Time Travelling Blues - Orange Goblin > Reviews > Travelling Time, but not blue

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Great spread of sounds, amazing throughout
Disadvantages:	Erm .  .  .  it ends?

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I won't pretend to know a lot about the mechanics of music. Having played many instruments albeit for short amounts of time and being an aspiring lead guitarist (if I would only practice on the damn thing) I do know about chord progression, drop tuning, scale patterns and that kind of thing, but no more. What I do know about is music in general, what's good and what's not, how it makes you feel, lyrical skill and those kind of things. Or, to put it another way, the listening side of music.

What I also know is that Time Travelling Blues is an astonishing album. Orange Goblin have followed on from their debut album "Frequencies From Planet Ten" by pushing the key elements of their music even further. You still get the bluesy tunes ripped apart by chrushing chord patterns, but more than that there are tracks which are one or the other in their own right. "Blue Snow", the first (and one of the best) tracks on the album hammers out some heavy sounds but also slows down the typical Orange Goblin tempo. "Solarisphere" and "Shine" are a trip back to the classic feel of the band and both are very good tracks. "The Man Who Invented Time" is a fantastic track in the same format as "Blue Snow" and, coincidentally, is the first Goblin song I ever heard and the one that made me a fan. The fifth and sixth tracks - "Diesel (Phunt)" and "Snail Hook" - are somewhat overshadowed by the rest of the album, so if you're one of these people who likes to track hop, make sure you take the time to listen to them a few times and you'll reap the rewards. "Nuclear Guru" is the first step into pure bluesy sound and I like it. It's chilled out and its placement in the album brings you down temporarily from the high power riffs in the other songs. If you're planning on buying this album, "Lunarville 7, Airlock 3" will be your new favourite song, one of the best that Orange Goblin have come up with. Finally, "Time Travelling Blues" is an amazing break with the rest of the tracks and fully deserves to share the title of the album. When you're at the end, fast forward through the five minutes of nothingness and listen to the hidden track - it's hilarious.

The genius of the album is more than just the quality of the songs though. The tracks are cleverly placed so that whilst similar ones are grouped together, there is an allowance made for the transition between them, and Time Travelling Blues fades through seamlessly. I don't mean to gush, but even the artwork (which I usually care very little about) gives you a feel of the music.

This is a ten out of ten, A* album that you must listen to. Buy it. Buy it now.