Smoke City

overall the album is ok...not all the songs live up to how wonderful "Underwater Love" is. It's not a bad album, but I wish there were more tracks! Underwater Love is the track that made me want to get the album. There are only 10 tracks and it is expensive because it's an import cd. I really do like the singer's voice though =) "Devil Mood" and "Numbers" have more Jungle elements intertwined with them while "Dark Walk" is an instrumental track that is more Trip-Hop. "Giulietta" is just a boring track and definetly a "filler" "Jamie Pan" is also a weak track...the album has a total of 10 tracks of which 3 range from 3 mins and 11 secs to 3 mins and 48 secs. The best track is unltimately "Underwater Love" which is a great 6 mins a 46 secs. Songs to download: "With You" and "Aguas de Marco" Also I think the group Supreme Beings of Leisure offers much better albums but they only sing in English.

All around a great CD! Nina's voice is downright smoky, seductive, playful, uplifting and smooth. The keyboards add a touch of flare throughout the CD, shifting it from past styles to present ones, as it goes from trip/hop, to bossa nova, to jazzy and all mixed in. Then adding in with it all kinds of creative blends and effects, a truly wonderful production, perfectly created together in a bliss of rhythmly beats! Something I just enjoy listening to constantly. If you like Sade, this is sort of like it, but with a sweet kick of juvenating spirit, a tad higher in tone and more imagination, simply put, it's like Sade on steroids! Definitely it's an improvement in the style, but you really can't give it a style as it fluctuates throughout the CD, and every song is simply great.

I was lucky i got the "last" one from mediaflow in jersey for $10 so the shipping was nil. Here's an idea you're thinking of buying a cd that you might like but are not sure, well take that money and combine in with a cd you'd like for sure and than buy this because it's so damn good. The music itself is so sick, and then add nina mirandas soft, SEXY vocals and damn you've got good music. She has such a great confident style i love it, the oooh ooh part in devil mood drives me crazy, buy it just for that. When I'm driving somewhere late at night, this cd is default.

I fell in love with the song "Underwater Love" on the Ultimate Chillout CD Collection, but had not heard anything else by Smoke City until I recently purchased this CD. I am so glad that I finally screwed up the courage to pick this up. While I am not as completely blown away by this as some of the other reviewers here are, I am still quite impressed.

The entire album is incredible and all of the songs are just as fabulous as "Underwater Love", some even better I dare say. Sexy, smoky, sophisticated, and completely lounge-worthy. The vocals are incredible, and are delivered in a multiple of languages.

So go ahead, don't be afraid to take a chance on this. I would be hard-pressed to imagine any fan of trip-hop, bossa nova, or downtempo lounge disliking this unique little number, which is a perfect marriage of all three genres.

British band Smoke City debuted with "Flying Away," a lush trip-hop album with some hints of sultry South American music woven in there. Imagine Portishead doing bossa nova and samba, and you'll have some idea of what "Flying Away" is made up of.

Starting off with the fluidly sensuous "Underwater Love," the album jolts into the smoky, thumping "Devil Mood," sexy ballads (the slow "With You," the gentle "Giulietta), shimmery Latin music ("Numbers," the pleasant "Aguas De Marco"), and opulent trip-hop ("Dark Walk") before wrapping up with the sweet title track.

"Flying Away" is one of those albums that you just can't pin a label on. To call it one thing -- Latin music, trip-hop, jazz -- would be to leave out everything else this album is. Instead it's a seamless blend of all three, mixed in with some odd sound effects and beautiful vocals.

Smoke City's instrumentation is a weird combination of the electronica and organic: we've got beeps, blips and bloops mixed in with an acoustic guitar. And thrown in are heartbeats, crickets, muffled muttering, maracas and some heavy ringing percussion. The lyrics seem simple, but come across as far more than they are ("With you I felt love/With you I felt pain/With you I was me/And a bit of you too").

Vocalist Nina Miranda's sweet vocals are what makes this album so memorable. She croons in Portuguese, French and English, managing a sultry croon one moment and wistful ethereality the next. Not to mention some ad libs of her own, like the high-pitched yelps of "Devil Mood," her mumbled mutterings, or the quizzical "The body? Yes, the body!" comment.

The sensual sounds of Smoke City are at their best in "Flying Away," full of fire and water and wind. This textured collection of brilliant trip-hop is a must-have for music fans.

