Pretty In Black

Amazon.com
Named in homage to Buddy Holly’s greatest rocker, Denmark’s Raveonettes have forged small, satisfying changes on twangy garage pop over three records. (Think somewhere between Chris Isaak and the Jesus and Mary Chain.) Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo’s second full-length, Pretty in Black, makes the duo’s influences even more explicit than before with a cover of the Angels’girl-group monster "My Boyfriend’s Back" (co-written by Raveonettes co-producer Richard Gottehrer) and "Here Comes Mary," a ballad that walks almost as closely in the melodic steps of the Everly Brothers "All I Have to Do is Dream" as "Surfin’ U.S.A." did those of "Sweet Little Sixteen." But it’s the new tricks they unpack--the shimmy of "Love in a Trashcan," the disco stomp of "Twilight"--that make this their own music. --Rickey Wright

Pretty In Black,The Raveonettes,Sony,Denmark,Indie Rock,Noise Pop,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop

Pretty In Black

Purcell: Songs & Airs / Argenta, North, Boothby, Nicholson, Toll

Average customer rating:

Nice Collection
PERFECT!
Great singing and excellent value for money
More than two hours of beautiful 17th century 'ayres'

Purcell: Songs & Airs / Argenta, North, Boothby, Nicholson, Toll
Henry Purcell , Nancy Argenta , and Nigel North
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Odes | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Purcell: The Fairy Queen
Essential Purcell
Purcell: Odes for St. Cecilia's Day - Music for Queen Mary / Taverner Consort
Bach: Cantatas
Gabrieli · Monteverdi · Vivaldi - Venetian Church Music / Taverner Consort, Choir & Players · Andrew Parrott

ASIN: B000059LOH
Release Date: 2001-06-05

Tracks:

O Solitude - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North
Ah! How Sweet It Is To Love - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
Not All My Torments - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Paul Nicholson
Stripp'd Of Their Green - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
Tell Me, Some Pitying Angel - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
If Music Be The Food Of Love - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
Hark! Hark! The Echoing Air - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
The Fatal Hour Comes On Apace - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North
Incassum, Lesbia - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Paul Nicholson
Sweeter Than Roses - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby
Cupid, The Slyest Rogue Alive - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
From Silent Shades - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
Dear Pretty Youth - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby
From Rosy Bow'rs - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
Now That The Sun Hath Veil'd His Light - Nancy Argenta/Paul Nicholson
Beneath A Poplar's Shadow - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby
I Attempt From Love's Sickness To Fly - Nancy Argenta/Paul Nicholson
Let Us Dance - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/Richard Boothby/Paul Nicholson
Fairest Isle - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North
O Solitude - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby

Tracks:

Nymphs And Shepherds - Nancy Argenta/Nicholas Robinson/Fiona Huggett/Trevor Jones/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Amidst The Shades And Cool Refreshing Streams - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North
Love In Their Little Veins Inspires - Nancy Argenta/Rachel Becket/Marion Scott/Richard Boothby/Nigel North
Fly Swift, Ye Hours - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
They Tell Us That Your Mighty Powers - Nancy Argenta/Nicholas Robinson/Fiona Huggett/Trevor Jones/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
The Plaint: O Let Me Weep - Nancy Argenta/Pauline Nobes/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
In The Black, Dismal Dungeon Of Despair - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/John Toll
See, Even Night Herself Is Here - Nancy Argenta/Nicholas Robinson/Fiona Huggett/Trevor Jones
Why Should Men Quarrel? - Nancy Argenta/Rachel Becket/Marion Scott/Richard Boothby/John Toll
Seek Not To Know - Nancy Argenta/Paul Goodwin/Sophia McKenna/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Retir'd From Mortals' Sight - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North
To Arms, Heoric Prince - Nancy Argenta/Mark Bennett/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
O Lead Me To Some Peaceful Gloom - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Halcyon Days - Nancy Argenta/Paul Goodwin/Pauline Nobes/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Bid The Virtues - Nancy Argenta/Paul Goodwin/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Lord, What Is Man? (A Divine Hymn) - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Music For A While - Nancy Argenta/John Toll
If Music Be The Food Of Love (1st Setting) - Nancy Argenta/Richard Boothby/John Toll
Sawney Is A Bonny Lad (A Scotch Song) - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North
When I Have Often Heard Young Maids Complaining - Nancy Argenta/Nicholas Robinson/Fiona Huggett/Richard Boothby/Nigel North/John Toll
Ah! Cruel, Bloody Fate - Nancy Argenta/Nigel North/John Toll
Thy Hand, Belinda... When I Am Laid In Earth - Nancy Argenta/Nicholas Robinson/Fiona Huggett/Trevor Jones/Richard Boothby/Nigel North

