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Saturday 20 February 2010

"Ignore This" will be available for download at Amazon UK!

Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ignore-This/dp/B0038RADFE/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1266688098&sr=8-8

For a brief period there were very short clips of the album tracks but these have now been removed, but here's what I thought anyway ....

On first hearing of the clips, it certainly sounds very different from anything that we have heard before. But then, if you are a Salem fan then you will be used to that by now! There is no end to his musical diversity: and there are many different musical styles on this album which, as predicted, has a synth-pop feel.

On first listen....

1. "The Song I Never Wrote": 58-second long synth-based instrumental, recalling "Begin" from "This Is Who I Am".

2. "4 O'Clock" - A synth-driven story of a sleepless night, with a triumphant chorus.

3. "Virgin Mary" - oh I really like this! Uplifting synth-driven pop song with a lively chorus - I really want to hear more of this song and I think it will be one of my favourites.

4. "Red Rock" - driving synth/techno beat with vocoder-vocals. Don't know how this will go?

5. "Keep On Walking" - Melodifestivalen 2010 entry. Win or lose, it has already reached classic status and won Salem so many, many new fans.

6. "This Is For" - very different sound for Salem, driven by an unusual urgency and almost-vocoded synth beats.

7. "Part Of It" - I think this will also become one of my favourite songs on this album - "I dare you to take a step outside...."

8. "Brooklyn Sun" - already a classic. A totally beautiful song, no more, no less. I would have preferred an orchestral-arrangement on this but there is a nice echoey production and a layered chorus, and that is enough for me.

9. "Don't Wanna Talk About It" - frenzied techno-instrumental. Someone on Twitter compared this to Mr Oizo: good description.

10. "Bloody Breakfast" - "let them all have a sniff and taste"....I'm intrigued by this, and I want to hear more of it. Another strongly synth-influenced song.

11. "Split My Personality" - a bit more serious, synth-driven song which I'm really keen to hear more of.

12. "Cowboys and Dinosaurs" - a mix of acoustic guitars and synth-strings. Very dream-like: probably this album's answer to "Hymn" or "Purple Lady".

13. "I'm So Happy" - it sounds like "old" Salem - the song has a very happy and uplifting vibe, with the 'la-la-las"....I really, really, really want to hear more of this!

All in all, a very different (and more contemporary) sound for Salem - I like it!

If you were lucky enough to hear the clips, let me know what you think!

7 comments:

kevin (ru) said...

Much more electro! Where all the strings go?

Mia said...

Unfortunately, I really didn´t like this. I find the songs "harder" to my ears, noisy in a bad way. For me, it really feels like this was a turn for the worse. :-( The oh so beautiful melodies from his previous albums are nowhere to be found.

Well. Maybe others like it.

Anonymous said...

I think it sounds beautiful, as always when Salem composes. But this time he sounds almost angry when he is singing in some songs and that is new from him. Maybe I miss the cheery Salem a bit, but it still sounds great./Sofie

Fredrik Pousette said...

I agree about just about everything you wrote. And I have a feeling this album is gonna be a really beautiful experience. Probably more satisfying than Astronaut, maybe almost as good as This Is Who I Am.

And by the way, you must have heard "Cowboys" on the Berwaldhallen broadcast. Almost like an intro for Cold Shower.

Laura (EuropeCrazy) said...

Oh yes, I do remember that music now, which led into "Cold Shower" but I wasn't sure what it was at that time, so thanks for letting me know.

Good mix of comments so far: keep them coming!

Maria said...

Hi Laura!

I've listened to the clips now. And I really think that Salem has been taking it to another level. And I lööve it. Cause there is a big difference from what he's been doing before, though I think that there's also a lot in the new sound which is so much like him!!

Of course I've already got my favourites, here are my reviews of some of the songs;
4 O'CLOCK - Great sound, already stuck on my mind.
VIRGIN MARY - very happy song, and a lovely character .
KEEP ON WALKING - phenomenal
PART OF IT - think it's sounds a bit like a new It's True
BROOKLYN SUN - just so beautiful
SPLIT MY PERSONALITY- this is a bit more mainstream than the other ones i think, it's not very salemish. though i think it'll be great.
COWBOYS - would be an excellent movie soundtrack, love it!
I'M SO HAPPY - gaaah, can't wait to hear the rest of it!!

i think that there are some that might be disappointed with Ignore This. I think people have not expected this from him, and it might take a little while for them to get used to the new sound.

Myself, I think it's great!! Awesome!

Pranav said...

This is a radically new sound that is obviously very synth-driven - especially compared to the very motown-era-like "This is who I am". Based on the clips, it appears like "Virgin Mary" is the album's best offering and would have also probably made a better lead single than "Keep on walking" (but then again, this is just based on an assessment of the clips).