Aereogramme

It's fun to be so non-mainstream that you're freinds don't even know you while still being cool. That's what this album does for you. It blew my eyeballs out of my sockets and my skull fell out through my ears. It was really that good. One CD with music for all your moods. They sure look at you strangely when you buy this one at the CD shop.

Somehow it didn`t surprise me at all when i found out that Aereogramme come from Scotland after I`d heard the album. It simply confirmed that the Scotts keep providing the rock scene with some of the most interesting and truly alternative groups in recent times (check out Arab Strap. or Ruby, or of course Mogwai). What does surprise me is that a group like that isn`t immediately picked up by a label like Chemical Underground, they would fit it like a glove...
Aereogramme rely on sound contrast and they seem to have mastered that recipe. They go from dark and melancholic Radiohead-like scapes to gut-turning metal passages (!) and back to synthie drones and effects all in a song`s work. It's anyway super difficult to categorise these people as they are definately doing their very own thing and, damn, what a thing that is too!
With a singer who resembles (both visually and vocally) Phil Collins but who has about 10 billion times more talent than Phil, with a rhythm section than can rock like a b***h but also mellow down to reveal depression hymns and melancholy odes, and with musical ideas that are probably too intelligent for the current MTV generation these Scotts are winning bets all the way...
So why aren`t they megabig yet???
Well, who cares and since when does that matter? Since when does size matter alltogether? (save it , save it)...
As long as Aereogramme remain "small" it`s almost guaranteed that their sound will retain the incredible quality of "A story in white"..It seems to work that way with groups like them doesn`t it?
Do discover them.

I can't decide if I like Aereogramme or not, which is a horrible way to start an album review. It's also a bad way to keep my job as a music writer, because it's our job to be steadfast and certain, to opine concretely and unswayingly, to... ah, whatever. Aereogramme's debut album, A Story in White, doesn't make that job an easy one, because, in many ways, it defies categorization. It is a schizophrenic affair between moody, cerebral, almost-ballads and razor-sharp, ear-piercing, raw aggression.

It's apparent from the opening bars of the first track, "The Question is Complete", that a A Story in White is not going to be the smoothest, most relaxing of rides. The listener is treated to an industrial strength attack of pounding, screeching and cut-up feedback, which leads into a raucous, yet tight, guitar-bass-drum interlude. Then the emotive part kicks in, eluding to the softer side of the Scottish trio. "The Question is Complete" goes back and forth like that, leaving the listener constantly wondering: Will they assault me again with their big heavy guitars, or will they keep it mellow for just a few more bars? This is the story of A Story in White.

Personally-and here's where I do have an opinion-I would lose all of the heavy, loud, obnoxious, screechy-screaming, guitar-distorted chaos that peppers the album, and then I would forget those parts ever existed and go on making pretty, heartfelt songs without the melodrama. At best, the aggression seems unnecessary; at worst, it's completely annoying. But I doubt Aereogramme is looking for advice, especially of that nature, so it's hard to pretend that my wish is going to come true.

The American version (on Matador) of A Story in White has Aereogramme's only other release to date, the White Paw EP, tacked on at the end. The three songs that make up the EP prove that Aereogramme can keep things mellow and interesting, without the aggression. Although there are forays into the rougher side rock on the White Paw songs, the edge isn't as sharp. As a result, the songs flow better. Too bad they didn't approach A Story in White with the same even keel.

Robert Young
February 2002
Junkmedia.org Review

This album is so intense and subtle all at once. This is my favorite album right now and I have to say may be one of the most important albms to come across Indy rock in a long time. Every dynamic can be heard in A Story In White. I would say that Aereogramme is a cross between Refused, Flaming Lips, and maybe some early 90's indy rock. You have to hear this to believe it! Buy it!

piercing bolts of quasi-metal and foggy whisps of electronica mark this affecting work of ex-ganger's craig b. The dichotomy of craig's brutally earnest, hopelessly vulnerable lyrics and swiftly moving currents of noise dovetail surprisingly well (this modus operendi would never work for someone like morrisey). While plenty of bands dip their toes in the waters of loud/soft dynamics, aereogramme's quiet sections are flecked with such genuine, gentle melody and their volume is so clearly not merely for loudness' sake that they immedietely distance themselves from those bands of a similar mindset. poignant, affecting, and reflective. scotland is the musical center of the universe, and aereogramme one reason why.

The bad news: the band behind this stellar album has already gone by the wayside, having disbanded immediately following its completion in 2007. The good: although Aereogramme only released a couple full-length albums during their short life span, this one exudes the maturity and completeness one would expect from seasoned veterans of the alt/experimental rock genre.

