Search - Eleventh Dream Day :: Ursa Major

For a lonely night on a starlit back road

John L Murphy | Los Angeles | 01/08/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Uploading my EDD CDs to my iPod, I have been listening again to each one. This is arguably their most consistent of their ten CDs. It's not the one I play most, but it does set a mood and never has a weak track. I would not start here, but if you are a fan of their later work, this is where they started towards their now-signature raw, icy, haunted sound.



After they were dropped by Atlantic around '93, this album appeared a couple of years later on the wonderfully titled indie label Atavistic. Like Sonic Youth when Jim O'Rourke produced and played with them, the contributions of Chicago post-rocker John McIntire from Tortoise begin to show on this and their next two discs. More atmosphere, the tension coming from space rather than distortion, much more keyboards and electronics, and an ominous, brooding aura that captures the lonely ache of amp-buzzed, frazzled, rambling EDD. Softer volume, perhaps, but the menace and the longing remain etched on these grooves.



The voices of Rick Rizzo and his wife Janet Beveridge Bean (also of Freakwater) mesh movingly, and in the spirit of peers like John & Exene of X or Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore of SY, the couple bring harmony and dissonance both in welcome fashion, backed by a crack band.



Recommended if you have heard their recent sound and are curious about when they evolved from a grungy, slightly proto-alt-county, punk-influenced later 80s group with more of a Neil Young meets X meets Gun Club mix into an American heartland exploration of where the punks wander into terrain not quite roots music, not college rock, not post-rock...but their own restless, sometimes rowdy, sometimes wistful musings.



Smart, whittled down, lyrics as always from the band, too, complementing their songs with heartfelt vocal delivery and inventive arrangements. Great music for the road or the middle of the night, as the cover shows and the title promises.



"

Dreamy

R. McGuire | Chicago, Il United States | 01/12/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is an amazing album - I am surprised this band hasn't recieved more attention. Ursa Major is filled with wonderfull sounds and melodies. "Flutter" is probably my favorite - the angelic voice Mrs. Bean and the swooning cello make it a classic. If you are looking for an album to listen to by candlelight, something sincere, you should consider this album."