Cornelius: Classic or Dud?

This is really great! A little spotty at times but the good stuff is goooooooood. Like it much more than anything I've heard since "Point."

What's exactly is everyone's problem with Sensuous?

This is incredible! I watched the show and holy crap is it amazing. This record is probably my favorite since "Fantasma".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_xLFOg2gTQ

This is an episode with some really amazing video sequences.

Sensuous is fine but IMO it's a little too stripped back at times, it doesn't have any of the real enjoyable moments that Point did. Like it doesn't let loose, even Gum sounds way too tightly controlled and structured to be a lot of fun. Its still a good album I'd say and probably one that's going to look better with time. This new one though puts a lot of the fun back even in it's sterile little world of sound, maybe because the melodies are a lot more all over the place and the pieces are short enough that you don't get bored of them. I'm on my 8th listen in the last seven days and it's still sounding very good.

Sensuous is okay - the charitable case could be made that it threads the needle between Fantasma and Point, but I feel it doesn't have either the hooks of Fantasma or the pristine atmosphere of Point. Really excited about the new one but need to track it down first.

still loving nhk design ah. frogbs' comparison to the endless talking strikes me as a good one, but yeah, this is much more upbeat. still, both albums are very crisp and clear and move through a wide range of musical ideas quite quickly. and there are chopped up vox all over both of these albums.

but the modern production and slight techno edge on some nhk tracks is pleasantly bringing the hosono worship of the atom/masaki sakamoto collabo lp alien symphony to mind - particularly the parts miharu koshi guests on. I'm strictly talking about production here because alien symphony is DENSE music, but if you haven't heard that one, it is very much worth hearing and available in full on soundcloud:
https://soundcloud.com/sublimerecords/atomtm-masaki-sakamoto-alien-symphony

I hear what you guys are saying about Sensuous. I might be a little too in love with the overall sound/production; really think it's one of the best sounding albums of its time. Excited to hear the new stuff from everyone's descriptions!

btw apparently he's doing the new ghost in the shell soundtrack!

thanks for that one Alan - listening now and its defintely a good modern take on Hosono's S-F-X sound

and yeah it is a lot like this NHK album

awesome, glad you're digging it

i'll give it another listen tonight. I've always been curious about Atom Heart but he's that odd combination of A) prolific, B) obscure, and C) releases material under a zillion different names that makes it difficult for me to really get into him

My cat loves this. I bet he likes the bird song.

xpost yeah, I'd be curious of you find more "hosono-ey" atom material. much of what I've heard has had a 90s ambient techno vibe (which I also like)

new compilation out - Constellations of Music, partly a remix comp like the others but there is a decent amount of new stuff there, some with salyu x salyu. The Bird and Bee remix is of a song I haven't heard before. Flows a lot better than the CM albums. Check it out!

oooh, new salyu x salyu! thanks for the heads up, will be checking that out.

also, haven't checked out the new ghost in the shell ost but I do like the opener (which he produced):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7DuRYkthjU

I have the ost, it's very good!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQZNSOUkI7w

original backdrop vid for "Free Fall" from "Fantasma"! they have the one from "Mic Check" up as well. so cool....

https://media.giphy.com/media/puE3RO6CeBKfK/giphy.gif
i see some John Whitney at the beginning. a lot of amazing 80s vector CGI stuff. anyone know what ^this is from?

http://i.imgur.com/sNxf2AA.jpg

last night the Cornelius instagram posted a weird black and white animation with minimal sounds (alternating drum machine kick and snare) then the following info:

0426 FIRST SINGLE
0524 SECOND SINGLE
0628 NEW ALBUM

!

CLASSIC

And why's it taken him so long to release another proper album? But I'm glad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efJp-0GHKp0

I missed the Penguin Cafe/Cornelius EP.

oh wow I missed that too. "Bird Watching at Inner Forest" is my favorite Cornelius track, for real

why'd it take him so long? hard to say but maybe he felt his solo style hit a dead end? for the record there's two, maybe three things I think you could count as Cornelius albums since Sensuous was released 11 (!!!) years ago - the NHK Ah Um soundtrack, the salyu x salyu album, and the Constellations of Music disc which is half a remix album and half new material. he's also been in the band Metafive which were fairly active the last couple years. so he's been busy, at least!

