Astronomy for dogs - album reviews
Astronomy for Dogs -- great title that, conjuring up some pretty evocative images, but The Sixties 101 would be a more accurate moniker for this album, the first from a trio of ex-Beta Band members' new outfit, the Aliens. Across the disc, the group offers up a primer in virtually everything that made that decade so musically memorable, all wrapped around 11 glittering pop songs. "Setting Sun" sets the stage, a storming garage rocker boasting electric Kool-Aid organ, psychedelic strawberry swirls of guitar, an instantly singalong chorus, and an exhilarating melody guaranteed to bring acid flashbacks for days to come. "The Happy Song," aptly enough, is just as upbeat, but in an R&B mode, its repeated refrain of "you want to be happy" bolstered by barreling keyboards, a fiery guitar riff, a storming rhythm, sun-drenched harmonies, and an exuberant atmosphere that leaves glee in its wake. In contrast, there's the downbeat "Caravan," a blues number that travels into psychedelia, revisits the Canterbury Scene, then rockets into space rock, before settling into a mesmerizing, surprisingly structured prog rock jam. Sheer brilliance this, and without even a hint of the self-indulgence that so defined the late '60s/early '70s. And that's the real beauty of this set, for all its proggy, psych-out elements, every note and each effect within are there for good reason, even at its most seemingly jammy, free-form improvisational. And although there are more extravagant acid-drenched pop excursions to be found within, like the magnificent "I Am the Unknown," the Aliens study other forms as well. "Robot Man," for example, is a musical essay on funk, the luminescent ballad "She Don't Love Me No More" a dissertation of classical elements within rock and folk. The baggy-styled "Rox" is blues-based but wanders far afield into Eastern climes and techno clubs, turning back the calendar even into the new romantic realm. "Only Waiting" and "Tomorrow" look back in fondness to the Beatles, while "Glover" conjures up the Kinks' "Sunny Afternoon," and crosses more than just the Mersey in the arrangement. But beyond all the inspired arrangements, exceedingly clever echoes of the past, flawless musicianship, and expert self-production, what lingers are the band's magnificent melodies, be they lavish ballads or revved-up rockers, classic pop from the past for today. Alien they may be, but you'll be begging them to transport you away. ~ Jo-Ann Greene, All Music Guide
If the swinging sixties-retro of the gas-guzzling ‘Setting Sun’ is anything to go by, The Aliens are throwing in more references than a final year dissertation on astro-physics, tipping more winks than a nodding dog and creating a kind of myspace traditionally reserved for aging hippies and zen-style motor mechanics. It’s like Dennis Hopper never got off his motorcycle. It’s like Jimi Hendrix never choked on his own vomit. It’s like The Doors went on to write folk records and like the acid never disappeared from the tab. Decked with spaced-out vocal harmonies the size of quantum theory, guitar solos the shape and density of a black hole and fanning, cosmic melodies, tunes like ‘I Am Unknown’ and ‘Robot Man’ manage to combine the vast, celestial frequencies of Arthur Lee and Love with the hip-swivelling drama of the Happy Mondays and George Clinton both. It’s a weird combination, but not unpleasant, the chaps creating a base from which to explore the terra ferma of a rich and expansive musical landscape. ‘Tommorow’ is part Byrds, part Flying Burrito Brothers, part Bob Lind and part Roy Orbison. Not what you’d necessarily expect when situated alongside the beeps and bloops of more contemporary sound signatures, but meshed together so cleverly and so sensitively, that the gaping voids between genres seem positively cursory. Sure, there are tracks that simply don’t work. ‘The Happy Song’ doesn’t really work on any level. It’s spurious. It’s indulgent and it’s so throwaway that you wouldn’t even know it was missing. And then there are songs like ‘She Don’t Love Me No More’ – as tender as sigh, as gentle as a flower and as simple in its assessment of love as the very first-kiss and the very last goodbye.
The real success of the album is that it creates its own self-contained environment. Like a time capsule carefully put together by John Noakes and Valerie Singleton and planted in the Blue Peter garden, the basic contents reveal the development of an entire musical culture. It’s fibrous. It’s full of layers. And it sounds bloody good to boot.
The Aliens (EMI)
Astronomy For Dogs
This debut album smacks of a second chance. Some might call it that for Beta Band seedling and visionary Gordon Anderson, whose detour of inner odyssey for too long denied him and his music the full recognition both rightly deserve. He is a seemingly limitless River Alph of song-writing ability, and as the Aliens front man now reclaims a powerful platform to set the record straight.
Those who know the story, however, will already have boundless gratitude for Anderson’s influence. The Beta Band, of which the Aliens keyboardist/sampler John MacLean and drummer Robin Jones were integral parts, went on to create some of the most life-affirming and humanising songs ever heard. So more aptly the second chance is for us, dear reader, to hear music like that again. Astronomy for Dogs is an album worthy of the legacy but, more so, fulfils a brand new growth of experiences and ideas seeking life beyond the Beta Band’s long shadow.
