Album – Yours Makes Mine – Pete Samples

Posted by admin on February 6th, 2008

If there’s one thing I love, it’s having my aural senses cosseted and caressed. This is exactly what happened when I put in the new CD from Pete Samples and was greeted by the amazing, if a little short track “Bouquets of Balloons”, which really appeals to my love of the repetitive. Listening to amazing sounds and music that just roll in and out, like the serene majesty of the sea.

I’ve mentioned frequently my love of what I can only call the repetitive. One of the greatest examples is the first 30 seconds of the Who’s, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” which I’ve always wanted to splice together into a track that lasted an hour or so, but just never got around to. That same itch is ever present throughout this album. “Standing Upon the Shoulders of Giants”, is simply an amazing track that has all those early mentioned traits, but also has an almost hypnotic beauty. No complexities, no over production, just sheer magic.

All through the album, there’s the unmistakable sound of vinyl, the crackles and pops, that remind me so much of listening to Tangerine Dream and Pink Floyd. Indeed there’s a very strong 70’s flavour to many of the tracks, or rather influence, that combines effortlessly with the sound of the naughties. “Angered Man: Novelty Store” is probably the most intense track on the album, which is hardly surprising given the title, which certainly does little to hide it’s wrath.

The 10 track album ends with “And All the Kids Smile” which feels very much like a reprise of sorts. It’s interesting to hear so many different elements of the album converge on this one track. Kids singing, repetition, harsher sound. Although I said this is a 10 track album, on my pressing there are in fact an extra 3 tracks. Track 11 seems to be a reworking of “Standing upon the Shoulders of Giants”. I say reworking, but it’s probably just a different mix sans vocals, as it lasts the exact same amount of time. Similarly for the other two tracks, which are different mixes of “If Something Changed” and “And All the Kids Smile”.

Conclusion : This is such an interesting album, from so many different viewpoints. I love to put this album on to unwind and just let me mind go soaring. If you are into the ambient and mellow, there’s so much here to enjoy.

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