Defying categorization, MHHAWTYWNG ebbs and flows from tracks as electronic and dense as opener "Conscious Life for Coma Boy," to the folksy, acoustic "Exits" and "You're Always Welcome." Though the music is diverse, the overall mood is quite consistently melancholy. Even the most upbeat and radio-friendly tune, "Barriers," is ultimately a tale of unfulfilled promise; a prelude to the lyrical crash and burn on subsequent tracks.

The highlights for me are "Conscious Life," "Finding a Light," and the brilliantly devastating "Running Man." However, aside from the uncharacteristically dull "A Life Worth Living," there is not a weak moment to be found on this record. The production is wonderfully clean and engaging, and the emotive vocals are a perfect fit for this type of music.

Anyone fond of experimental rock that seamlessly blends elements such as electronica, hard rock and folk should check this one out right away. It is a true shame we won't be hearing more from these guys, but then again, perhaps their demise served as extra inspiration for this delightfully depressing journey.

This is not my favorite Aereogramme album. That being said it does have a few outstanding tracks such as "Barriers" "A Life Worth Living" "Trenches" and "Nightmares". It's not surprising that Aereogramme have always been a little hit and miss considering the diversity of their influences. I'm giving them an extra star because in my opinion their exceptional songs more than make up for those which fall short of the mark. It's too bad we won't be hearing anymore from these guys.

This record split with Aereogramme is amazing. It has a very relaxed and mellow sound to it. Full of beautiful soundscapes and textures along with hypnotic bass-lines and enchanting melodies.

I'd recommend buying this used, because the price is slightly steep for only three songs. However, for fans of ISIS (Not too sure about much of Aereogramme's material) this is a must have. "Low Tide" alone is worth the price of admission. Classic ISIS stylings. "Stolen" and "Delial" aren't bad either. Take a swim, it's exhilarating in here. Just ask Clark Griswold.

This album is short and sort of boring. I am an ISIS fan and had never heard of Aereogramme. It is worth a listen, but not very many. Some may call ISIS boring for their oscillating, repetitive music, but this album lacks ISIS' signature way of making that sort of thing interesting.

I'd never heard of Aereogramme when I got this album, but they really improved on what I believe to be Isis's single weakness. One of my pet peeves in heavier music has always been the "metal grawlp" voice. I love the music behind Isis, but whenever that snarling voice comes in and starts ruining the music, I'm apt to simply change albums - especially if I'm listening to music while I'm programming. It seems unnatural to have complicated, mature musical progressions punctuated with senseless, adolescent screams. This album removes that single wart from Isis and the result is an excellent album/ep. Hardcore Isis fans may be disappointed with what is essentially a progressive rock ambient album in the tradition of Red Sparowes.

This album will appeal to those Isis fans who enjoy Explosions in the Sky, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Red Sparowes, and perhaps even Cult of Luna (less the aforementioned metal grawlp voice).

Those who enjoy the snarling, frenetic sections of Isis tracks, Jesu, Godflesh, and heavier drone bands such as Boris and Sunn-O)) might look elsewhere.

and one pretty good one. The third and final song is too sparce for me. The album is worth it for the first song alone though. A real epic and truly a meshing of both artists best points. Wonderful!

I'm writing a review of this album to balance out the more enthusiastic reviews with a more sober account.

This band has great potential. In fact, compared to the tripe garbage that the masses readily consume, they sound pretty good. It's just the ground they cover has been covered so many times before.

Their songs are heavily layered with distorted guitars, chimes, violins, a few random sound samples, and even a harp melody on the piece, "A simple process of elimination", which is actually very pretty. Track 10, which is hidden, also has some very interesting drumming, and very beautiful folksey violin melody. The layering lends to a very lush soundscape. The rhythm from song to song is varied enough. The song structure and melodies usually aim for wistful, tragic, and melodramatic pop hooks, somewhat akin to Radiohead, and especially Muse, except there might be some Mogwai thrown in there as well.

From the first listen onward I knew something was amiss with this album. The soundscape, as lush as it may be, "sounds" flat. There is so much layering at times that some of the instruments lose their emotional impact. The vocalist, Craig B. usually sings in a high range tone that is slightly whiny and effeminate, occasionally he breaks out into rather powerful blood curdling screams. According to Wikipedia he lost his voice for six months from screaming so much. The lyrics really do not impress me. They are the sterotypically vague personal lyrics, which really give me no idea of what Craig is trying to sing about. FOR EXAMPLE:

It's time to follow the black path
And come tommorow you won't laugh at love
Faced down you can see the ground turn
From green and red, black to grey
Where everyone becomes afraid of you

How am I supposed to interpret this? I guess I'm at a place where I want a vocalist to sing lyrics that are specific and descriptive. I want lyrics that address personal, social, or political issues in a creative and detailed manner, or at least more detailed than the lyrics cited above.

