SING TO GOD

I must admit i'm a little intimidated doing this review, my first of a CARDIACS album. I really hadn't checked them out until last year mainly because of the descriptions I had read about their music being fast-paced with chipmunk backing vocals and that Punk flavour. None of those three descriptions appealed to me in the least. Well after their music finally became available again about a year ago I decided to give them a chance, and here I am back to report. Run! Do not look back! Haha, just kidding I highly recommend this double album with perhaps the most talked about album cover on the planet. It always gets comments from those who see it for the first time. I should mention that Steven Wilson thinks Tim Smith(CARDIACS leader) is a genius and stated that CARDIACS music is complex especially the way Smith interlocks passages together. Kavus Torabi from KNIFEWORLD who played in the CARDIACS claims "...Tim is a visionary man, every, every, EVERYTHING he wrote is extraordinary". So yeah there are a lot of CARDIAC fans out there who will convince you with passion that there is no greater band. This is melodic yet frantic music with clever lyrics to over simplify it. Tim Smith was a fan of Prog before he started this band in the late seventies. He was a big fan of HENRY COW and saw them in concert back in the seventies. So the music of CARDIACS is Progressive Rock, onlyTim has put his own stamp on it.

Up first on disc one is "Eden On The Air" which is mellow compared to what will follow but I really dig this tune. "Eat It Up Worms Hero" hits the ground running. This is intense and quirky just as you'd expect from this band. "Dog-Like Sparky" opens with piano before Tim comes in with vocals and zany music. You'll notice that some CARDIACS album covers feature dogs on them. I like when the female vocals come in. Great singer that Sarah Smith is. Such an amazing track. "Fiery Gun Hand" kicks into gear fairly quickly with drums leading the way. Vocals join in. Man this is crazy with the lyrics and intensity. Check out the guitar solo 3 1/2 minutes in! As Karvus says, CARDIACS rarely have guitar solos but when they do they are the best. One of CARDIACS greatest tracks for sure. "Insect Hoofs On Lassie" makes me laugh but then the humour in a lot of CARDIACS music does. Brilliant! "Fairy Mary Mag" is just a killer! Love the instrumental intro. Vocals arrive along with what sounds like mellotron. So good. It sounds like Zappa before 3 1/2 minutes. Themes are repeated in this one of my favs. "Bellyeye" is another catchy track with vocals and it's funny. "A Horse's Tail" is another uptempo song with some insanity, okay lots of insanity. "Manhoo" is pretty good but it hasn't actually won me over yet despite the many who love it. "Wireless" ends disc one and it's 8 1/2 minutes long. Man this sounds so amazing, it's just different in that you really need to hear it. Sarah sings on this one too along with Tim. The second part of this track called "Perl On The Sea" comes in before 5 minutes as we get the same melody but spoken words come in. This is really cool, especially when the spoken words stop and we get this atmosphere in the form of orchestration to end it.

Disc two begins with "Dirty Boy" without question my favourite track on here and I can't believe it goes on for almost 9 minutes. I can't see another CARDIAC's track doing for me what this song does. The guitar, the passionate vocals, the lyrics. I'm in awe of this track and will stop here before I just gush all over the place. "Billion" is a short(less than a minute) piece with reserved vocals and a cool soundscape. "Odd Even" is fantastic, very catchy. So many great tracks on this recording. "Bell Stinks" is a short and intense instrumental until it becomes dreamy then it kicks back in. "Bell Clinks" is the fastest paced tune on here. Even the vocals are going a million miles per hour. "Flap Off You Beak" opens with piano before the whole band joins in. It settles some when the vocals arrive. "Quiet As A Mouse" is short with samples of a conversation between two people then strange sounds when they stop. "Angelworm Angel" is fast-paced with vocals and it rivals "Bell Clinks" with it's break-neck speed. "Red Fire Coming Out From His Gills" is interesting with the tempo changes and lyrics. "No Gold" is also different with the softer vocals and more laid back sound. "Nurses Whispering Verses" is a top three song for me. It kicks in before a minute and then proceeds to kick some major ass. Man what a song! The final tune "Foundling" really intrigues me for some reason. It's partly the words and partly the more laid back vocals as the sound pulsates slowly when he's not singing.

Man what a recording this is. This was released back in 1996 after the band was well established. As double albums go there are some tracks I could do without yet the highs are addictive to say the least. Still I can't give this anything more than 4 solid stars, that may change down the road.