Customer Reviews:

Nice Collection.......2007-03-05

I have many collections of Purcell's Music. This collection stands up to them at half the price. Solid buy.

PERFECT!.......2006-10-26

There is only a word with which I can describe this set of discs: perfect!
The only flaw there is, is not related to the singing or playing: no text enclosed.

Great singing and excellent value for money.......2004-09-19

This is probably one of the best anthologies of Purcell songs around, and not just because it's two-for-one pricing means it contains twice as much music (CD1:74'24" & CD2: 77'41")! Nancy Argenta has an irrepressible sense of style and crystal clear diction. But unlike Emma Kirby, whose vocal purity can become tiresome, these renditions radiate warmth. She is also, I have found, more consistently involving than any one of the singers in Hyperion's three disc survey of Complete Secular Songs (recently reissued as a single set). One marvels at how she judiciously balances restraint and emotional forthrightness. The accompaniments (archlute, viola da gamba, harpsichord, and organ) are well judged and blend with the voice, all helped by an excellently defined recording acoustic. This is an absolute winner at any price!

More than two hours of beautiful 17th century 'ayres'.......2001-08-02

Two CDs, totaling more than 150 minutes of sparsely-arranged (never more than 3-5 instruments at a time), sweetly-sung, 350 year old 'ayres' (a typically English form of secular music). Nancy Argenta's soprano voice is lovely, silvery indeed as her name implies. The instruments are a discreet but friendly accompaniment to her solo voice. Perhaps the instruments are a little too discreet -- there are times when I wish they were a touch more prominent. But that is a very, very minor complaint. A beautiful collection, and quite well worth the money.

Average customer rating:

Beauty
Wonderful.
Wayfaring Stranger: Folksongs
Surprisingly good
Brilliant

Wayfaring Stranger: Folksongs

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Folk | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Andreas Scholl - English Folksongs & Lute Songs (17th Century)
The Best of Andreas Scholl
The Voice
Andreas Scholl - Kantate
Andreas Scholl - Ombra mai fu ~ Handel Arias from Giulio Cesare, Admeto, Radamisto, Rodelinda, Serse, Alcina

ASIN: B00005OC0C
Release Date: 2001-11-13

Tracks:

Wayfaring stranger
Down by the Salley Gardens
My love is like a red red rose
Wild mountain thyme
Henry Martin
Charming beauty bright
I will give my love an apple
She moved through the fair
Blow the wind southerly
Wife of Usher's well
I loved a lass
Pretty Saro
Down in yon forest
Barbara Allen
Raggle taggle gypsies o
Annie Laurie
Black is the color of my true love's hair

Amazon.com

The German countertenor Andreas Scholl takes risks on his latest CD, Wayfaring Stranger, and not all of them pay off. It is a recording of 17 English-language folksongs, some of them very well known, such as "Down by the Salley Gardens" and "My love is like a red, red rose." This is not usually a repertory tackled by classically trained singers, who can sound prissy, but Scholl's clear, plaintive alto, with its rich low notes and gentle top range, is a quite plausible vehicle. "Wild Mountain Thyme" evokes real sadness, while "Barbara Allen" aches with unhappy love. A surprise awaits in the ballad "Henry Martin," as Scholl uses his rough, nondescript baritone to identify the hero. It is rather a jolt. At least, it is good to know his voice has actually broken. In this song, too-feminine endings in the lyric fall clumsily on stressed beats. Scholl does nothing to counter the infelicity; English, of course, is not his mother tongue. In the beautiful title track, which opens the disc, he sings endearingly of a "why-farring straincher." The accompaniments for various combinations of chamber orchestra, lute, dulcimer, and harp tend to be slushy, sentimental, and over-fussy. The bass uncomfortably parallels the tune in "Salley Gardens" and would have won a big red line through it in old-fashioned harmony classes. Still, on the whole, this is a worthwhile disc. Scholl clearly loves the songs he sings with great tenderness, and he deserves credit for his courage even where the experiment fails. --Rick Jones

