They Came From the Stars I Saw Them – They Came From the Stars I Saw Them vs. Reality
If you like to listen to music that is out of this world and a bit wacky, then this is definitely something you may want to listen to, if you have the patience.
Let's set the scene...imagine sitting in a theatre, or a circus tent and on walks one of the entertainers and announces in full procession mode – 'they came from the stars I saw them/ vs. reality/we are from the island/on the island/and the last boat is gone/we deny your reality/and for a short while/replace it with our own/come with us/we have beautiful things to show you'. Now that is one heck of an introduction, but a true one. These guys literally take over the next 50 minutes of your life and you can't help but want to see what creative yet irritating sounds are coming up.
'An Angel's Help' begins this dysfunctional album, with its conversational and computer edited vocals. It's jam-packed with sounds raging from instruments; drums and trumpet, then buckets full of computer generated sounds and scratches. The next track 't.h.e.y.c.a.m.e.f.r.o.m.t.h.e.s.t.a.r.s.i.s.a.w.t.h.e.m.' is what could be described as an English lesson in poetry and sounds you would expect to hear from a child's television show. It's repetitive but has a last line to make you laugh – "do we have to spell it out for you?" em...I think you just did. The creative experience continues through 'Signals' with sounds from two ends of the spectrum; birds chipping, drums, sticks, strings, and bass– it may have sounded creative on paper but plays havoc on your ears.
'(It's Always) Boomtime Part 1' has you thinking that space is one giant barn dance, while '(It's Always) Boomtime Part 2' sounds more Scissor Sisters – if they were hyped up, breathing helium and living on another planet. With the combination of instruments and vocals, it's as if someone has put two stereos next to each other, one playing classic music, the other a pop tune, and recorded their combined noise, and that is exactly what it is; NOISE. The relief, well for much of the time, comes in the last track, all 25 minutes of it. 'Astro National Anthem' is basically an instrumental where calmer sounds (for much of the time) are experimented with, with some success.
When you reach the end, your head will explode and your ears will bleed. Whether you want to call it a creative masterpiece or a waste of 50 minutes of your life is up to you...