Well worth a listen if you have the money to drop. Very much enjoyed this album. For those of you who own or have listened to Flying Away, and are considering this album, don't expect it to be the same. It's certainly not a bad change, it's just different.

Smoke City visits familiar places, mainly those that add allot of Brazilian spice catapulting the listener to a new perspective on to new sights and sounds. Their sense of musicianship added with their sense of fun, requires multiple listenings. For the best experience, get the album: Import only but well worth the search. Try othermusic.com Recommended if you like Arto Lyndsay, Stereolab, Komeda, Money Mark.

THIS BAND IS AMAZING , IT'S TRIP HOP'S BEST KEPT SECRET , EVERY SONG RELEASED BY THIS BAND WILL KNOCK YOU DOWN WITH MUSICAL PLEASURE , TRY IT BEFORE THEY GET TOO FAMOUS

I got into Smoke City in the late 90's after hearing a few of their cuts on various compilations. But finding "Flying Away", their debut album, was always challenging because it wasn't originally released in the USA. This is a band headquartered in the UK and features three people at the forefront - the multi-lingual talents Nina Miranda, amazing production work of Marc Brown and breathtaking instrumentation of Christian Franck. Knowing the musicians in this band, IMO, has been very helpful in collecting music with a similar sound because all three of them have bounced around and done different works with different artists from all over the world.

The music on this one is great. Starting out with the old Levi's hit "Underwater Love", which gives a mad trippy feel with keyboards and effects, you know you're in for a special ride. Followed up with the drum heavy "Devil Mood", you get to hear how un-inhibited Nina Miranda's voice and style is. Then comes a slow jam with interesting orchestration, "With You". It's a great song and so very well made, the guitar, violin, effects and Nina's singing. "Numbers" follows up, a great acoustic track with a gentle and basic drum-line. Other tracks that I enjoyed were "Joga Bossa", "Jamie Pan" and "Giulietta". But that's not to say that the others weren't class. I really dig the way Christian Franck plays the guitar in the cuts - he brings each note to life, and the music seems second nature to him; a real gift. Nina's vocals go perfect with the style of this group; she has he rown unique voice but admittedly, she can remind me of Wanda Sa.

I HIGHLY recommend this cd - it's class, but good luck finding it. "Flying Away" was re-issued back in 2001 before Smoke City came out with their second album titled "Heroes of Nature". Since then it's gone back on the shelf and if you really want it, you'll probably have to search international websites. One of the things I enjoy most about this group is the way the musicians have through the years, tackled several different projects. Smoke City is a great example of just how small the music community is. Nina Miranda's featured on SEVERAL different releases, from break beat to downright chill-out albums. Troubleman on Far Out Records, Arkestra One, Les Gammas, Da Lata and even Hajime Yoshizawa (think Kyoto Jazz Massive). Speaking of Hajime Yoshizawa, a close connection is shared with Da Lata, which consists of Smoke City/Batu's Christian Franck, Lilliana Chachain who's worked with MAW and several others, and exceptional DJ Patrick Forge who pretty much has his hand in everything (check his Trust the DJ series!). As for Christian Franck, check some of his work with Jazzinho, which features Guida De Palma who actually featured in Kyoto Jazz Massive's album from 2002 (whew!). And you could go on and on and on (Marc Brown with KV:5, remixed on Da Lata's "Remixed" album). So check them out and look for their names!

British band Smoke City debuted with "Flying Away," a lush trip-hop album with some hints of sultry South American music woven in there. Imagine Portishead doing bossa nova and samba, and you'll have some idea of what "Flying Away" is made up of.

Starting off with the fluidly sensuous "Underwater Love," the album jolts into the smoky, thumping "Devil Mood," sexy ballads (the slow "With You," the gentle kama-sutra-themed "Giulietta), shimmery Latin music ("Numbers," the pleasant "Aguas De Marco"), and opulent trip-hop ("Dark Walk") before wrapping up with the sweet title track.

"Flying Away" is one of those albums that you just can't pin a label on. To call it one thing -- Latin music, trip-hop, jazz -- would be to leave out everything else this album is. Instead it's a seamless blend of all three, mixed in with some odd sound effects and beautiful vocals.

Smoke City's instrumentation is a weird combination of the electronica and organic: we've got beeps, blips and bloops mixed in with an acoustic guitar. And thrown in are heartbeats, crickets, muffled muttering, maracas and some heavy ringing percussion. The lyrics seem simple, but come across as far more than they are ("With you I felt love/With you I felt pain/With you I was me/And a bit of you too").

