Search - Boards of Canada :: The Campfire Headphase

Brilliant Music already Aged For you First Listen

Corey Turner | Florida | 03/06/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While not as essential in ones collection of ambient/trip-hop/idm (whatever you'd like to classify them) as Boards of Canada's earlier release "Music Has the Right to Children", "The Campfire Headphase" is still interesting and if anything more mature (and not as dark as geo). Easily the most recognizable addition to this over any other BoC release is that they added a guitar. People fight back and fourth claiming it wasn't necessary it manipulated their sound too heavily; it added finesse back into their game etc. that's for you to decide.



I personally like the addition; they have always been a duo to somehow bring on nostalgia and events throughout ones life (even while making modernized beats). With `MHtRtC' we heard them blend hazy effects, drier clothing warm and mysterious at times. Goopy and full it's like viewing life again as a child reasonably unknowing and innocent. 'Campfire' crackles and pops with a more refined sense of imagery. It's still tranquil, and although new they `aged' it. After recording they hit up the lo-fi gear and proportioned the intensity of everything phasing in and out of your headphones/speakers.



Children mumbling have been replaced with a thematic revolution coasting around the album. Adolescent vibes along with even adulthood are more traceable here. For clarity sake the album is crisper and (in my opinion) shows the previously unknowing side finding a ripened course as if the horizon does have an end but why end there? This album does cater more to the guitar then needed, but it was this outward grasp that helps BoC renews their step in expenditure. So it's not as odd or colorful, it works though.



Without puncturing your views and this album entirely though, it doesn't seem to hold a candle to the marvels of MHtRtC'. Whatever it may be I find it a bit above "Taoism" (earliest of BoC works). Maybe due to it's more centric unity of theme. I will give them credit though on the use of the guitar, never does it feel like a sterile white bulb exposing every nook and cranny. All BoC albums are good, if you are not familiar with them again check out Music. Good for entire plays of the album. Same goes here, but this one may not last as long. It seems like this wine has already reached it's prime some time ago incomparison. A good individual track here is "Oscar See Through Red Eye", has a little bit of everything this album has to offer. See if you like that track before grabbing this.



Especially if you are one for purchasing records...The vinyl, much like all the duos LPs, can end up costing an arm and a leg soon after the releases hit the year mark. [...].



Hopefully the fifteen tracks will keep you interesting and hold you for some time on.This one isn't unknowing it's uncertainty BoC become more appealing after each listen. You try to spot out a tiny segment you enjoy a lot, in a song, and anticipate it sincerely, yet find yourself distracted hearing more and more as times (and listens) go on. Really is pleasurable, looking to fill in a void musically? Kind of jaded with much of the modern commercial scene? Ease your way into this electronic ambient wonder; it'll be there for ya."

Dayvan Cowboy

J. gill | 03/15/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This song begins with an ambient texture and light percussion, creating a trancelike quality that maintains itself until around the two-minute mark when the song begins to take shape. The song forms itself around a simple chord sequence, and builds with percussive layers, adding more ambient notes over the top of the basic melody. As the song progresses, the rhythmic aspect picks up and builds to an energetic crescendo upon which the song's percussive elements begin to take a backseat until the basic melodic progression is all that remains when the song fades out.

The song takes the listener from the ambient nothingness to a very concise and melodic progression that, when combined with the complex rhythmic structures present in the song, lends to a very pleasant yet interesting listen. The listener never gets bored despite the repetition of melody, as the song never ceases to build upon itself, adding more layers of sound and consistently adding variations to the rhythm. Despite these variations and additions, the song still retains its soothing quality and the end result is a very pleasant listening experience that possesses the rare combination of simultaneously energizing and relaxing the listener as it presents a song rhythm that combines seamlessly with a very soothing melody. Furthermore, the ambient textures in the background that begin the song remain constant throughout, giving the song a very cohesive feel.

Ultimately, the song is a very strong piece of digital music as it flawlessly integrates rhythm, ambience, and melody into a very pleasing oratory experience. This is the type of song that serves as great music to think to as the music certainly takes a listener's thoughts and sends them places the listener never imagined going. The lack of lyrics heightens this acoustic journey as the listener becomes caught up in the music and rather than listening to lyrics, the music itself takes control of the listener's mind propelling it to new places with a relentless rhythmic structure. Although the lack of lyrics may not appeal to some, it is common within the genre and serves to further intensify the power of the music as it forces the listener to become truly embedded within the layers of sound.

As the song draws to a close, it is hard to not feel a connection with the music as the song's construction is very meticulous, resulting in a work that not only appeals to the brain but also appeals to one's emotions. The electronic nature of the song enables it to have a very broad array of sounds that mesh together in a cohesive piece that does a good job of providing a familiar melody that is built upon to further progress the depth of the song. Upon the song's completion, I was left neither overwhelmed nor seeking more - in other words, the song's progression leads to a very satisfying listen that provides both familiarity and innovation, ultimately leading to a song that provides enough to be endlessly interesting without ever being inaccessible due to complexities. The song Dayvan Cowboy, thus, is a great piece of electronic music that merits a serious listen as it embodies the essence of what electronic music can be.



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