Customer Reviews:

Beauty.......2006-05-12

This is one of the most beautiful CDs I know: so pure in tone, so haunting in its harmonies. The reservations of some other listeners seem to make this quality a sort of fault, and perhaps it is if you like your ballads gritty; but I find the selections, the arrangements, and Scholl's singing so ravishing that I felt I had to write this review just to urge everyone to try it. Listen to "I Will Give My Love ..." You might feel your heart stop.

Wonderful. .......2006-03-14

This is the perfect CD to listen to one a cold winter's afternoon with a warm cup of tea and a good book. Scholl's voice is so pure and smoothing. The orchestral arrangements are very creative and lush - sort of an English version of Canteloube's Chants d'Auvergne. The one down note I would have is eventhough Scholl's voice is very expressive his phrasing can be a little square. I would have liked him to take a bit more liberties with the sentences. The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra musical fluidity more than makes up for any of Scholl's rigidity however.
A recommended buy.

Wayfaring Stranger: Folksongs.......2005-10-26

This is a fantastic CD. The countertenor voice of Andreas Scholl gives an entirley new
meaning to traditional folk music. The orchestration is just enough to give a haunting sound to each selection. ' Wayfaring stranger' and 'Wild mountain thyme' are two selections that make the purchasing of the CD worth the pice.

Surprisingly good.......2005-03-05

At first I was suspicious due to the album's sleek marketing and desing. But right from the start I was delighted to hear the lush arrangements of these peculiar songs.

Granted, we do hear quite a lot of strings and even some sound effects that make the music sound dangerously "romantic", or worse, "exotic"...

And yes, the arrangements become very similar to those used by Sarah Brightman, Bocelli and other musical aberrations.... but Scholl's scholarly perfection of voice and delivery save the day. Not only that, but his (limited) potential to characterize the music is in full capacity... especially in the songs where he actually sings in his baritone in a self-contained duet.

Yes, the strings are too warm. And yes, there are parts that could even fit as background music for Disneyworld rides... And yes, it can at times sound cheap and "postcard-ish".........

But, truth be told, sometimes a Coke tastes better than Bordeaux, and sometimes a "Little Debbie" cake hits the spot better than the Sachertorte.

So, if you want to listen to songs that are warm and glowing -albeit effectist-, sung by a first class musician... this album will do the trick.

For those who are new to Scholl, I strongly reccomend his earlier CD's --namely those containing the Handel Arias, the English Lute Songs, and the German Baroque lieder.

As for "Wayfaring Stranger", play close attention to "My Love is a Red Red Rose"... If you've ever felt true love, this is the song to make you cry.

Brilliant.......2005-01-11

Putting this wonderful voice together with an easy-listening style of ochestration was simply a brilliant idea.

This compilation will surely bring this wondrous voice to the attention of a wholly different public to the one which presently adores Andreas, and secondly, it will introduce these folk treasures to an audience at present virtually ignorant of them.

Add this one to your Scholl collection

Average customer rating:

MY ALL TIME FAVORITE ALBUM
Come on baby, You're my best fix
Buy This!
Righteous
(three and a half stars) similar in quality to "Chain Gang of Love"

Pretty In Black
The Raveonettes
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

The Chain Gang of Love
Whip It On
Show Your Bones
You Could Have It So Much Better
Broken Boy Soldiers

ASIN: B0007WF1VO
Release Date: 2005-05-03

Tracks:

The Heavens
Seductress Of Bums
Love In A Trashcan
Sleep Walking
Uncertain Times
My Boyfriend's Back
Here Comes Mary
Red Tan
Twighlight
Somewhere In Texas
You Say You Lie
Ode To L.A.
If I Was Young

