Search - Ultramarine :: Every Man & Woman Is a Star

The quintessential ambient-folk/electronica album

Jay M | Dublin, Ireland | 12/23/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is the album that so many artists like Zero 7 and Groove Armada have been trying to make, but failed. Back in 1992, Ultramarine produced and released this warm, lush mix of bristling percussion, atmospheric keyboard washes, chiming acidic melodies and folk-ish guitars to an unprepared public. What happened next was a multitude of acclaim for these two gifted producers, with praise from all corners of electronica to folk. Robert Wyatt was a fan and a contributor on later albums.Sadly the duo never seemed to recover from the huge plaudits they got for this album, their later albums being less than what was expected.So this album must be something else, right? Well, I won't disappoint, it is. It's ambient music that you can listen to, relax to and actually have a bit of a groove to. A rare album indeed! It's one of those albums that so many have found influence from, launched their careers trying to emulate it and only succeeded in imitating it. It's a special album, one that I doubt will ever be bettered for a good time to come, if at all.It starts with a relaxing backbeat and percussive track which helps gets you initiated with the Ultramarine sound. Then it's into the Echo and the Bunnymen sampling 'Weird Gear', which is a real treat. Subsequent tracks are all winners, with the delightful 'Stella' a real standout song. Following that is 'British Summertime' both evocative and a beautiful track to listen to. It's a song which brings you back to those warmer summers and incorporated into it is a beautiful rave-type synth backdrop, making for more memories. Imagine a less complicated Boards of Canada. I found the songs 'Saratoga' and 'Lights in my Brain' the only disappointments, but maybe that's just me, some of you may like them! In between them is the Ska-styled 'Geezer', an intensely groovy workout!This has been deleted for years, for some reason, and it took the great LTM label (Darla in the US) to re-issue this classic treasure. Get it now while you can, at a great price too."