[Lisa Germano|Happiness]極樂世界

Artist：Lisa Germano
Album：Happiness
Release Date：1994
Label：4AD
Country：UK
Genre： Rock
Style： Alternative Rock, Art Rock

Tracklisting:

1		Bad Attitude
		Keyboards - Malcolm Burn
2		Destroy The Flower
		Drums - Michael Radovsky Mixed By [Additional] - Mike Griffith Producer, Bass, Mixed By [Additional] - Jay Joyce
3		Puppet
		Acoustic Guitar - John Keane Drums - Kenny Aronoff Guitar - Jay Joyce Mixed By [Additional] - Trina Shoemaker Piano, Tambourine, Mixed By [Additional] - Malcolm Burn
4		Everyone's Victim
		Bass - Bill Dillon Drums - Daryl Johnson Guitar - Jay Joyce Percussion - Ronald Jones
5		Energy
6		Cowboy
		Guitar [Pedal Steel] - John Keane
7		Happiness
		Guitar - Malcolm Burn
8		The Earth
9		Around The World
		Djembe - Daryl Johnson Keyboards - Jay Joyce
10		Sycophant
		Keyboards, Tambourine - Malcolm Burn Producer, Bass - Jay Joyce
11		Miamo-Tutti
12		The Dresses Song
		Guitar - Malcolm Burn
13		The Darkest Night Of All

簡介。。。。。。

On 1993's Happiness, Lisa Germano delivered on the promise that her debut On the Way Down From the Moon Palace suggested she had. Both more ambitious and more accessible than her first album, Happiness swaths her ethereal-yet-earthy melodies in a rich, shimmering production courtesy of Malcom Burn. Originally released by Capitol, 4AD re-released the album once Germano switched labels; the label's head, Ivo Watts-Russell, remixed certain tracks like the folky dream pop of "Destroy the Flower" and the scathing "Sycophant," bringing out the songs' melancholy, wistful tendencies. However, even the Capitol version of Happiness has plenty of both of those qualities. Just as Germano mixes the delicate with the down-to-earth in her music, she uses her fragile voice to express uncomfortable, sad, and occasionally funny sentiments, as on the bitchy, jaded "Bad Attitude," where she sings "You wish you were pretty/But you're not/Ha ha ha" with equal amounts of cynicism and idealism. With "The Dresses Song," she turns what would be a flirty pop song in anyone else's hands into an ambivalent compliment: "You look at me so fragile/You make me think about nothing/It feels so good like that." Happiness also expands Germano's musical palette, ranging from jangly pop like "Puppet" and "Energy," to the brooding, droning rock of the title track and "Everyone's Victim," to the haunting, proto-trip-hop instrumental "Miamo-Tutti" (named for one of Germano's cats). The spooky, vulnerable final song "The Darkest Night of All" is a forerunner of the dark, riveting territory she'd cover on Geek the Girl; as a whole, Happiness finds Germano moving toward a remarkable emotional honesty, which makes the album all the more captivating.

我的碎碎唸。。。。。。推薦指數：8.2/10

很老的一張專輯了，Lisa簽約4AD發行的第一張專輯。實際上是在Capitol Records發行過的一張專輯，來到4AD之後重新發行的。區別是Capital版的有翻場Nancy Sinatra的These Boots Are Made For Walkin'，在這個下載裏，也加入這首歌。

去豆瓣上看看。。。。。。
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[Blonde Redhead|23]用盡全力，加速度奔跑

Artist：Blonde Redhead
Album：23
Release Date：2007-05
Label：4AD
Country：UK
Genre： Rock
Style： Indie Rock

Tracklisting:

1		23 (5:18)
2		Dr. Strangeluv (4:47)
3		The Dress (4:00)
4		SW (4:35)
		French Horn - Morgan King (2)
5		Spring And By Summer Fall (4:15)
6		Silently (3:57)
		Producer [Very Special Help By] - Mitchell Froom
7		Publisher (4:01)
8		Heroine (4:11)
		Featuring [Robot Voice Created By] - Chris Coady
9		Top Ranking (3:27)
		Producer [Very Special Help By] - Mitchell Froom
10		My Impure Hair (4:52)