The song structure and melodies are even more frustrating. Many of the songs just too short and "radio friendly" for my taste. Just when this group starts to milk a REALLY interesting passage, they have a nasty habit of going on to something else, or end the song altogether, which is usually boring. This habit lends to an undeveloped and anti-climatic sound, and not even in a purposeful way. It's just jarring and annoying.

Speaking of jarring. The transitions between some of these songs can be rather crude. The end of many of these songs just cuts off abruptly, and immediately throws the listener into another song, full scale. For me, this method of production does not allow for reflection on, and recovery from the previous song. It also doesn't adequately prepare you for next song. Needless to say, this REALLY bugged me.

There is no doubt this band is talented, but it takes more than talent to please my ear, and unfortunately, my ears were not impressed.

To the small minded individuals who dare rate this music as less than four stars, I pity your cold, angry world. This is an incredibly emotional experience, and while Aereogramme have listened to the likes of King Crimson, Tool, Radiohead, etc, they are certainly different and in many ways superior to all of those bands... I love those three bands, too...

This cd has some of the heaviest moments I've ever heard, as well as some of the most beautiful string arrangements. The singer's high tenor is powerful but fragile, and the overall production is detailed.

I was blown away upon first listen... You really owe it to yourself to check these Scots out.

Remember the first time you saw th Flaming Lips live?? Or the first time you realized how cool Beck was?? What about the first time you heard the song "Creep" by Radiohead? Or how angelic Jeff Buckley's voice is?? Remember those feelings and put this cd in and turn it up!! This record absolutely kills me!!!

This album will leave you stunned. So many aspects and different forms are given. Monumental and Epic, to Brutal bombastic white noise. It is absolutely unbelievable to hear. No other band has crafted such lush arrangements and molded them together with such precision

I discovered Aereogramme just recently though the "Fishtank" collaboration with Isis (see corresponding review). It was indeed an interesting discovery, and _Seclusion_ subsequently became the first thing I sampled from the band. Clocking in at just over 30 minutes, I'm not really sure if this is considered an EP as opposed to a full-length album, but that's just a triviality. I have to say that I'm pretty impressed with the material on this album; very diverse, very progressive.

The album starts with the very "alternative" song "Inkwell," which, catchy at it is, seemed a bit of a weak introduction to me at first. I'm just glad I was open-minded enough to keep listening, because if all the other songs sounded similar to this one, I probably would have lost interest quickly. Things get much more interesting with the following track "Dreams and Bridges," which is more dark and meticulous, with the end of the song moving into a more heavy realm. "The Unravelling" is my favorite track, and I'd even be so bold as to call it a masterpiece...at least as far as 2006 is concerned. It begins with the sound of a film reel, a melodious, brooding acoustic guitar, and continues on with soft yet sinister vocals, driving bass lines spiked with electronic noises, and an enticing string section, all concluding with a fit of screaming and the final "unravelling" of the film reel heard in the beginning. At this point, I didn't forget that I didn't care for the first track; instead I realized that it plays its own role in the album, and that Aereogramme--as all good bands--don't care to confine themselves to just a single sound or style. "I Don't Need Your Love" is a nice ballad complete with chimes and soothing synths. Also included is an interesting, fuzzed-out cover of the Flaming Lips' "Lightning Strikes the Postman" in which Aereogramme takes a brief moment to display some shredding skills. The album closes with a stunningly haunting instrumental entitled "Alternate Score." In the end, you realize that within the short 32 minutes of the album, you've taken an entire journey, gotten delightfully lost along the way in a whimsical countryside, and benefited greatly from the experience.

Also included on the album is a short film (entitled "Seclusion") that is accompanied in one version by "Dreams and Bridges" and in another by "Alternate Score." It's a bit creepy, but I didn't really care for it. Obviously, as an independent film, it's not very high budget, but it seems too much of a rip-off of _The Ring_, and it's just...well it's already been said: I didn't care for it. Both songs seem to sync up rather well with the video though.

You should be able to find this album (or EP, or whatever it is) fairly cheap, so it makes for a good impulse buy. It should appeal to fans of edgy, alternative rock bands, prog rock, and post-rock alike. It has definitely gotten me interested in the band, and I'll have to check out some of their other albums within the near future.

