Pretentious and Excessive but gets better with each listen.
author: Craig Marks
Upon first listen, I wasn't sure what to make of this CD when I was handed it. It begins with an upbeat techno groove with female chanting and sampling. Obviously I wasn't sure what was setting this album apart from other techno offerings. After listening to the entire CD closely, it became apparent that this CD was totally unexpected and ingenious. I wouldn't call this album a theme piece, however, it IS crafted in such a way to alter your mood halfway through. Tracks 1- 6 are full on upbeat tempos woven together nicely with synths, bass, guitars and ambient textures. Track 6, the title track "Amethysm", is a full on assault of probably every sound the band could get their hands on. from there on in, track 7-11 (12 if you count the hidden bonus track)are pure mellow and at times depressing offerings. Sailing into the darkness actually dropped my mood to a depressing state after hearing it.........but hang in there for the hidden track. It's a haunting melody with what sounds like 2XL (remember him?) chiming into the track a few times. So what do I think? At first, I thought pertentions and excessive. I now call it a time release CD that gets better with each listen. I like it. I give it 4 stars because it totally caught me off guard and turned my ear to something new. So take my advise, if you buy this CD, be patient, it will be worth it.
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Good music for driving or waking up in the morning!
author: Lynne Collins
Backdrift's "Amethysm" is a very good effort for a debut CD. The music is strong and it features a lot of drum n bass. The synth and Pads are properly arranged and not too overdone. This album could have benefitted from more use of vocals however as it is primarily an instrumental album with female vocals accenting the music. Interesting use of samplings on a couple of tracks as well. Overall, this is a really good album and I give it 3 stars. I recommend this CD for long drives as it is actually best listened to as a full body of work, not just for a few good songs. It's also great for getting ready for your day as there are a lot of bass pounding tracks to get you up and going. I'm interested in hearing their follow up album when it is released.
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