簡介。。。。。。

Blonde Redhead seem to have been around for donkeys years now, but it's only recently that they've really started to make an impression on me. Their last album 'Misery is a Butterfly' was a sensitive and haunting record, showing a refined musical direction from a band who often struggled to get away from comparisons to early Sonic Youth, and '23' takes their progression even further still. I would say this is the band's first pure pop album, and it begins on a high with the title track which sounds suspiciously like classic shoegazer music. When I say classic shoegazer I don't mean it sounds 'a bit like Slowdive' either, this is a track that could have fallen off the back of the lorry carrying master tapes of 'Loveless' to the pressing plant - it's that good. Founder and singer Kazu Makino's vocals sound better than they ever have mixed nice and high and drenched in reverb and simply put this is the music that reminds me why we all fell in love with 4AD in the first place. Gorgeous female whispers, crushing harmonic guitar noise, pummelling percussion... it might not be the most forward-thinking or modern music I've ever heard, but when the songs are this good who's bothered about the finer details? This willingness to travel into pop excess carries through the rest of the album, and although it occasionally threatens to overwhelm the more discerning listeners among us with the faint sound of Dubstar (well I liked 'em okay?) for those most part this is pure shoegazing bliss. I honestly didn't expect the band to pop up with an album of this quality, this sort of unashamed guitar-pop doesn't crop up often enough for my liking, we seem burdened week after week with bands trying desperately to be trendy with their Hoxton haircuts and references to post-punk records they never even heard, so to hear a band like this avoiding any kind of fad or fashion just sounds right. This is good quality, honest pop music and revels in being so - just right for the summer season then I'd say? Party like it's 1993. Recommended.(from boomkat)

Blonde Redhead is an indie rock band. It was formed by Kazu Makino, Maki Takahashi and Milan born Italian twin brothers Simone Pace and Amedeo Pace. They take their name from a song by DNA, a 70s and 80s no-wave band from New York. Blonde Redhead caught the attention of Sonic Youth's drummer, Steve Shelley, who produced their first self titled album in 1993. Shortly afterwards Maki Takahashi left the band and the remaining band members continued as a trio. On their third album, Fake Can Be Just As Good, they were joined by Vern Rumsey of Unwound as a guest bassist. After this they continued without a bass player for the release of the remainder of their albums. On their fourth album, In an Expression of the Inexpressible, Guy Picciotto of Fugazi was hired as producer, as well as contributing to / singing on the song "Futurism vs. Passeism Part 2". Guy Picciotto has produced their latest two records as well, Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons and Misery is a Butterfly.

Blonde Redhead has gradually increased in popularity in the underground music scene. Their early music has been described as emulative of Sonic Youth, but their more recent releases have begun to stray from this generalization. Kazu Makino is noted for her high, eerie voice, which hovers over melodic guitar riffs and rhythmic drum beats.

The large span of time between Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons and Misery is a Butterfly is attributed to Makino's recovery time after being trampled by a horse. Much of Misery Is A Butterfly's imagery and illustration is equestrian or reflective of the accident. In the liner notes, Makino thanks her doctors "and her friends who fed her and cheered her up when she couldn't do much on her own."

