Here We Go Magic - Here We Go Magic

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Customer reviews
Press release

4...according to our Brian on Wed 04 May, 2011.

Here We Go Magic is the title of the CD I clutch fiercly to my droopy bosom this snowy morn. Featuring the talents of one Luke Temple, this is strummy singer songwriter DIY indie stuff that reminds us of Paul Simon jamming with Lucky Dragons on 'Only Pieces', 'Fangela' of early Felt but twinklier, it continues in this cosmic outsider radio terrain, hazy folk shades, fey dreamy vocals that recall post-punk era oddity Bobb Trimble, bedroom psychedelia, feedbacking loops of dirty fuzz, the sound of your bathroom on bad acid, more monging loops propping up a wailing plaintive guitar howl......It's a right unpredictable journey that sounds rather incoherent as an album but nevertheless pretty interesting stuff, lots of variation and ideas. Self-titled CD and now vinyl thru Western Vinyl.

Developed over a two-month period of stream-of-consciousness recording in
Greenpoint, Brooklyn Luke Temple's self-titled debut under his new moniker Here We Go Magic is a remarkable departure from his signature singer-songwriter material. Luke recorded the album at home using analog synths, a cassette 4-track, and his trusty SM-57 mic, coloring the sound with warmth and creating textures you want to wrap yourself in. The album opens with the trance-inducing polyrhythms and gorgeous multi-layered vocals of "Only Pieces. " What follows is an album oozing with sounds maternal and subconscious…like floating in amniotic fluid, ripe, hiccup-y and desperate to emerge. Many of the songs pulse with infectious afro-beat
and kraut-rock influenced grooves, calling to mind classic albums like Remain in the Light and Graceland. In contrast, the instrumental tracks conjure mystical introspective landscapes reminiscent of Popol Vuh's unforgettable ambience. Despite the album's murky aquatic underpinnings it's hard to resist shakin what you got to ebullient blissed-out tracks like "Fangala" and "Tunnelvision." The album closes with "Everything's Big", a bleak commentary on weakness and fear birthed of opulence and gluttony. Luke's fragile tenor delivers this absurd carnival waltz with the fervor and abandon of a teetotaler under the influence, never breaking the spell of the album's mood of rejuvenation and release. PRESS QUOTES : “...a collection of songs that even the most jaded anti-folk hipster could catch himself humming on the street. The tunes are deceptively simple, with Simon and Garfunkel-style melodies...His high-pitched voice recalls a young Graham Nash by way of Elliott Smith......has enough understated soul to give Conor Oberst a run for his money. – Rolling Stone / “Luke Temple has one of the most beautiful voices in pop music.” – Sufjan Stevens / “Recalls Jeff Buckley's drama, M. Ward's atmospherics, and Feist's sense of play.” – The Onion, AV Club / “His voice alone is so damn good -- one of the prettiest voices in all of indie rock, hands down. “ Ben Gibbard, Death Cab For Cutie. / “a variety of romanticized and alienated imagery that's snatched straight from a time when squares were there to be looked at and made strange... Temple's various gifts amplify each other.” Pitchfork / ”...has moments of pure giddiness that keep it from being fully mired in the doldrums.....has the upbeat feeling of Norwegian heartthrob Sondre Lerche.” Spin Magazine / "They're just beautiful images, delivered in that pure, peerless crystal-clear tenor…Temple happens to know exactly what to add to a song to allow it to pass the threshold from "nice" into "wonderful.” Pop Matters / “Mr. Temple isn't part of any particular school — not even that all-purpose new songwriters' catchall, freak-folk — and his private world is fascinating.”
– Jon Pareles, New York Times /

Tracks :
1. Only Pieces
2. Fagela
3. Ahab
4. Tunnelvision
5. Ghost List
6. I Just Want to See You Underwater
7. Babyohbabyijustcantstanditanymore
8. Nat’s Alien
9. Everything’s Big

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