Search - Catherine Wheel :: Adam & Eve

Still Resonates

DW | chicago, IL | 11/05/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I vividly remember seeing Catherine Wheel perform Adam & Eve in its entirety at The Metro in Chicago one warm August night in 1997. The sound was pure and visceral. It was the best sounding concert I have ever attended. I didn't mind the ringing in my ears the day after.



Years later, this CD still resonates. Adam & Eve doesn't so much grow on you as collect in your subconscious and change your soul. The most obvious parallel Pink Floyd's Animals. At first listen, the songs don't appear to go anywhere. They seem to ebb and flow like the sea. But, the next time you listen to Future Boy, Ma Solituda or Phantom of the American Mother you may just stifle a tear for no apparent reason. The music is just that good.



[DW]"

I love this album, but it's just not their best..

Major Tom | CA, United States | 07/05/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I even rebought this recently, as I had loaned it out, never got it back, and found myself badly missing it. It's worth having. But by comparison with the rest of their catalog, it ranks the lowest in my opinion.



Why? Some of the songs meander (like "Broken Nose", which starts out promising but has an annoying limp chorus). Some of the lyrics are great--and some just make no damn sense, at least to me. I have a real problem with how this album sounds, as well; whether I'm listening at home on my decent stereo, my computer or in my car, the album has a curious flat quality (esp. compared to their others). It marrs a lot of the songs (witness a great song like "Delicious" ruined by said production, buried in total NOISE and truly lacking CW's trademark sonic dynamics). All the more shocking considering it was co-produced by the famous Bob Ezrin (but maybe not that shocking seeing as how singer Rob Dickinson shares a producing credit).



Which brings me to the Pink Floyd thing; I love Pink Floyd too, but to see this band slavishly crib from the Floyd is a little surprising (the repeated "Hey You"'s at the beginning of every line of "Broken Nose"; the line "now there's a look in you eyes / like black holes in the sky" in "..American Mother" lifted wholesale right out of Floyd's "Shine On"; the instumental break in "Goodbye" that clearly references Floyd's "Any Color You Like"; the presence of Floyd producer Bob Ezrin; the Storm Thorguson artwork, which granted they always had). Most of these offensives are mere homages, I get it. But c'mon, this band was never like Pink Floyd and it's a little jarring, if not unnecessary.



What this album gets right, it really gets right. "Thunderbird" and "Future Boy" are the high points for me. Also in evidence here is songwriter Rob Dickinson's (and the band's) ability to constantly shift the moods in their songs and make it work. I don't hear a lot of rock acts of today that are able to do that very well, and these guys did it in about every song. Top notch writing and arranging.



So really, this is a four-star album, song-wise. I love this band and enjoy this record, but for the awful production, I remove a star with prejudice. Being now out of print, this one is a prime candidate for a remaster/reissue."

...still, a really good CD

C. L. Phillips | Steamboat Springs, CO USA | 01/06/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I consider myself a big CW fan like others that have written these reviews. While probably not thier best CD, A&E, by modern rock standards, is still a really good CD. Broken Nose, Ma Solituda, and Satellite are my favorites, and are worth the purchaes price alone. There is not a bad song in the disc."