Amazon.com

Named in homage to Buddy Holly's greatest rocker, Denmark's Raveonettes have forged small, satisfying changes on twangy garage pop over three records. (Think somewhere between Chris Isaak and the Jesus and Mary Chain.) Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo's second full-length, Pretty in Black, makes the duo's influences even more explicit than before with a cover of the Angels'girl-group monster "My Boyfriend's Back" (co-written by Raveonettes co-producer Richard Gottehrer) and "Here Comes Mary," a ballad that walks almost as closely in the melodic steps of the Everly Brothers "All I Have to Do is Dream" as "Surfin' U.S.A." did those of "Sweet Little Sixteen." But it's the new tricks they unpack--the shimmy of "Love in a Trashcan," the disco stomp of "Twilight"--that make this their own music. --Rickey Wright

Customer Reviews:

MY ALL TIME FAVORITE ALBUM.......2007-07-18

This is my one CD I would want while stranded on a deserted island. I guess I think of this music as the most elegant, mature, and subtle way to be entirely creepy, and it's the kind of thing that refuses to stoop to desperate means in order to be creepy. You have to meet this album half way to even notice it's scary quality...it's not some aggro/Americana kind of violence. It's more like a disturbing calm like ghosts from the 50's and 60's that you don't ever realize are ghosts. I listen to this CD mostly alone because it means too much to me for me to waste one second letting someone badmouth it. If you don't like this then you must have worse ADD than me, because this is the music I am requesting when I'm institutionalized and they are looking for something to calm me down.

Come on baby, You're my best fix.......2007-07-05

Inventive Denmark duo, The Raveonettes, have outdone themselves with their 2005 sophomore effort "Pretty In Black". Changing up the pace considerably from their debut album "Chain Gang of Love", "Pretty In Black" ranges from slow weeping guitars to fast paced surf rock and most places in between on its way there. Believe me, they're all the better for it as well.

The songs on the disc intertwine quite well, and all seem to have a sense of modern rock feel to them, though they wouldn't seem to out of place on the top 40 chart from 1960. This is certainly evident on a cover of The Angel's 1963 hit "My Boyfriend's Back" and "Here Comes Mary" which is almost too similar to an older Everly Brothers hit. "The Heavens" gets things started with a nice euphonic ballad that really showcases the vocal talent of both singers. Singing simultaneously (like they do much throughout the disc) creates another aspect to their amply unique sound.

All in all the album has it's highs "Love In A Trashcan", "Uncertain Times", "Red Tan". And its lows "Twighlight", "Ode To LA". The creative, modern retro feel, gives it enough originality to be worth a listen to just about anybody who enjoys something different. And who knows, you just might fall in love with the smooth melodic voices of both Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo. I did.

Buy This!.......2006-05-06

I heard The Ravonettes "Chain Gang of Love" in a music store several years ago and bought it... have loved listening to it, but wished there were slightly more variations from song to song. Well, this cd seems to be it!!! I listened to every song, and I was happy to do it. I have to love the foundation sound of a band...then look for fluxuation from song to song...this is still The Ravonettes, which is great, but even better! Sounds like a fusion of so many other classic sounds from the past- 60's splashed with 80's era with a modern twist ...modern that's good that is, poppy/punk-ish...so, listen and see if you don't agree...bet cha won't!

Righteous.......2006-04-22

This is an album that has some of the best hooks that I've heard in years. These people have intensity and discipline and beauty. They emulate Phil Spector with breathtaking effect. Using Ronnie Spector is a ballsy move, and they make it effective.

(three and a half stars) similar in quality to "Chain Gang of Love".......2006-04-10

With the Raveonettes third album, "Pretty in Black" (a play on the Psychedelic Furs' track "Pretty in Pink"?) I can basically repeat my Amazon review for their preceding album "Chain Gang of Love." The band, consisting of the Danish duo of Sune Rose Wagner (the writer of almost all of the songs) and Sharin Foo, is obviously interested in several genres of American rock-and roll, including Motown, 60's girl groups, surf music, and western themes; as well as British bands such as The Jesus and Mary Chain.

