant goon tie included, Monday, 14 September 2020 01:52 (three years ago) link
OMG, The Voice and The Snake, like do you know how much joy that brought to a 20 y.o. goth who used to sit in the back pews of their mother's church and read Revelations during mass as a teenager.
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Monday, 14 September 2020 07:25 (three years ago) link
One of the two Enigma dudes had an entire massive number one hit career before Enigma. He is a very, very wealthy dude. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sULN3U1NjlI
― Three Word Username, Monday, 14 September 2020 08:01 (three years ago) link
Were there really "two Enigma dudes"? I thought Michael Cretu was always the main driving force behind the project, and according to Wikipedia Cornelius was only involved in Enigma from 1993 to 1996.
Cretu himself, of course, also had a fairly successful career before Enigma as a songwriter and keyboard player for the woman whom he'd eventually marry:
https://youtu.be/4jjzu1Z2RZc
― Tuomas, Monday, 14 September 2020 08:56 (three years ago) link
The whole point of Enigma for Cretu was keeping the performers and producers behind it obscured, enigmatic if you will. But Cornelius is one of the few participants he's admitted to, and his name is all over their publishing. Also Cornelius' wealth since the 90s far exceeds what German-language pop stars generally have.
― Three Word Username, Monday, 14 September 2020 09:20 (three years ago) link
I always find it amazing, like the ways in which Euro pop and UK pop intersect, and don't?
Like, I also hang out on a messageboard for a German-language band where at least half the users are German, Austrian, etc. and many, many times, they'll mention someone who is massive, huge, like Cliff Richard-level, even their grandparents know who they are, well-known in German-language markets, but I either think of them as an obscure one-hit-wonder, or I've literally never heard of them.
I'm used to the way that US / UK ideas of who/what was "massive" does not always translate. But it is genuinely eye-opening, discovering how little exposure we get to continental pop, beyond the occasional "summer holiday jam" that somehow makes it across.
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Monday, 14 September 2020 12:02 (three years ago) link
Is Peter Schilling a big deal in the German-language market? "Major Tom (Coming Home)" is so cool, I've always wondered why he never made the international charts again.
― Soz (Not Soz) (Vast Halo), Monday, 14 September 2020 13:09 (three years ago) link
a Dutch TV programme did an interview with Schilling recently on his big hit and how it impacted his life:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoJZvD39M_A
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Monday, 14 September 2020 13:19 (three years ago) link
His German page on Wikipedia suggests he has about a dozen more albums and multiple other singles (and says that he suffered "burnout" after his international success) so it would seem that he was far more well-known at home.
(I always love when I go to Wiki and the English page is like 3 sentences and the German page has like 20 subsections of information.)
x-post
― Greta Grebo (Branwell with an N), Monday, 14 September 2020 13:21 (three years ago) link
some of the above is addressed in the interview I linked
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Monday, 14 September 2020 13:44 (three years ago) link