Carnival of Light

As a quick perusal of the reviews here will show, this album really divided Ride fans, and still does. Some found the total change of direction in a much more retro 60's direction too much to handle and dismissed it. However, if you just listen to this album on its own merits, it is a classic, as good as its influences (the most obvious of which to my ears is '65-'66 Byrds). I liked Ride before this album, but this is easily my favorite of all. It seems somewhat ironic that in 1993 so many critized Ride for going retro, rather than forward, while just a year later "Definitely Maybe", chock full of 60's influences, was heralded as a welcome new direction away from "grunge". In retrospect, "Carnival of Light" is a much better, if slightly less obvious, collection of songs. It's failure to win either critial acclaim or commercial success seemed to be a big factor in the eventual demise of the band (after the tour was cancelled, Andy wanted to immediatly make another album before Mark had any songs ready). Its quite a shame, and I do place a lot of blame for that on the UK critics who were so quick to put this down, while embracing a full on 60's revival a couple of years later with bands like Oasis and Kula Shaker. Anyway, all that's in the past, but this album is still here as a lasting reminder of the greatness of Ride at their peak.

Wow! I loved this record before, but hearing this re-mastered version is like going from beta to dvd in one instant. There is such a remarkable difference in sound I was in awe as I listened to this. Honestly, it brought a tear to my eye several times by the sheer beauty and transcendent feeling I got listening to this turned up on my stereo in a darkened room with a single lit candle by my side. Every track is brilliant, and as a whole album it is nothing short of a classic masterpiece, right up there with any classic album of the last 50 years. Though I love all of Ride's albums- this one is really special. The beautiful re-mastering crisply brings out every note and reveals many that were lost in the previous mix and gives those incredible Ride vocal harmonies a lush, etheral tone that just lifts the music all the more higher and outerworldly. The inclusion of the sensational b-sides from the original release is a wonderful treat that completes this album in a way it was meant to be in the first place. I simply cannot be more happy with the job Ignition Records has done for the entire Ride catalog, but for Carnival Of Light in particular. This album really defies the shoe-gazer genre in alot of ways. It is their most diverse album, mixing up several styles into a glorious merger of shoe-gazing pop, psychedelia, and late 60's/70's folk rock. It never feels rushed, is always musically diverse- running the spectrum from jaw-dropping instrumental passages to moments of "devil horns in the air" hard rock . You can hear their influence here very strikingly with current bands such as the Dandy Warhols, The Warlocks, Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Ocean Blue, Lush, and even early Doves. This album in particular sounds decidedly retro with a very obvious Byrds influence, but alot of Andy Bell's guitar work really contrasts that vibe with a very hard edge that really reminds me of future guitar work featured so prominently in Oasis- which is ironic because he never played guitar in Oasis, but I can hear now in Oasis' music just how heavily influenced alot of their sound was by Bell's former band, Ride. In conclusion, if you have the original cd or have never bought a Ride record, you deserve to hear this. It may very well change your life- it is that powerful.

Yes, there does seem to be a "love it"/"hate it" division among Ride fans on this album. Recorded at a tense time in the band's (rapidly ending) history, _CoL_ was, in many ways, a departure from previous efforts such as _Nowhere_ and _Going Blank Again_ (which some critics believe firmly put the band under the early '90s "shoegazer" label). Still, this album has some lush standouts (although apparently divided by Mark's songs on the first part of the album, followed by Andy's contributions). As one reviewer has already mentioned, there are Byrds-esque flavors to some of their songs, particularly "1000 Miles" and "Natural Grace". There is the 'old Ride' wall of swirling guitar on "Moonlight Medicine" and "Birdman" (with Andy's John/Yoko-like reference to his wife, Idha). And there is also the wistfulness of "Only Now" and "From Time to Time" (the latter with its incessant, hypnotic electric and acoustic guitars). A standout is the short yet haunting instrumental "Rolling Thunder". For new Ride listeners, give this one a try as you go to purchase a copy of "Going Blank Again"; it will give you insight into the range of music produced by this highly underrated yet influential (many artists cite Ride as a fave) band.

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