Slowdive Album: “Souvlaki”

Souvlaki is a pretty incredible album, and it certainly contains some of the most beautiful guitar sounds set to tape. Had this record not fallen victim to the usual label nonsense back in the day thanks in part to SBK records (their U.S. label), it might have garnered some more attention. But unfortunately, My Bloody Valentine's classic Loveless overshadowed many great shoegazer records of the day, including this one. Yes, Loveless is the epitome of the "shoegazer" trend, easily the best record the movement produced. But Souvlaki is a very close second, focusing on creating a lusher soundscape than Loveless' onslaught of white noise. Mixing the dreamy guitar patterns of MBV with the ethereal ambience of the Cocteau Twins, Slowdive were brilliant in their creation of surreal soundscapes. "Alison" deservedly gets attention as a brilliant pop single, but "When The Sun Hits," "40 Days," and the Eno-touched "Sing" are all not to be overlooked. The strangely-titled "Souvlaki Space Station" is another highlight, a brilliant mixture of white noise, delay, layering, and instrument manipulation creating a perfect soundscape that nobody's really been able to duplicate. This record is a must for anybody who worships Loveless.

I was tempted to give the album, a huge lush affair with the dreamy kind of music Shoe Gazers have learned to expect, only four stars. Why? Because a few delicious wispy pieces are interrupted, inexplicably, by pieces that are grating and noisy and don't contribute to the album's ethereal, intoxicated mood but jar the listener out of his or her half-sleep. However, I still have to give this album five stars because only two songs are stinkers. It's hard to find an album with eleven strong songs, full of aching, dripping melancholy. If you like Slowdive, you will surely enjoy Silver Screen's single "All I Have" and the Cocteau Twins most gazing masterpiece Victorialand. You will also be pleased with a song by Bent titled "A Ribbon for My Hair." And finally, you will be blissed out by "Spiders and Flies" by Mercury Rev.

This album combines the talents of Neil Halsted (singer and songwriter) Rachael Goswell And my favorite Brian Eno who played Keyboards for David Bowie. The album is a mixture of beautiful melodies and Harmonies in the keys of D,B,A & E. The vocal harmonies of Neil and Rachael flows beautifully and it is very colorful in it's unique guitar texture. The song, Melon Yellow has these beautiful cymbals in reverse and the minimal bass lines make this song sound dark and mystical. My personal favorites on this album are 'When the Sun Hits','Dagger'& '40 Days'. Brian Eno recorded this incredible album but he also co-wrote two songs on this album and he played keyboards on 'Sing'. This band is one of my all time favorite bands. I saw Slowdive, live two times before they broke up and the talent in this band is just amazing. They wrote so many beautiful songs and made so many major contributions to the ShoeGazer scene but in England they never were as big as they were here in the U.S. If you have a moment and love Brian Eno's music or even David Bowie, listen to this album. It's a great influence on any aspiring musician.

As I write this, i am listening to SOUVLAKI SPACE STATION..come along, will you? For the past 10 years, I can honestly say there is not a day that goes by, without me thinking of, or listening to Slowdive. Snowboarding to this at Lake Tahoe every weekend in the winter just adds to the majestry of the vistas, and the experience. I HAVE to travel to this CD. period. Everywhere I go, its goes. I wish I could tally all the times I have rewound SING,SOUVALKI SPACE STATION,Mellon Yellow,SOME VELVET MORNING, or 40 days-it would be obscene. One part of me wishes to find an album with such an impact-and part of me doesn't. I will forever recommend this album, for anyone who has lost a love...or wants to remember what youth feels like..or just wants to kick back, and blaze a blunt. Sometimes, just sometimes, I feel as if I get some of my soul back when I listen...

I love this CD. It's so different from anything else I own. There is definitely a LOT of feeing in this music. The songs, and the album as a whole, are very cohesive. I definitely think Slowdive have a lot of different influences; for example, I think Just For A Day sounds a bit reminicent of Disintegration, Cocteau Twins.. maybe even a bit of Closer. But on Souvlaki, the sounds are really blended together into a new whole.. combining other sounds like MBV.. only the production is just about perfect on this album.

I was actually really turned off by the guy's voice when I first heard Alison, but I gave the CD another try a few weeks later. Souvlaki Space Station was the first one to catch my ear. Then Altogether. Then Melon Yellow. Then 40 Days. Etc. I basically love every song here, except maybe Here She Comes, which is still good. Sing is nice and adds variety as Rachel Goswell takes lead vocals. The opening cuts are good, When The Sun Hits is accessible and amazing, but I think the two that I really just can't get enough of are Melon Yellow and Dagger. Just awesome. Some Velvet Morning is quite atmospheric and moody and a fitting bonus track. The rest of the album goes quite ambient after that, with the next two cuts sounding almost a bit somewhere between This Mortal Coil and Aphex Twin, and the final cut actually sounds like it could have been lifted directly from Blood to me.

Also, I was a bit surprised to hear the manipulated feedback ending of Souvlaki Space Station. Radiohead do virtually the same thing (a few years later) with Karma Police. Perhaps it's a tribute.

It's hard to imagine anyone not liking this CD, unless you're a person who was really into Just For A Day prior to the release of this.