Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 11/08/2005
Festooned with stickers announcing, "featuring members of
the Arcade Fire," the debut from Canadian
post-rock instrumentalists
the Bell Orchestre owes as much allegiance to
Tortoise,
Jim O'Rourke, and
Brian Eno as it does the lost childhood anthems that populate
Funeral. That said, there's no harm in stealing a little buzz from a group that has recently found itself sharing the stage with, as well as being covered by, legends like
U2 and
David Bowie.
Recording a Tape the Colour of the Light borrows enough
Philip Glass repetition and
John Cage minimalism to warrant its
Orchestre title, but it's first and foremost a
rock record. While it slows to a nearly forgettable pace about three quarters of the way in, standout tracks like
"Lumieres, Pt. 1" and
"Pt. 2," "Throw It on a Fire," and
"Salvatore Amato" are soulful windows into the hearts of
classical players who spent much of their time in school harboring dreams of decrepit
rock clubs and buzzing amplifiers. They're young enough to veer off into any direction, but old enough keep their wits about them, resulting in a debut that sounds a lot like New York urbanites
the Rachel's and
the Clogs, but a little more dangerous.
~James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
;)
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