我的碎碎唸。。。。。。評價指數：7.6/10

很讚的封面，有點手忙腳亂的可愛。Blonde Redhead的第七張唱片23，屬於比較耐聼的一類，開始聼的時候不以爲然，確實是有點吵，呵呵。不過多聼幾遍感覺還是挺可以的。節奏也旋律很爽，快速度。一直以爲這個日裔女歌手是唯一的主唱，原來兩個一模一樣的孿生兄弟（太可怕了，這兩個人長得實在太像了）在唱片中也會獻聲。呵呵。

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[Lisa Germano|Slide]蝴蝶樣女子

Artist：Lisa Germano
Album：Slide
Release Date：1998
Label：4AD
Country：UK
Genre： Rock
Style： Art Rock

Tracklisting:

1		Way Below The Radio (4:14)
2		No Color Here (4:28)
3		Tomorrowing (3:58)
4		Electrified (4:45)
5		Slide (2:21)
6		If I Think Of Love (3:47)
7		Crash (4:26)
8		Wood Floors (4:02)
9		Turning Into Betty (4:22)
10		Guillotine (3:52)
11		Reptile (3:34)

簡介。。。。。。

Name almost any under-recognized artist and someone will say that if he or she were only marketed correctly or heard by the right people, a star would be born. It's hard to imagine anyone making that claim about the under-recognized Lisa Germano, whose songs are so personal, ambiguous, and unsettling that even sympathetic listeners can find it hard to gain entry. Still, Slide is one of the more accessible albums in Germano's catalog, lacking both the harrowing sexual dramas of Geek the Girl and the overt self-loathing of Happiness. The songs here feature Germano's trademark carnival-music textures, but are both subtler and prettier than usual, which sometimes makes them even more disturbing: "No Color Here" and "Crash," both about depression, are so tender and closely observed they're nearly fetishistic. Elsewhere, Germano lets some air into her universe: the lilting "Electrified" remembers a time when "playing was everything," "Wood Floors" is a beautiful piano ballad, and "Turning Into Betty" is a darkly humorous song about the fear of turning into one's mother. Even Germano's lighter moments are disorienting, though; when she sings "I'm giving in to beauty," it sounds less like an epiphany than a potentially fatal error.（from AMG）

我的碎碎唸。。。。。。評價指數：8.2/10

聼這個Lisa的歌縂會讓我感覺到渾身上下暖暖的，感覺到生活還是很美好的。我這樣強烈地雙重性格的人，總是掙扎于絕望與希望之間。應該說Lisa的音樂是給我帶來希望的那一類。她總是那樣毫不費力的吟唱，因爲她天生有著一副給人溫暖與舒緩的嗓音，再加上她美麗的容貌，大概天生就注定了是一個明星。

去豆瓣上看看。。。。。。
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[Minotaur Shock|Muesli]我無所畏懼的A計劃

Artist：Minotaur Shock
Album：Muesli
Release Date：2005
Label：4AD
Country：UK
Genre： Electronic
Style： Downtempo

Tracklisting:

A1		Muesli (Edit)
A2		Beau Nash
B1		Marine
B2		Ta

簡介。。。。。。

With an appellation apparently based on a hugely discredited US psychological shock-therapy (i.e. they put you in a room then stormed in gibbering with a minotaur mask on…), David Edwards has here culled a prime-cut from his recent ‘Maritime’ LP. With a sound that always hints at water-blistered pianos and dusty 1970’s electronics, Minotaur Shock has quite rightly earned a reputation for making (whisper it!) hard boiled Folktronica that straddles the line between Pedro, Four Tet and a Pic’n’Mix of Leaf’s finest. Always more inventive and complex than my memory suggests, the Shock opens with a rejigged version of the album cut ‘Muesli’; here resplendent in clockwork horns, Ferris Wheel melodies and shuffling (autumnal) percussion. A real goer for anyone who found their appetite pricked by Psapp, ‘Muesli’ can actually lay claim to being too short; an accusation not readily leveled at artists these days. Backed up by three new ‘uns, ‘Beau Nash’ is a an alliance of menacing electro, crescendo laced soundscapes and thrumming instrumentation, ‘Marnie’ bellies some time in the company of Radiohead’s ‘Kid A’, whilst ‘Ta’ plumps for a head-on gumbo of 80’s synths and a breakbeat buffet. Muesli; it’s good for you.(from Boomkat)

Minotaur Shock is the nom de plume of David Edwards, a Bristol-based electronica musician. His critically lauded 2005 album Maritime was his first on the 4AD Records record label, having previously released his work on the Manchester based Melodic.He also plays drums in Bronze Age Fox, a band from the Hanham area of Bristol, and has remixed artists such as Bloc Party, Badly Drawn Boy and SFA.

