Sean O'Hagan has a gift for orchestral pop, creating lush soundscapes that are awash with sonic detail. He clearly owes a lot to Brian Wilson, and Hawaii, the High Llamas' third album, falls somewhere between Pet Sounds and SMiLE. Sonically, the rich, orchestrated production is reminiscent of the former, but Hawaii is paced like SMiLE, with brief instrumentals and song fragments framing the full-fledged songs. Each is carefully arranged and recorded, offering an inviting tapestry of strings, guitars, keyboards, brass, and ...
Read More
Sean O'Hagan has a gift for orchestral pop, creating lush soundscapes that are awash with sonic detail. He clearly owes a lot to Brian Wilson, and Hawaii, the High Llamas' third album, falls somewhere between Pet Sounds and SMiLE. Sonically, the rich, orchestrated production is reminiscent of the former, but Hawaii is paced like SMiLE, with brief instrumentals and song fragments framing the full-fledged songs. Each is carefully arranged and recorded, offering an inviting tapestry of strings, guitars, keyboards, brass, and percussion. For much of Hawaii, the sound of the record is intoxicating, but the album drags over the course of 77 minutes. Among the 29 tracks, there are some beautiful moments and gorgeous songs, but Hawaii winds up being too much of a good thing, lacking the focus of Gideon Gaye. [The American edition of Hawaii contains a 40-minute, six-track bonus disc, containing material previously unreleased in the U.S., including the B-sides for the Nomads single.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
Read Less
Add this copy of Hawaii to cart. $10.99, very good condition, Sold by Salzer's Records rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from ventura, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by V2.
Add this copy of Hawaii to cart. $14.37, good condition, Sold by Prime Goods Outlet rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Troy, OH, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by V2.
