Dirk Star
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Posted: June 27 2008, 23:55 |
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| Quote (Sir Mustapha @ June 27 2008, 02:36) | It has always been rather troublesome for me to be objective with someone else's music because, no matter how rigorous and precise I try to me, someone else will always disagree. Also, when I'm talking about my own music, I can be as objective as I want to be because... well, I made it.  But, well, I'll try.
Okay, so "listenable" is quite an hyperbole there because there's nothing on the track that I can't listen to; but it gets close on the "disco chanting" part: that vocal melody sounds like something straight out of some communist propaganda film, and the "disco" rhythm does little to help. But that's the only positively bad thing I can name in the song. Other than that, Mike seems to stick too much to those circular melodies that sound downright banal and childish next to most of what he had done until then; that opening theme is just going up and down on, what, four notes, and it's quite amazing that he turned it into something quite powerful in the middle of Five Miles Out. The track has those meandering, aimless parts I have talked about before, and some more consistent bits scattered over the track without anything really tying them together.
The problem is that there's still too much personal taste involved in defining what sounds nice and what doesn't, but to but it bluntly, when I run through the track in my head, there's nothing in it that "sticks", nothing that I look forwards to. So, even if someone made me change my mind about what I said on the paragraph above, I'd still dislike the piece. My tastes are stubborn, yes. |
"Circular melodies?" Themes just going up and down???...Are you suggesting that none of those Mike Oldfieldian trademarks are non present on Crises?..What about 16 bars of "de diddly`n der de de" for a start?..Kind of like Status Quo with a few extra chord changes thrown in,in a vain attempt to disguise it`s simplicity.The first time my wife heard that section of music she laughed out loud.Gave me a odd look of superior indignation and then walked out the room shaking her head.Or what about the age old guitar theme based on a "woah-heave-ho" sea shanty thing that appears earlier in the track?How many times has Mike re-wrote that particular piece now?..."Yeah I`ll change a few notes round and just keep adding more instruments when it repeats itself..No one will notice!"..The only melody I can actually think of on that album that is argueably stronger than anything on Taurus 2(apart from the tubular bells theme itself of course)Is the section of the synth/mandolin melody that comes after the circular up down bit of "doo doo doo do do..doo doo doo do do"..I must admit I`ll have to give you that one they don`t come much better than that imo.
Anyway despite all of that I do agree with a lot of what you say.Yes the start of T2 is a bit plodding and pedestrian by Mike`s high standards and it takes a good few minutes to get going for me.And yes I also agree Crises works far better as an entire whole.You always feel as if you`re going somewhere and not a second wasted,spot on.Plus what Mike did with the Tubular Bells theme here was really quite something.And I know I`ve seen you mention that yourself before so I would`nt dis-agree with you there either.
I just think if you`re going to criticsize Mike for employing simplistic circular melodies based around chords going up and down.Then imo you`re taking away a great big massive chunk of his back catalogue there.Maybe your disliking for Taurus 2 is possibly more down to taste/style etc than you`d wish to admit to.I apologise if I`m being a little presumptious there.As I`ve admitted myself I do take on board a lot of what you said comparing the album to Crises.I would`nt go as far to say there are long meandering sections of nothing going on.But I can certainly see your point there.
So anyway I really like Taurus 2 myself.It has a good positive fun vibe to it for want of a less corny cliche.Plus I remember listening to it when it was first released and thinking.."fantastic the folk/pastoral influence is back,Yay get the Morris Men in great stuff."..But it was`nt just specific to that section it was evident elsewhere on that track as well.You know even on that little Vocoder/Captain Pugwash bit which I`ve always particularly liked.So ok QE2 had it`s Celtic Harps and little folky sections also.But somehow with Taurus 2 they kind of sounded and felt more rooted to the earth and soil somehow.Obviously the return of Paddy Maloney probably went a long way into helping that feeling along I`ll admit.But I honestly feel it`s more than that.I remember as much at the time it was a feeling as if he`d rediscovered something of himself that I kind of thought he`d lost or abandoned since Ommadawn.Back in those days seven years was a whole bloomin` lifetime in "rock" music terms.It had only been around for 2 and a half decades for a kick off.Seven years nowadays is barely a break between albums for some people.
Taurus Two for me was like Mike saying "Hey I`m back folks,only this time we`re just gonna` really enjoy ourselves here."..And Mike does euro disco a la something from Abba`s Supertrouper album or however one "hears it" ?You know I could just see them all in the studio with great big grins on their faces playing that section.Becuase that was another great thing about this album for me it was like "Hey Mike`s in a band. "And you could actually bloody hear him inter-acting with other musicians on a studio album for once.More so than Platinum for me.And certainly more so than anything else in his back catalogue at that point.In fact i`m really struggling to think of anything since to be honest.Even Crises does`nt do it for me in that respect,although it probably comes the closest.
So anyway imo there is nothing "more simplistic" about the melodies on Taurus 2 than there was on Crises.For the most part at least.I know you`re going to dis-agree with that and fair enough I suppose."Dun dun dun dun" sounds pretty damn moronic typed out in that fashion.But you know "the band" really plays at the end there for me,and it sounds pretty darn fine to my cloth ears.Some of his earlier albums well maybe I`d agree on that one.But then some of the melodies he came up with in those early years were just ridiculously brilliant at times.And as a whole it does`nt flow as well as Crises no question for me.But there`s nothing awkward or clunking about it.You know I never feel as if he`s wedging stuff in there just to make up the time.I look forward to each section of the piece with great anticipation in fact.And above all else it`s a piece with a huge amount of colours and variation in it somehow.Shifting through styles in a carefree but still seamless manner and transporting me to so many numerous places and memories.Far more colourful than Crises for me.And far more joyous and exciting as well...I don`t prefer it to Taurus One though.
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. There's a similar rhythm and glass-harmonica-sounding instrument in "Etude".