我的碎碎唸。。。。。。評價指數：8.0/10

我真的很納悶了，這麽一張封面pp的EP，居然找不到大一些的圖片。4AD這麽大的厰牌，網站做得很讚，卻不提供大一點的圖片，真是夠讓人不爽的了。最近也不知道是心情不好還是怎麽的，開始迷戀節奏，能讓我隨之搖擺的節奏。節奏現在對我來説好像武器裝備一樣，酷酷的搖擺，似乎能讓我無所畏懼目空一切似的。Minotaur Shock的音樂做到了，因爲在他的音樂中我很high。看來曾經迷戀Kid A的人，也應該聼聼Minotaur Shock的音樂。
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[Rachel Goswell|Waves Are Universal]花叢深處

Artist：Rachel Goswell
Album：Waves Are Universal
Release Date：2004
Label：4AD
Country：UK
Genre： Rock
Style： Folk Rock, Acoustic, Indie Rock

Tracklisting:

1		Warm Summer Sun (3:45)
		Accordion - Rachel Goswell Acoustic Guitar, Guitar [12 String] - Joe Light Bagpipes [Uilleann] - Jerome Farrell Bass [Fuzz], Bass [Dumb], Shaker, Guitar [12 String] - David Naughton* Drums - Ashley Bates Piano - Bill Drake*
2		Gather Me Up (2:24)
		Acoustic Guitar - Rachel Goswell Cymbal [Ding] - Ashley Bates Organ [Harmonium] - Bill Drake* Whistle [Low D] - Jerome Farrell
3		No Substitute (4:36)
		Acoustic Guitar, Guitar [Electric], Guitar [12 String] - Joe Light Bass, Shaker, Tambourine, Handclaps - David Naughton* Drums - Ashley Bates Handclaps - Rachel Goswell Piano - Bill Drake*
4		Deelay (4:13)
		Acoustic Guitar, Guitar [Ebo], Guitar [Rhythm], Guitar [Swell] - Joe Light Bass, Accordion, Shaker, Tambourine, Guitar - David Naughton*
5		Plucked (3:08)
		Acoustic Guitar - Joe Light Arranged By [Strings], Electric Piano [Caved Wurlitzer] - David Naughton* Cello - Jeremy Perl Violin - Bronwyn Stride
6		Hope (3:52)
		Acoustic Guitar - Joe Light Bass, Percussion - David Naughton* Bells [Bangles] - Lynne Jackaman Organ [Harmonium] - Bill Drake*
7		Coastline (5:43)
		Bass, Bongos, Guitar [12 String] - David Naughton* Drums, Tambourine, Other [Lion's Roar] - Ashley Bates Guitar [Lead], Guitar [Rhythm] - Rachel Goswell Guitar [Slide], Effects [Guitar] - Joe Light
8		Shoulder The Blame (3:06)
		Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar [Lead], Guitar [Arch Top Slide] - Joe Light Bells [Letterbox], Percussion [Pot] - David Naughton* Flute - Melanie Shallenberg
9		Save Yourself (3:59)
		Acoustic Guitar [Strum] - Rachel Goswell Acoustic Guitar, Guitar - Joe Light Drums - Ashley Bates Organ [Harmonium] - David Naughton* Piano - Bill Drake*
10		Thru The Dawn (3:09)
		Acoustic Guitar - Rachel Goswell Shaker, Vibraphone - Dave Naughton
11		Beautiful Feeling (3:27)
		Acoustic Guitar, Accordion - Rachel Goswell Cello - Jeremy Perl Viola - Reiad Chivah* Violin - Michael Perl , Richard Lane
12		Sleepless & Tooting (3:01)
		Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar, Shaker, Bongos - Joe Light Drums [Snare] - Rachel Goswell Guitar [Mini Spanish], Rainstick, Tambourine [Ethnic], Cymbal [Ride] - David Naughton* Organ [Hammond] - Bill Drake*

