Beta Band (Vinyl): Beta Band: Amazon.ca: Music

Product Description

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When a record that starts with a freakish rendering of the '40s novelty tune "Mr. Sandman" collides into a loping rap that boasts of chicken, fish, and cold love in Scotland and then maneuvers into a rave-up worthy of Elvis, it normally would spell trouble. But the Beta Band actually manage to make this wacked-out pastiche work. The Scottish combo skillfully massage their tracks into thrilling sound collages that draw on electronica, country, prog rock, and psychedelia without ever going beyond the point of kitsch. The stoned beauty of "It's Not Too Beautiful" recalls the mesmerizing layered vocals of Pink Floyd, but tosses in a demented breakdown to throw any nostalgia seeker off the scent. The steel drums and reggae bass line of "No. 15" combine shamble with shuffle to give this slacker's recitation of "15 reasons not to spend my life with you" a lazy charm. The Beta Band extend a simple invitation with their woozy music: Get baked. --Lois Maffeo

Album Description

Debut full length by U.K. alternative outfit who mix just about every style of music and end up sounding like no one else. Traces of Beck, Aphex Twin, Guided By Voices and many others can be heard in the 10 cuts. 1999 release.

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Customer Reviews

25 Reviews

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

Average Customer Review

3.8 out of 5 stars (25 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars If only all "bad" albums were this good, May 27 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Beta Band (Audio CD)

Maybe it's not their masterpiece. It easily beats by far most of the junk out there some people have the nerve to call music. If you've got disposable income, this is an album worth having. There are a few parts now and then that I can imagine would annoy some people. If you can't appreciate a little offbeat experimentation, too bad.

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5.0 out of 5 stars don't you get it?, Nov 17 2003

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"austin2138" (Poughkeepsie, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beta Band (Audio CD)

Some of these reviews are the dumbest things I've ever seen. One actually said to avoid this until it is considered a classic in 20 years! Can you imagine someone who is such a sheep that they will not pay attention to this until it is considered good by other people?
Simply put, this album is insane. It's elements of insanity often don't fit together precisely, but that's kind of the point; any craziness that works in a linear and smooth fashion is just posing as genuine insanity if you ask me. This is the sound of a band just having fun, and pushing whatever madness they can think of to the absolute limit of listenability. There are times when this album doesn't "work"--many times in fact. But that's what makes it so special in my mind; the fact that they knew they weren't making something consistently wonderful but they made it anyway in the hopes that some of it would be worthwhile, that the recording process itself would reveal something about them as musicians and as people. I think the band themselves say not to buy it because ultimately its not even for our consumption; its a working out of their own demons.
Then why release it in the first place, you ask? Because there will be people like me (and there are a lot of us) who will like it for what it is. We have no expectations for it, we don't put our unreasonable ideas of what the Beta Band is "supposed" to sound like on it just because we have heard "The Three E.P.'s". We listen to this album on its own terms, and even if part of those terms is that the band themselves don't like it, I'm willing to accept that. I like this album. I respect the fact that many people don't, but some of the reasons out there are really dumb, in my mind. If you're thinking of buying it, just listen to the sound samples, and think about how much of that you can take. That's my suggestion. Hopefully you'll come to the right choice, and decide to buy it and love it or not buy it when you would've hated it anyway. I've been talking for too long. Bye.

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2.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as the others, Aug 26 2003

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Matthew E. Taylor "MT!" (Arlington, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Beta Band (Audio CD)

This is the weakest of the Beta Band's CD's. In fact, it's pretty lousy, I regret to say. When the BB come out with a Greatest Hits, it'll inlcude maybe two songs from this otherwise dismal effort.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Well . . .
Not quite as good as their other stuff, but still essential.

Published on July 1 2003 by Chase Clark

3.0 out of 5 stars What A Bummer!
After The 3 EP's this CD just kind of sits there like a stuffed dog. I think that The Beta Band peaked with the 3 EP's and this CD simply is. Read more

Published on Mar 2 2003