Vocalist Nina Miranda's sweet vocals are what makes this album so memorable. She croons in Portuguese, French and English, managing a sultry croon one moment and wistful ethereality the next. Not to mention some ad libs of her own, like the high-pitched yelps of "Devil Mood," her mumbled mutterings, or the quizzical "The body? Yes, the body!" comment.

The sensual sounds of Smoke City are at their best in "Flying Away," full of fire and water and wind. This textured collection of brilliant trip-hop is a must-have for music fans.

This is one of those rare gems that never really caught on. Which is fine by me and just might be this cd's saving grace. The band didn't pander to a broader audience and created music that's hard to lable or pidgeonhole. Or maybe that's the very reason why it didn't gain mass appeal. Either way, what's nice about this cd is that it crosses and blends genres--from bossa nova and samba to jazz and trip hop--quite effortlessly, and manages to do so without being all over the place. The result is a unique sound that is all their own. That's why I have to disagree with an earlier review comparing this to Mono's "Formica Blues." They couldn't be more different. "Formica Blues" is more grounded in electronica and trip hop. "Flying Away" is more textured and harder to pin down...a bit more original. Each is very good in its own right and I would recommend both. It's just that "Flying Away" is one of those cds that leaves you groping around in record bins searching for something comparable, only to come up short.

An innovative mix of 1960's Bossa Nova, Jazz and British Trip Hop, this CD is a joy indeed. Targeted to a more sophisticated audience, it will delight you with divergent textures of rhythym, lyric and melody. Nina Miranda's vocols literally raise your spirits. Obviously, she shows influence of a one Astrud Gilberto. I highly recommend this recording to anyone. It is a fun, exciting production with Sound Mixing expertly crafted. So get it, and here's hoping Smoke City will become a house-hold name!

"Flying Away" is Smoke City's first and only full length Album (currently). This album was released in 1998, and features an electronic/bossa-nova trio, consisting of Marc Brown, Chris Franck and Nina Miranda. The song one has most likely heard is "Underwater Love" which was on a Levis commercial in the late 90's. Of the 10 tracks on the CD, the best are "Mr. Gorgeous (And Miss Curvaceous)" and "Flying Away." If you enjoy this album, also check out "Formica Blues" by Mono, and be sure to hear Astrud Gilberto, Stan Getz and Antonio Carlos Jobim of the original Bossa-Nova movement from the 60's.

This one doesn't make any progress and just sounds like a general pop album with flowing tunes and it lacks originality. I paid almost USD$22 for that but it was not worth the price at all. I think their first album's palmy anyway.

I was fortunate to be in England when this album came out, so I was spared the shipping fees for the import of this disc. I had, along with many others, been awaiting the release of Smoke City's new album, only hearing about it from here and there and when it finally came out, I wasn't really disappointed.

The sound is crisp and smooth. Smoke City utilizes more in this album, Christian Franck's gift with the guitar, so you do have more of an acoustic feel to this album. The tracks just kind of slide through, Mr. Brown and the wonderful voice of Nina Miranda was captivating with all of the tracks - except one. The previous reviewer that slammed Smoke City's remix of "What it Was" is justified. To put it mildly, that was to me the biggest downside of the otherwise enjoyable release. He/She was spot on with that call.

So pick it up. It's an enjoyable disc. I wouldn't rate it as high as the first one in originality, but in enjoyment, it comes close. The first one had a sort of magic to it, a daredevilish sort of take that this one lacks. It's not really poppish by any means like I saw. It's just, good music and instrumentation. Collect it - but don't expect something as strong as the first release.

There goes another one..

It always seems to happen.. I find a band that far surpasses anything out there in the disgusting pop market.. Smoke City's Flying Away album quickly made it to the top of my very extensive music collection.. I anxiously awaited the new album.. ordering it on import (much cheaper) from ......

When the album arrived it took me a few days to listen to it.. I was too excited.. how could Smoke City make -anything- bad?

::sigh:: Yet.. they did..

