Search - Blue Aeroplanes :: Swagger

One of the great albums that no one has ever heard

Robert Moore | Chicago, IL USA | 12/07/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is the best album by one of the most underrated and neglected bands of the past twenty years. To try and explain what they sound like to someone who doesn't know their work at all, try to imagine the Smiths if they had all gone to college and majored in literature. The Blue Aeroplanes were brainy, New Wavey, and extraordinarily melodic. Their swirling dual guitars drove the melodies of each song, but the heart of the band was always singer Gerald Langley, who actually didn't sing most of the time, but rather chanted the lyrics. For instance, the first song on the album, "Jacket Hangs," begins with Langley speaking, "Pick a card. Any card . . . . Wrong." Or, on the most up tempo song on the album, "The Applicant," set to the words of the Sylvia Plaith song by the same title, is not a song so much as Langley reciting poetry dramatically against a driving rock accompaniment. The marvelous "Your Ages" is even more just a spoken word piece with instrumental backup. The results are stunning.Nearly every song on the album stands out. There are no truly weak cuts. Now, as much as I love the band and their other albums, I have to say that that is not always the case. On other albums, there are a few weak cuts. But this one has none. My favorite cuts probably include "Jacket Hangs," "World View Blue," "Love Come Around," "And Stones," and "The Applicant." I was extraordinarily lucky to see at the Double Door the Blue Aeroplanes on one of their very rare trips through Chicago. The concert began in amazing fashion. All the members of the band standing stock still on stage, Langley singing a few lines while guitar played, and then, suddenly, all the instruments cut in at once while everyone started moving dramatically about the stage, including the dancer, who danced enthusiastically and ineptly about the stage through the whole concert. I loved it! It remains to this day the most thrilling beginning to a concert that I have ever seen.Why didn't The Blue Aeroplanes achieve more success? They certainly had the chops; they certainly could produce great songs. I suspect that they were just a little too intelligent and artsy. Most art bands that do really great still manage to smack a bit of the street, while the Blue Aeroplanes smacked of the art gallery. I will end by saying this: while this album is out of print, it is usually available at a very affordable price. I would strongly encourage anyone who at all enjoys bands like The Smiths or Velvet Underground or Robyn Hitchcock to drop a couple of bucks and give them a try. I doubt if they will be at all disappointed."

A bit biased but....

Andy Webber | UK | 06/16/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Yup, I have to say I am a bit biased, as I used to go to all the gig's with the lads and do a bit of roadying for John, the drummer, who was one of my best friends at the time.
That said, this album kick's arse! As was said in the only other review I can see here, they never really got any better than this. A few tracks from 'Bop Art', 'Friendloverplane' and 'Spitting out Miracle's' stand up to this criteria but as a full album, this is as close to their awsome live set's as you get.'Weightless' is, as it say's, floating on a sea of guitars, 'Jacket Hang's' has one of those typical BA riffs that just mutate's as it goes, with the 'Byrd's' like chorus and Gerards cryptic lyrics pushing to the fore, and one of my personal favourites 'and stones' swirls around and through you, with angelo's guitar piercing up and out of it..the minimal lyric's (almost chants), drift through, but never overpower the guitars (which, after all was their forte). Always John's drumming provides the underlying power which drives it all. He used to come off stage with blood pouring from the blisters in his palms...stigmata anyone..:-).
The only thing missing for the full BA experience was watching (and immitating..LOL) Woytec's mad dancing / acrobatic's about the stage; through, around and, yes, sometimes over what was alway's a crammed stage (the number of performers varied, according to who was around...up to 10 or 11 I think at one point, most of whom seemed to be clutching stringed instruments of one type or another)
I think I've run out of words so just 2 more...BUY IT!"