To put it simply, I like the Raveonettes when they have some pace to the song. On "Pretty in Black," those songs are "Love in a Trashcan," "Sleepwalking," "Twilight," "Somewhere in Texas," and "You Say You Lie." I guess hearing Sharin Foo singing a perhaps too faithful rendition of "My Boyfriend's Back," and Ronnie Spector doing "Ode to L.A." is kind of fun, but it makes the band sound more like a novelty act than anything else. I do appreciate, however, the tribute to the theme from the "Twilight Zone," in "Twilight." The band's slower songs are O.K., but that's as far as I'd go.

Anyway, after three albums, the Raveonettes remain one of the more exciting bands of the last few years. I'm looking forward to seeing them live, as well as to their fourth album, which I hope marks a return to the sound of their debut E.P. "Whip It On," still the best thing they ever did.

Song Cycles and Songs by Vaughan Williams, Warlock, Butterworth and Gurney

Average customer rating:

Song Cycles and Songs by Vaughan Williams, Warlock, Butterworth and Gurney

Manufacturer: EMI Records [All429]
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Songs by Roger Quilter

ASIN: B00005Q2X9
Release Date: 2002-02-05

Tracks:

The House Of Life: I. Love-Sight
The House Of Life: II. Silent Noon
The House Of Life: III. Love's Minstrels
The House Of Life: IV. Heart's Haven
The House Of Life: V. Death In Love
The House Of Life: VI. Love's Last Gift
Songs Of Travel: I. The Vagabond
Songs Of Travel: II. Let Beauty Awake
Songs Of Travel: III. The Roadside Fire
Songs Of Travel: IV. Youth And Love
Songs Of Travel: V. In Dreams
Songs Of Travel: VI. The Infinite Shining Heavens
Songs Of Travel: VII. Whither Must I Wander
Songs Of Travel: VIII. Bright Is The Ring Of Words
Songs Of Travel: IX. I Have Trod The Upward And The Downward Slope

Tracks:

The Land Of Lost Content: I. The Lent Killy
The Land Of Lost Content: II. Ladslove
The Land Of Lost Content: III. Goal And Wicket
The Land Of Lost Content: IV. The Vain Desire
The Land Of Lost Content: V. The Encounter
The Land Of Lost Content: VI. Epilogue
Down By The Salley
An Epitaph
Desire In Spring
Black Stitchel
A Shropshire Lad: I. Loveliest Of Trees
A Shropshire Lad: II. When I Was One-And-Twenty
A Shropshire Lad: III. Look Not In My Eyes
A Shropshire Lad: IV. Think No More, Lad
A Shropshire Lad: V. The Lads In Their Hundreds
A Shropshire Lad: VI. Is My Team Ploughing?
A Prayer To St. Anthony
The Sick Heart
My Own Country
Passing By
Pretty Ring Time

Average customer rating:

nice progression...regardless of common mentallity!
Wrapped in "Black"

Pretty in Black
The Raveonettes
Manufacturer: Sony/Columbia
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Whip It On
The Chain Gang of Love

ASIN: B00080CNIE
Release Date: 2005-08-01

Tracks:

Heavens
Seductress Of Bums
Love In A Trashcan
Sleepwalking
Uncertain Times
My Boyfriend's Back
Here Comes Mary
Red Tan
Twilight
Somewhere In Texas
You Say You Lie
Ode To L.A.
If I Was Young
I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry (Bonus Track)
Everyday (Bonus Track)
Black Wave (Bonus Track)
I Wanna Be Taken (Bonus Track)

Album Description

UK version of their 2005 album features four exclusive bonus tracks, `I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry', `Everyday', `Black Wave' and `I Wanna Be Taken'. Danish duo The Raveonettes aka Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo return with their new album `Pretty In Black'. The follow up to 2003's `Chain Gang of Love'. `Pretty In Black' is virtually fuzz-free, with stunning results. Wagner's deep affection for early rock & roll and girl-group bop comes through bright and clear, as do his glass-sheet harmonies with vocalist and co-founder Sharin Foo. Sony. 2005.