This album disgusted me for the most part... ending with the god-awful poppy radio mix "what it was" song where they used a vocoder on Nina... !!!! WHY WOULD ANYONE DISTORT NINA'S VOICE?!?!? ugh.. to try and fit in i suppose.. it was just painful to listen to.. a few songs were half-decent.. but they sounded forced.. the inclusion of Chris' child's voices in a few songs along with Nina's amazing crooning are all that kept this thing from crashing and burning totally.. it lacks all the amazing artistic and beautifully detailed soundscapes as the first album had.. what a severe disappointment.. =((( ::sigh::

first of all, this album is 'pop' (yes, dirty 'pop') but no more than the group's debut. warmer, lusher, a little less trippy than flying away, it's still brilliant! unlike many (eg hooverphonic, sneaker pimps), sc doesn't change their sound out of fear/boredom; instead you hear a smooth progression from fa to hon. hoover & the pimps are still great, but you can't help but wonder about the sincerity of their musicality sometimes. i guess not enough dyslexic journalists & inconsistent sub-editors know about sc to stick the cliche-itself portishead-massive attack comparison tag on them. fortunately. jazzier & more 'brazilian' than fa (which is more 'trip-hop' & eclectic), hon is more coherent & mature. outstanding songs - can you feel that, what it was (both versions! so what if she chooses to use a vocoder?? it's a great dance tune), jug... tracklist: 1/in 2/can you feel that 3/what it was (acoustic) 4/they can't take that away from me (also on gershwin cover red hot & rhapsody) 5/london 6/mr. 7/jug 8/remember this 9/it's amazing 10/little elina 11/life can be sweet 12/this song 13/what it was

if you're a true sc fan, then you know their music is all about having fun, not feeding into the intellectual pretense of contre-courant gen-X hipsters.

This is a fine song, with the dreamy, alluring style of trip-hop that reminds me very much of Portishead. Highly recommended.

I really liked this song (used in a Levi's commercial, apparently), which I actually originally heard on one of my chillout compilation CDs some years back, so I thought that I would pick up the maxi-single EP of it. You can never have too much of a good thing, I usually think. Well, this may just be a little too much of a good thing. All of the remix versions are good, but none of them spectacular. None of them really take the song to that next level or do anything incredibly new or different with it. Fairly safe remixes, so none of them are particularly disappointing, but none inspire either. After just one listen, I doubt that this one has much of a future in my headphones. Spend your money on Smoke City's full length album "Flying Away" instead.

Certainly...one of the sweetest...sensuous little grooves we've heard in quite a spell. Reminisent to Morcheeba/Massive Attack/Portishead sounds. Found it on the 'Chill Out' compilation CD...Which by the way...is absolutely delicious!

I've discovered this band through their European hit Underwater Love, which was on the Ladykillers 2 compilation CD. It should just be a matter of time until they are 'discovered' in the United States. They masterfully blend Nina Miranda's sultry vocals with heavy rhythmic percussion, bass, and keyboards. This is no one hit wonder. You'll find yourself listening to this CD all day long. Flying Away is a must have CD, but since it is an import and is harder to track down, you can content yourself with this until you find it.

Fabulous CD with an interesting mix of Brazilian and Techno sounds. I will also recommend the album "Flying Away". The singer's voice is absolutely charming and it just creates the right mood for an evening with your lover.

This is a fine song, with the dreamy, alluring style of trip-hop that reminds me very much of Portishead. Highly recommended.

I really liked this song (used in a Levi's commercial, apparently), which I actually originally heard on one of my chillout compilation CDs some years back, so I thought that I would pick up the maxi-single EP of it. You can never have too much of a good thing, I usually think. Well, this may just be a little too much of a good thing. All of the remix versions are good, but none of them spectacular. None of them really take the song to that next level or do anything incredibly new or different with it. Fairly safe remixes, so none of them are particularly disappointing, but none inspire either. After just one listen, I doubt that this one has much of a future in my headphones. Spend your money on Smoke City's full length album "Flying Away" instead.

Certainly...one of the sweetest...sensuous little grooves we've heard in quite a spell. Reminisent to Morcheeba/Massive Attack/Portishead sounds. Found it on the 'Chill Out' compilation CD...Which by the way...is absolutely delicious!

I've discovered this band through their European hit Underwater Love, which was on the Ladykillers 2 compilation CD. It should just be a matter of time until they are 'discovered' in the United States. They masterfully blend Nina Miranda's sultry vocals with heavy rhythmic percussion, bass, and keyboards. This is no one hit wonder. You'll find yourself listening to this CD all day long. Flying Away is a must have CD, but since it is an import and is harder to track down, you can content yourself with this until you find it.

Fabulous CD with an interesting mix of Brazilian and Techno sounds. I will also recommend the album "Flying Away". The singer's voice is absolutely charming and it just creates the right mood for an evening with your lover.