簡介。。。。。。

Fans of Slowdive and Mojave 3 have been pining for a Rachel Goswell album for years. Although 4AD billed Waves Are Universal as sounding like something you wouldn't expect from her, it actually sounds almost exactly like you thought it would, provided you've heard a Mojave 3 song at some point during the previous eight years. The British folk elements that have been slowly coming to the fore in the Mojave 3 records are more of a factor here. Otherwise, it's a fusion of British folk and alt-country -- which, to be more forward, means it could pass for a Mojave 3 record made while primary songwriter Neil Halstead was too busy hanging ten. This, for the most part, is a good thing, but the record is rather safe, lacking an adventurousness that is only touched upon and possibly kept under wraps for the sake of not seeming like too much of a departure. Field recordings that are incorporated into the songs are very discreet, and a couple other tunes wouldn't be out of place in commercials plugging some mature teenage drama on the WB. Regardless, Waves Are Universal proves that Goswell can carry a whole record on her own without any trouble. A second solo album -- with more risks taken -- is a necessary thing.(from AMG)

我的碎碎唸。。。。。。評價指數：8.2/10

4AD真是個獨立女聲基地，擁有一大批聲音好聽的美女。Rachel Goswell係slowdive和mojave 3的成員，長得優雅漂亮，聲音柔美，所以我覺得她更適合唱一些輕柔、緩慢，像Gather Me Up、Beautiful Feeling、Thru The Dawn這類的歌曲。加上純淨的吉他演奏，這是一道陽光普照下亮麗美好的風景綫。好似行走花叢中，心情愉悅又平和的感覺。還有Warm Summer Sun、Plucked也是不錯的歌曲。另外，封面真的好漂亮，4AD的片片就是有品質。

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[Lisa Germano|Excerpts From A Love Circus]我们一起去流浪好吗？

Artist：Lisa Germano
Album：Excerpts From A Love Circus
Release Date：1996-09-06
Label：4AD
Country：UK
Genre： Rock
Style： Art Rock

Tracklisting:

1		Baby On The Plane (3:58)
2		A Beautiful Schizophrenic "Where's Miamo-Tutti" By Dorothy (4:53)
3		Bruises (4:21)
4		I Love A Snot (4:10)
5		Forget It It's A Mystery (3:24)
6		Victorias Secret (5:31)
		Written-by [Made By] - Bill Bottrell
7		Small Heads (4:02)
8		We Suck (4:05)
9		Lovesick (3:32)
10		Singing To The Birds (4:25)
11		Messages From Sophia "There's More Kitties In The World Than Just Miamo-Tutti" By Lisa And Dorothy (4:57)
12		Big Big World (4:36)

簡介。。。。。。

Lisa Germano is one of those artists who's never belonged to one core crowd. Doing the big rock thing wasn't important to her, although time spent playing with John Mellencamp in the late '80s and early '90s opened her eyes to the ever-changing ways of the music business. Germano worked her craft without becoming a conformist; music is her soul and writing is her fuel.

Born in Mishawaka, IN, at the dawn of 1958, Germano was the middle of six kids. Her parents were teachers and musicians who encouraged their children to learn an instrument until they turned 18. At the age of seven, she wrote her first piece of music, a 15-minute opera on the piano and, in due time, Germano learned the violin, an instrument that would ultimately guide her to a professional career in music. She made her debut as John Mellencamp's violinist and fiddle player on his 1987 hit album Lonesome Jubilee. Germano would spend the next seven years with Mellencamp, shaping a smooth, fearless playing style. Additional tours and recording sessions with Simple Minds and the Indigo Girls motivated Germano to do something on her own. She found her voice at the age of 30 and developed a quirky sound rooted in folk-rock and poetry. The lo-fi, shadowy On the Way Down from the Moon Palace was issued on her own Major Bill label in 1991, marking Germano's proper introduction as a solo artist.

