Within you...and without you.
Junglies | Morrisville, NC United States | 10/03/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This was the fourth album from Quintessence and the first for a passing RCA imprint Neon which failed to replicate the success of the founder with his Vertigo label.
Self continues where Dive Deep left off in terms of diminished songwriting, both in terms of quality as well as quantity. The studio side of the vinyl album displayed shorter, tighter songs but without the vitality of previous albums. Cosmic Surfer suggests more but never really lived up to it's potential.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the coin, the band's live performances were almost legendary, marked by the same improvisational displays of their individual musical backgrounds all motivated by their spiritual devotions. The songs took on new and different aspects while being played in concert. This live band is represented here on three tracks, the excellent Freedom, Water Goddess with it's almost Dark Star passages and the B-side of the single that was issued, You Never Stay the Same.
The price of this disc is worth it for the live performances alone although the editing on You'll Never Stay the Same leaves a lot to be desired to say the least. Finally the album closes with Sweet jesus which is a bit odd.
Not the best album by any means but that twenty minutes of live recording and the six minutes of B-side show what could have been. It just amazes me that there are no tapes out there of other live performances which have yet to see the light of day."