Album Details

The Japanese Edition of the Danish Duo's 2005 Opus, Co-produced by Rock Vet Richard Gottehrer Includes Four Bonus Tracks Not Found on the USA Equivalent: A Cover of Hank Williams' "i'm So Lonesome I Could Cry", "Everyday", "Black Wave" and "i Wanna Be Take

Customer Reviews:

nice progression...regardless of common mentallity!.......2006-01-03

Noone seems to like change. But in some cases, change can be good if given a chance. I was a huge fan of their first two cds. I think, while this album is different than those two, it is a great progression. I, unlike others I guess, like it when bands try to progress and move on. The same goes for the new B.R.M.C. Everyone seems to be so put off by the difference in sound that they don't listen to the actual songs and album. If the Beatles had kept releasing Please Please Me over and over, we would have missed out on their best music! Open your minds!

Wrapped in "Black".......2005-09-03

Let it be known: "Pretty in Black" is not the same Raveonettes you know and love.

Sure we have the creepy vocals from Sune Rose Wagner, and the rough retro sound. But after two increasingly catchy albums' worth of music, the Raveonettes have gotten a lot poppier. The trend started in "Chain Gang of Love" peaks here, in a controversial new sound that retains some of the gloomy grandeur, but loses the ragged lo-fi sound.

Acoustics and echoes start it off on a surprisingly soft note, considering that this was the band who turned "tornado rock" into an art form. And Sharin Foo takes lead vocals an ethereal ballad, before shifting back into garage-rock form with "Love in a Trashcan," which sounds like the Velvet Underground's catchier moments.

What follows is a mixture of rough-edged ballads and pop songs, mixed in with the slightly fuzzy rock'n'roll that the Raveonettes have made famous. That bleak sound remains in it, especially when Wagner sets his creepy vocals in the middle of the songs, or when he harmonizes alongside Foo for that androgynous effect.

A cringeworthy moment comes in with the truly awful cover of "My Boyfriend's Back," where Foo sings without a shred of irony, "look out now/cause he's comin' after you!/Hey ya hey ya/my boyfriend's back." Call me a weirdo, but right now I really long for songs about how your sweetie is a little animal and how she always wants to... well, you get the idea.

Anyhow, it's pretty obvious that the Raveonettes have turned a major corner with "Pretty in Black" -- it's catchy and retropoppy, and much of their "tornado-rock" edge has vanished. Instead of distortion pedals and bass, they use more percussion, guitar and some wicked organ,

Taken only by itself, is it a good album? Well, yes. It's not the same as the previous albums by the Raveonettes, but it is an entertaining indie pop album, alternately bleak and catchy, snide and dark. And it's rough, slightly fuzzed rhythms haven't changed too much -- they simply lack the dark distortion, which, ironically, was what attracted many fans to them.

The latter half of the album has some more exotic stylings, like a tambourine and some truly eerie electronic wobbles and wavers. And "Pretty In Black" does differ a lot from the previous two in one way: Sharin Foo lends her pretty, strong vocals to several songs, sometimes solo and sometimes alongside Wagner.

Retro mod-pop -- rather than dark distortion rock -- is the sound of "Pretty in Black," the lightest of the Raveonettes' albums thus far. Entertaining, but if they go any further into the pop wilderness, they may lose their edge altogether. Here's hoping they keep their accessibility, but don't lose that dark, rough edge.

Sin (Long, Short, Dub) / Get Down Make Love (UK 4 track EP - BLACK cover)

Average customer rating:

Sin (Long, Short, Dub) / Get Down Make Love (UK 4 track EP - BLACK cover)
Nine Inch Nails
Manufacturer: TVT Records / Island Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Survivalism, Pt. 2
March of the Pigs
Survivalism, Pt. 1

ASIN: B000QXYPYI

Product Description

1989 UK release for HALO 4, the CD single of "Sin". This is the cool black digipak version featuring designwork by the UK's prestigious, groundbreaking graphics gurus The Designers Republic. TRACKLISTING: 1. SIN (Short) 4:19, 2. SIN (Long) 5:50, 3. GET DOWN MAKE LOVE, 4. SIN (Dub). All 3 remixes of "Sin" done by Adrian Sherwood and Keith LeBlanc of Tackhead Sound System fame. "Get Down Make Love" is a cover of a Queen song and was written by the late Freddie Mercury, and was produced by Hypo Luxa (Al Jourgensen of Ministry / Revolting Cocks.)