Happiness was much more melancholy and acerbic when it appeared two years later on Capitol. Sales were fair, but Germano didn't care for the major-label buzz, so she signed with Ivo Watts-Russell's 4AD in 1994 and reissued a new version of the album. (4AD eventually included the fantastically dramatic Inconsiderate Bitch EP with its re-release in 1999.) Geek the Girl, which also appeared before the year's end, captured Germano's secrets of a wavering self-concept and her disgust for social ignorance. This particular album of sexual conflicts earned Germano her biggest praise from the press to date. People started to connect with her, and that's exactly what Germano wanted. Excerpts from a Love Circus was gushing in adoration when it arrived in 1996, but critics didn't take to this glossy body of work. The emotional double-cross of Slide (1998) didn't do as well, either, so Germano took some time off. Within months, Germano lost her deal with 4AD. She questioned her place in music and basically vowed to never make another record.

A move to Hollywood for a simple kind of life gave Germano a much needed break. She took a job as a clerk at Book Soup and enjoyed her anonymity. Songwriting remained an integral part of her life, but having it be a means to making a living wasn't a concern. Joining other artists such as David Bowie, Anna Waronker, and Neil Finn on their respective projects kept Germano connected. Luckily for fans, Germano inked a deal with the ARTISTdirect imprint Ineffable in 2002. Germano's classic, twisted sense of humor was at its finest on Lullaby for Liquid Pig, which was issued in April 2003. Her music found another new home, Michael Gira's Young God label, where Germano released In the Maybe World in summer 2006.

After the wrenching but rewarding Geek the Girl, Lisa Germano widens her focus and brightens her outlook on Excerpts From a Love Circus. Of course, Love Circus is a Lisa Germano album, but it's a slightly lighter take on her vulnerable, folky dream-pop: only she could make the refrain "Bruises, bruises, bruises" equally catchy and disturbing. As the title suggests, Excerpts From a Love Circus collects vignettes about hating the one you love and loving the one you hate; once again, Germano captures awkward, abstract feelings with her dreamy arrangements, hooky songwriting and unflinching lyrics. Passive-aggressive love songs like "I Love a Snot" sport flourishes like toy pianos and tablas, and incisive comments like "A Beautiful Schizophrenic"'s "I know you like my bad side/I love you like my good side." Germano's dark, self-effacing sense of humor surfaces on "Victoria's Secret," which answers the question "What is Victoria's Secret?" for once and all: "She says 'You are ugly/I am pretty/Your man wishes/You looked like me.'" Musically, Excerpts from a Love Circus is her most grounded and eclectic work since Happiness, spanning the intricate, spooky pop of "Baby on the Plane," the folky "Forget It, It's a Mystery," the menacing, Eastern-influenced "Lovesick," and the jangly "Small Heads." Germano closes the album on a gentle, hopeful note, suggesting with a trio of ballads -- "Singing to the Birds," "Messages From Sophia" and "Big Big World" -- that finding and losing love isn't the worst thing in the world, as long as you don't lose yourself in the process. It's not quite as gripping as some of her other albums, but Excerpts From a Love Circus is still a genuine, thoughtful album and a welcome addition to Germano's body of work.

我的碎碎唸。。。。。。評價指數：8.4/10
很动听的一张专辑，Lisa Germano有些像天鹅绒一般的嗓音在耳边轻轻低吟着，让人心中温暖。Messages From Sophia广博的空间令我有一种想去流浪的冲动。I Love a Snot又带有一种女性的独立与洒脱，充满不羁的气息，配合Lisa的嗓音，真的很酷哦。
去豆瓣上看看。。。。。。