Search - Cranes :: Loved

Perfect see-saw of sinister and sweet

Beketaten | Pangea | 05/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I believe it goes without saying that the Cranes were, and still remain, one of the most under-recognized musical groups of the 90s.

While they banged and bashed out their roughness on their first three albums, there was a subtle yet present trend toward cerebral melancholy and gentleness.

"Loved" marked a turning point in their career, but this is not to say that this is a work without bite, but rather, the bite is all the more noticable for the showcasing of Allison Shaw's rapturously delicate voice filled with girlish whimsy, against a background of pulsing effects and acoustic guitar.

"Shining Road" the first, and most obvious single carries with it hopeful yet world-weary lyrics against glorious pulsations which manage to tug on the heart-strings while provoking a kind of industrial hopping dance effect.

Elsewhere, as in the terrified "Lillies" (whose lyrics appear in the liner notes), and the softness of the mournful "Beautiful Friend", the dichotomy achieves heights of its awareness in the listener, and by the time "Paris And Rome" and "In The Night" have swept past, a peaceful and pensive suspension add eagerness to the final remixes.

As of when I write this, "Loved" is my favourite of the Cranes' albums, and is highly reccomended as a starting point to their career, which is also handy, since it is one of the only two Cranes full-length albums available in the US.

Do make the purchase and enjoy."

Amazing...

Joshua Jones | Spring, TX United States | 06/03/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This band is amazing. The music is very chill and sedate, if you're looking for something aggressive you might want to pursue other options. The melodies are a complete dream, Alison's voice is that of an angel. We saw them in Houston about two years ago and I actually got to meet Alison Shaw. She kissed my cheek and it may have slightly altered the color of my soul, I'm not sure. Anyway, she is amazing. This band is worth checking out."

Simply Captivating

J. Holmgren | 10/25/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"For some odd reason back in 2004 this album was burned onto the shared drive of the Multi-national Corps-Iraq located in Baghdad. Morale so you can hear music while you are covering shift on your work station. I had seen The Cranes open for The Cure in 1990 and picked up on their name among the other detritus in the shared drive. And my first listen--Amazing. "Beautiful Friend" and "Shining Road" stand out but overall the album is an outstanding effort of pop/goth/dark artistry. I spent probably 20 nights in a row listening to this album. When they finally wiped the hard drive I was crushed. But losing 12 bucks for this great album was a small price to eventually pay. Buy it. And go see the Cranes next time you are in Europe."