Aereogramme is a criminally underrated band from Scotland who certainly doesn't know what going with the flow means. Just try to listen to their 2 previous albums, and you'll understand what I mean. Just when you think you've got them all figured out, they always surprise you with something completely different. Their first two albums could be considered, in my opinion, as the missing link between Biffy Clyro, Oceansize and Placebo. "Seclusion" adds another dimension to their music: walls of sounds that hit you like a brick, easily comparable to what Isis has been doing lately. The result is a wonderfully eclectic EP, from the noisy popiness of "Inkwell" and "Lighning Strikes The Postman" (amazing Flaming Lips cover), the haunting beauty of "Dreams and Bridges" and "The Unravelling", or the uber-gorgeous "I Don't Need Your Love".
Even more than "A Story In White" or "Sleep And Release", Aereogramme's "Seclusion" leaves you so impressed that you'll wonder how you could go on for so long without knowing about this band.
Buy it.

This album is their first true masterpeice! They keep progressing with each release and this one far exceeds their previous work. 6 tracks 32min.

I'm writing a review of this album to balance out the more enthusiastic reviews with a more sober account.

This band has great potential. In fact, compared to the tripe garbage that the masses readily consume, they sound pretty good. It's just the ground they cover has been covered so many times before.

Their songs are heavily layered with distorted guitars, chimes, violins, a few random sound samples, and even a harp melody on the piece, "A simple process of elimination", which is actually very pretty. Track 10, which is hidden, also has some very interesting drumming, and very beautiful folksey violin melody. The layering lends to a very lush soundscape. The rhythm from song to song is varied enough. The song structure and melodies usually aim for wistful, tragic, and melodramatic pop hooks, somewhat akin to Radiohead, and especially Muse, except there might be some Mogwai thrown in there as well.

From the first listen onward I knew something was amiss with this album. The soundscape, as lush as it may be, "sounds" flat. There is so much layering at times that some of the instruments lose their emotional impact. The vocalist, Craig B. usually sings in a high range tone that is slightly whiny and effeminate, occasionally he breaks out into rather powerful blood curdling screams. According to Wikipedia he lost his voice for six months from screaming so much. The lyrics really do not impress me. They are the sterotypically vague personal lyrics, which really give me no idea of what Craig is trying to sing about. FOR EXAMPLE:

It's time to follow the black path
And come tommorow you won't laugh at love
Faced down you can see the ground turn
From green and red, black to grey
Where everyone becomes afraid of you

How am I supposed to interpret this? I guess I'm at a place where I want a vocalist to sing lyrics that are specific and descriptive. I want lyrics that address personal, social, or political issues in a creative and detailed manner, or at least more detailed than the lyrics cited above.

The song structure and melodies are even more frustrating. Many of the songs just too short and "radio friendly" for my taste. Just when this group starts to milk a REALLY interesting passage, they have a nasty habit of going on to something else, or end the song altogether, which is usually boring. This habit lends to an undeveloped and anti-climatic sound, and not even in a purposeful way. It's just jarring and annoying.

Speaking of jarring. The transitions between some of these songs can be rather crude. The end of many of these songs just cuts off abruptly, and immediately throws the listener into another song, full scale. For me, this method of production does not allow for reflection on, and recovery from the previous song. It also doesn't adequately prepare you for next song. Needless to say, this REALLY bugged me.

There is no doubt this band is talented, but it takes more than talent to please my ear, and unfortunately, my ears were not impressed.

To the small minded individuals who dare rate this music as less than four stars, I pity your cold, angry world. This is an incredibly emotional experience, and while Aereogramme have listened to the likes of King Crimson, Tool, Radiohead, etc, they are certainly different and in many ways superior to all of those bands... I love those three bands, too...

This cd has some of the heaviest moments I've ever heard, as well as some of the most beautiful string arrangements. The singer's high tenor is powerful but fragile, and the overall production is detailed.

I was blown away upon first listen... You really owe it to yourself to check these Scots out.

Remember the first time you saw th Flaming Lips live?? Or the first time you realized how cool Beck was?? What about the first time you heard the song "Creep" by Radiohead? Or how angelic Jeff Buckley's voice is?? Remember those feelings and put this cd in and turn it up!! This record absolutely kills me!!!

This album will leave you stunned. So many aspects and different forms are given. Monumental and Epic, to Brutal bombastic white noise. It is absolutely unbelievable to hear. No other band has crafted such lush arrangements and molded them together with such precision

aereogramme. it's been my experience that once every 3 or 4 years a band comes along whose music changes your life.aereogramme is my favorite band find of the past five years.elements of singer/songwriter, huge riffs, electronic/found sounds, and soul like, um, nothing else. the sincerity is hard to match. there is no filler on either one of thier lp's and both are suprememly great. seriously. like alot of bands, they're probably too real for the masses to grasp, but i promise you you won't be disappointed if you check these guys out. real people making unreal music. their live show is amazing as well. thank you aereogramme.

oh man this band is so good...every song is good. I don't know what to say to make you buy this album except that it has so much raw emotion. It's the perfect listen no matter what mood you're in. More people should know about this band.