Sensuous feels like the ultimate refinement of his style for sure, perhaps too refined in places? Very interested to hear where he's going with this one.

yea I'm pretty excited for the first single - his style hasn't seemed to evolve much in the past 10 years but I wouldn't be surprised if he had something up his sleeve for this

wow i haven't listened to anything after Sensuous. i'm going to need to check that stuff out!

why'd it take him so long - he produces a lot (didn't he get his start producing Pizzicato Five in 1993) so yeah in all the gaps between albums he is doing art shows, soundtrack music, playing in different bands, producing other people, etc.

I was always a fan of Beastie Boys remix from a few years back:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2inCuVYieY

the NHK Ah Um soundtrack

oh yeah, the Design-Ah show, i forgot about this. it was fucking awesome!

This is fab, love me some Salyu x Salyu

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lzu5ST8CnM

didn't he promise a new album back in 2010 or something that never materialised (until now)? i'm excited for this anyway

i quite enjoyed the salyu x salyu album, really wish i'd been able to see her/them live when they were here a few years ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brec06BA6JU

Have always LOVED this Kings Of Convenience "Tusen Takk Rework" of "Drop"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EEWPZJrPP0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmO7KLDE8ss

I've always enjoyed this meta-meta remix.

his James Brown remix is awesome. video's kind of a headache though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnsxXh22-2g

salyu record is so good

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgHQj3li4gY

listening to Sensuous again. i really love this album. i think he keeps getting better. "Scum" is so good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfL63RbD0Jg

"Omstart"? man, this is nice. very Soft Machine.

geez that preview doesn't really reveal much

there's a lot to like about Sensuous but, idk, I just feel like the songs don't go far enough. like "Fit Song", it seems to cut out right as it starts to get interesting, like it starts to loosen up and jam out and then it just cuts out. seeing him live on that tour definitely helped a lot though - "Like a Rolling Stone", which I never cared for much on the album, sounded absolutely massive during the show

The artwork & font are really ugly, but I'm still psyched.

Making me think of Ed Hardy T-shirts for some reason.

lol i get a early 90s dot matrix vibe. like they used Clarisworks

salyu record is so good

ya I'm playing it now and I'm really blown away by it. it really is like a Cornelius album with an actual singer.

https://i.imgur.com/ZiT4elWm.jpg

Trattoria Menu 100: A Musical Souvenir Of Trattoria Menu.100's Magic Kingdom
https://www.discogs.com/Various-Trattoria-Menu100-A-Musical-Souvenir-Of-Trattoria-Menu100s-Magic-Kingdom/release/3125736

i won this on ebay recently. it is a really awesome promo item. a picture disc and 3 CDs that comes in a sturdy LP jacket with a cool booklet and lots of little toys and things. it makes me think of Sgt. Pepper or Magical Mystery Tour, this set. there is a set of collectible cards with various musical groups. there is a cut-out paper British Royal-style crown. there is a Disneyland-style giant map of the Magic Kingdom. it's sick.

the music is very cool too. i haven't listened to Shibuya-Kei in a long time but i used to jam this stuff back in high school and revisiting it was a treat. the music is very heavy on a style of 90's retro that is equally 60's lounge/exotica inspired as well as 70's funk and tv soundtrack music. but with a heavy dose of new wave, drone, and shoegaze (especially on disc 3 "Hear Nothing" (there are 3 CDs titled "See Nothing", "Say Nothing" "Hear Nothing")).

lots of random indie rock that sounds like 60's psychedelic pop. plus some genuine weird old stuff that got re-discovered by these Japanese hipsters in the first place. The Free Design and Children of Judah sit next to their own acts and yet somehow it works. brilliant. if you can track this down on SLSK i recommend it.

thanks for the headsup, this does indeed look really cool, i'm jealous!

so wait none of you are talking about Mellow Waves? very good album imo, polished, suave, catchy in parts, trippy in parts.

great record, more people should hear it

#10 on my Pazz & Jop ballot. It's getting a US physical release in a few weeks, I'm excited to finally hear it on my stereo.

Ghost in the Shell: Arise OST from 2013 apparently now on streaming services. I could only find this, which may in fact be it.
https://open.spotify.com/album/4tbdfvxeV1392LkpIOLhqR?si=bNanzLRgR9amQaKOgi0PGQ