Average customer rating:

Wrapped in "Black"

Pretty in Black
The Raveonettes
Manufacturer: Sony International
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B0009YA3BI
Release Date: 2005-08-01

Tracks:

Heavens
Seductress Of Bums
Love In A Trashcan
Sleepwalking
Uncertain Times
My Boyfriend's Back
Here Comes Mary
Red Tan
Twilight
Somewhere In Texas
You Say You Lie
Ode To L.A.
If I Was Young
I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry (Bonus Track)
Everyday (Bonus Track)
Black Wave (Bonus Track)
I Wanna Be Taken (Bonus Track)

Album Details

Customer Reviews:

Wrapped in "Black".......2005-08-10

John Langstaff Sings Archival Folk Collection

Average customer rating:

John Langstaff Sings Archival Folk Collection

Manufacturer: Revels Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Folk | Styles | Music

Traditional Folk | Folk | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00068CUQS
Release Date: 2004-11-02

Tracks:

O Waly, Waly/The Water Is Wide, I Cannot Get O'er
Carrion Crow
All 'Round My Had I Will Wear a Green Willow
Cruel Mother
Farmer's Curst Wife
Riddle Song/I Will Give My Love an Apple
Lord Rendal
Billy Boy
Croodin' Doo
John Barleycorn
Lover's Tasks
Green Wedding
She's Like the Swallow
John Riley

Tracks:

Bonnie Wee Thing
Pretty Sally
Two Brothers
Teh Deaf Woman's Courtship
At the Foot of Yonders Mountain
Rich Old Lady
There Was a Man in Our Town
Baby Bunting
When I Was a Little Boy
Rosey Boy, Posey Boy
Frog Went Courtin'
Dn Lover
Jockie to the Fair
Pretty Sally

Tracks:

False Knight Upon the Road
Little Turtle Dove
Seventeen Come Sunday
Sir Patrick Spens
Blow Away the Morning Dew
Trees They Do Grow High
Crawfish Man's Street City
She Moved Through the Fair
Golden Vanity
Rich Old Lady
Nottamun Town
John Barleycorn
Jolly Ploughboy
St. James Hospital
Brisk Young Widow
Six Dukes Went A-Fishing

Tracks:

Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair
Bingo
I Wish I Was a Child Again
Hares on the Mountain
Two Magicians
Trees They Do Grow High
Lady Maisry
Edward
As I Walked Through the Meadows
Lark in the Morn
Gypsy Laddie
Go and Tell Aunt Nancy
Soldier, Soldier, Won't You Marry Me?
Cripple Creek Girls
Tottenham Toad
Frog in the Well
Dance to Your Daddy
As I Was Going to Banbury
Swapping Song
Dashing Away With the Smoothing Iron
O My Love, Will You Wear Red?
Frog and the Mouse
Cocky Robin
What'll We Do With the Baby?
Mocking Bird (Hush Up, Baby)
Bye, Bye Baby
Tiny Man
Weekdays and Sundays
Oh Jacky, Stand Still
Turn Round, Turn Round
Basket Full of Nuts
Our Baby Prince
All the Ducks
Polly Perkin
Follow the Leader
Poor Doggie
Baby's Song

Album Description

John Langstaff, now 83 years of age, is the founder and director emeritus of Revels, the non-profit performing arts company that produces Revels Records as well as 'The Christmas Revels' annual winter solstice celebrations in 12 cities across the country. This is the complete collection of Langstaff's disc, featuring all four acclaimed previously re-released CDs originally recorded in England. The recordings have been digitally re-mastered at London's famed Abbey Road Studios. Included are many traditional British and American folk songs and ballads, most with simple, art song settings. Legendary pianists Sir Gerald Moore, Sam Mason and John Powell, as well as guitarist Martin Best, are featured.

Average customer rating:

Tha Block'z In Here Vol. 1
The Reason , The Bureau , The Regime , Yukmouth , Messy Maru , Mistah F.A.B. , San Quinn , Mob Figaz , Lil Hyfe , and Pretty Black
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

West Coast | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000MGID2Y

Product Description

21 track CD album