Album Notes

Transcendence is a 5-member alternative/modern rock band originally out of the local Miami underground rock scene. They have a very original sound called planet music that comes from their fusion of various musical styles and a very eclectic and intelligent songwriting by singer/songwriter Ed Hale who had long been a fixture on the scene, first playing with jangly-pop outift Broken Spectacles in the early nineties. The stunning charm of Rise and Shine, the band's debut on TMG Records, is its ability to sound hauntingly familiar and yet futuristic at the same time. There are many fantastic tracks on this album including Better luck next time, Do you know who you are, and Tres cool, Paris; in the title track, Rise and Shine, one can hear Hale sing in no less than four different languages while the band weaves a multitude of musical styles together to create an absolutely brilliant collage of sound and certainly the centerpiece of the album. It is hard to classify this CD as a "debut" due to the fact that Hale had already been recording for ten years prior to its release. More of a supergroup endeavour that still captivates after the band has released another two equally great CDs. But there is something to Rise and Shine that most agree is very special. The 12 songs proper on the album are well crafted, have great hooks, and great arrangements. Not a weak track to the bunch. Rise and Shine is a concept album that combines world-beat rhythms with catchy modern-rock guitar, bowiesque vocals, an extraordinary palette of experimental sounds, and the production is flawless.