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Idioma disponible: inglés
With Absent Friends, Neil Hannon returns to the glorious whimsical form of his crooning pop masterpieces. While Regeneration seemed mired in murkiness and awkwardly styled angry tunes, and some wondered if Hannon would recover from sacking his bandmates, Absent Friends sees Hannon blending the finest themes of his previous albums into a gorgeous, mature tapestry of musical adventures. Longtime associate Jobi Talbot lends his usual magic and Regeneration producer Nigel Godrich stays on as mixer, allowing Hannon to expertly man the production boards himself. Album closer "Charmed Life," which marries twinkling pianos with airy orchestration and a thoroughly jolly sense of self-discovery, is perhaps most indicative of Hannon's rediscovered optimism. The song perfectly blends the light, literary style of Promenade and Liberation, but with the added crunch and bombast of Hannon's West End-leaning Casanova and Fin de Siècle. "Sticks & Stones" also traverses Casanova territory, while "Come Home Billy Bird," "Absent Friends," and "The Happy Goth" all feel like souped-up versions of Promenade and Liberation tunes. "Come Home Billy Bird" seems like the mature artist's version of "Bernice Bobs Her Hair." Where Hannon sang of schoolgirl pettiness on the latter, he moves onto the problems business travel causes family life on the former. Thus, Hannon has found a way to mix semi-autobiographical subject matter with the witty pop melodies that are his bread and butter. As always, it's Hannon's superb wit and impeccable sense of timing that allow him to mingle delicate and simultaneously revelatory turns of phrase for maximum emotional and musical effect. Who else could pull off a touching yet hilarious song like "The Happy Goth," where Hannon sings of lonely yet happy young lady "who wears Doc Martens and a heavy cross"? It is perhaps "Our Mutual Friend" that really drives home the confidence and sublime nature of Hannon's songwriting and execution at this stage of his career. Hannon had mined the orchestral strings and minimalism of composer and associate Michael Nyman in the past, but "Our Mutual Friend" is his finest stab at merging Nyman-like strings and rhythm with devastating, dramatic vocals. Singing of infidelity and the damage it causes, Hannon sounds absolutely floored. In an interview with Kitty Empire talking of his aspirations going into the album's recording, Hannon claimed he simply wanted to create a beautiful album, one that "sounds gorgeous on [his] stereo, with a roaring fire and a glass of sherry and a Labrador at [his] feet." With the thrilling and poignant Absent Friends, he has more than succeeded. It ranks high among his finest albums.
© Tim DiGravina /TiVo
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Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Rob Farrer, Drums - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Yann Tiersen, Accordion - Miguel J Barradas, Drums - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Rob Farrer, Vibraphone - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Lauren Laverne, Vocals - Miguel J Barradas, Drums - Rob Farrer, Timpani - Crispin Robinson, Congas - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Lucy Wakeford, Harp - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Rob Farrer, Drums, Miscellaneous - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor - Gareth Newman, Bassoon
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Rob Farrer, Timpani - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Miguel J Barradas, Drums - Rob Farrer, Glockenspiel - Crispin Robinson, Triangle, Congas - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor - Simon Little, Double Bass - Jay Craig, Saxophone
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor, Piano
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Guy Massey, Engineer - Neil Hannon, Composer, Producer, Vocals, All Instruments, Performed by - Miguel J Barradas, Drums - The Divine Comedy, MainArtist - Joby Talbot, Conductor
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Presentación del Álbum
With Absent Friends, Neil Hannon returns to the glorious whimsical form of his crooning pop masterpieces. While Regeneration seemed mired in murkiness and awkwardly styled angry tunes, and some wondered if Hannon would recover from sacking his bandmates, Absent Friends sees Hannon blending the finest themes of his previous albums into a gorgeous, mature tapestry of musical adventures. Longtime associate Jobi Talbot lends his usual magic and Regeneration producer Nigel Godrich stays on as mixer, allowing Hannon to expertly man the production boards himself. Album closer "Charmed Life," which marries twinkling pianos with airy orchestration and a thoroughly jolly sense of self-discovery, is perhaps most indicative of Hannon's rediscovered optimism. The song perfectly blends the light, literary style of Promenade and Liberation, but with the added crunch and bombast of Hannon's West End-leaning Casanova and Fin de Siècle. "Sticks & Stones" also traverses Casanova territory, while "Come Home Billy Bird," "Absent Friends," and "The Happy Goth" all feel like souped-up versions of Promenade and Liberation tunes. "Come Home Billy Bird" seems like the mature artist's version of "Bernice Bobs Her Hair." Where Hannon sang of schoolgirl pettiness on the latter, he moves onto the problems business travel causes family life on the former. Thus, Hannon has found a way to mix semi-autobiographical subject matter with the witty pop melodies that are his bread and butter. As always, it's Hannon's superb wit and impeccable sense of timing that allow him to mingle delicate and simultaneously revelatory turns of phrase for maximum emotional and musical effect. Who else could pull off a touching yet hilarious song like "The Happy Goth," where Hannon sings of lonely yet happy young lady "who wears Doc Martens and a heavy cross"? It is perhaps "Our Mutual Friend" that really drives home the confidence and sublime nature of Hannon's songwriting and execution at this stage of his career. Hannon had mined the orchestral strings and minimalism of composer and associate Michael Nyman in the past, but "Our Mutual Friend" is his finest stab at merging Nyman-like strings and rhythm with devastating, dramatic vocals. Singing of infidelity and the damage it causes, Hannon sounds absolutely floored. In an interview with Kitty Empire talking of his aspirations going into the album's recording, Hannon claimed he simply wanted to create a beautiful album, one that "sounds gorgeous on [his] stereo, with a roaring fire and a glass of sherry and a Labrador at [his] feet." With the thrilling and poignant Absent Friends, he has more than succeeded. It ranks high among his finest albums.
© Tim DiGravina /TiVo
Acerca del álbum
- 1 disco(s) - 11 pista(s)
- Duración total: 00:45:51
- Artistas principales: The Divine Comedy
- Compositor: Neil Hannon
- Sello: Parlophone UK
- Género Pop/Rock Rock
© 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company ℗ 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
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