What results is, without blinking, already a strong contender for best album of 2007 – and indeed it’s a work that could hold its own with the best from just about any year. Listening to the eleven official songs and one hidden track feels like a thorough foundation course in popular music history and theory, which seamlessly blends a journey from 60/70s era Beatles/Love/Floyd/Beach Boys/T. Rex right through to the 90/00s swagger of Primal Scream/Spiritualized/Ian Brown. For any lesser band even one of these elements might overpower the mix, but the Aliens have been around the clock and are masters of their own sound.
As example, opening gambit ‘Setting Sun’ has the perfect audacity to borrow ‘All Along the Watchtower’ as its theme and then smoothly mould into something completely different, effectively announcing from the off that the Aliens could re-invent the wheel and it would still be inimitably their own signature creation. In fade out a chorus of “We are the Aliens” underscores the point, as well as evoking a live performance atmosphere.
It also personalises the album’s message, with important consequence. Lyrically these are all sensitive, unfettered songs full of both wonder and heartbreak. Beyond the natural warmth of the music they put forth brave and honest expressions that reach out for contact without ever trying to gloss over a fragility that’s barely below the surface. Even in lighter outings such as ‘The Happy Song’ there are clear references to aspects of Anderson’s world that have been anything but plain-sailing.
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The Aliens - 'Astronomy For Dogs'
Released on 19/03/07
Label: Pet Rock Records
It's good to have Gordon Anderson back. From the mid-'90s, the co-founder of the Beta Band, member of Fife's feted Fence Collective and the solo recording artist known as Lone Pigeon spent almost a decade in and out of psychiatric institutions, which seriously stymied his creative endeavours. Happily, Anderson is now stabilised and off medication and so has picked up his artistic life where he left off. Together with fellow Beta Band exiles John MacLean and Robin Jones, Anderson formed The Aliens, whose name is a neat pointer to their out-there blend of psychedelic pop, space jazz, Merseybeat, baggy and '70s country rock, while possibly (and more poignantly) underlining Anderson's outsider status.
Of their debut LP's title, the singer-songwriter and guitarist has said, "it was coined as a phrase that describes music in general, only a little understood, untouchable - a bit like this music", but there's nothing cold, confusing or chaotic about "Astronomy For Dogs". In fact, from gleeful, giddily gauche knees-up ("Happy") to unbearably poignant lament ("Honest Again"), these 11 warped tunes are hugely heartfelt, wonderfully warm and shot through with a genuinely touching humanity.
The Aliens open as they begin their live shows, with "Setting Sun", which suggests "All Along The Watchtower" played by The Beatles and The Byrds, while lathering on the Merseybeat organ. It sets the tone for the album's upbeat and perky first half, moving through the hammering piano of the Primal Scream-toned "Robot Man", the harmonica-decked, Byrds-like "Tomorrow" and "Rox", a homage to Happy Mondays and The Scream that cheekily revisits the latter's slovenly anthem of the same (differently spelled) name, while adding a dash of Eastern melodic promise.
The album's mood shifts dramatically with the sweetly mournful, strings-swollen epic "She Don't Love Me No More", which matches Ralph Vaughn Williams with "Honky Chateau"-era Elton John while being bluntly autobiographical ("I was ten long years in a mental asylum"). The delightful but near deranged "Glover" follows, suggesting a collective comprised of Dame Elton, Delia Derbyshire and The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, but the gorgeous, Moody Blues-tinted "Honest Again" is a sobering follow-up. "Happy" offers a quick upper before "Caravan", an epic closer of bruised and gently glowing beauty that calls to mind Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
Tempting though it may be to view the album's happy/sad see-sawing as the unconscious expression of Anderson's bipolar depression, it's probably plain wrong. What is certain is "Astronomy For Dogs" is a magic-dusted delight and that Anderson is a wizard and a true star.
by Sharon O'Connell
at-controller.com Fat Controller Media Ltd The Aliens - Astronomy For Dogs
Welcome to the world of The Aliens. This new age trio have been making music to melt the mind since the days of The Beta Band, with Gordon Anderson penning breakthrough Beta track Dry The Rain before dropping from the scene due to a decline in his mental health. Co-Aliens Robin Jones and John Maclean continued in their quest but finally the band split in 2004 in a whirl of debts and depression.
It is therefore amazing to be let into the world of this threesome and then experience the wave of joy flowing from the speakers. Their unique take on pop is heart warming, and while they may have their heads still in the acid rock of the sixties, their ideas are firmly in the present as the album throws up big beats and sweeping melodies. Their music is eclectic and layered, sculpting a new landscape of swirling psychedelia.
Astronomy For Dogs is touching in parts as we delve into the head of Anderson and hear his confusion and loss, notably in the piano balladry of She Don't Love Me No More. Along with the lyrically masterful trip that is Glover we see that The Aliens have more to offer than mere sixties revival. Album opener and single Setting Sun is a breezy rocker, filled with feel-good beats and charm. Familiar in parts, bizarre in others, the sheer number of ideas on this record prove that The Aliens really are a successful melting pot of blues, funk and pop. What really keeps the coherence of this debut is Anderson's intricate and heartfelt narrative, leading the listener through his personal soundscape.
Astronomy For Dogs is the perfect showcase for a myriad of ideas to come together and create something wonderful. Prepare for take-off.
by Victoria Davie
