Juno Reactor - Gods and Monsters

[Lemmiwinks]

 

 

 

1 Inca Steppa (7:45)

2 Tokyo Dub (7:08)

3 Las Vegas Future Past (5:59)

4 Mind Of The Free (6:13)

5 Immaculate Cruxifiction (7:38)

6 City Of The Sinful (4:43)

7 Tanta Pena (5:51)

8 Perfect Crime (6:24)

9 Pretty Girl (5:28)

 

 

So Juno Reactor is at it again. As one would expect, this album is yet another step away from "convetional" psytrance, actually I wouldn't call this psytrance at all, rather "music released by a former psytrance artist" It is also a clear sequel to Labyrinth so if you didn't like the turn in Juno's career since the Matrix sountrack you probably won't like this one either... I should also mention that this album (like most "out of the norm" stuff) really sounds good only after a LOT of listens. At first you'll pop this album and think "WTF???", only after about a dozen listens does it all start making sense.

 

Inca Steppa makes you realize that this will be a sequel to the Labyrinth album, only more commerical (you have a woman voice saying "Mexico Arise!"). At first I was like "ok, Ben Watkins really screwed up this time!" but after a few more listens the singing didn't bother me as much and I realized it wasn't that bad a track, actually pretty good.

 

Tokyo Dub in case you were wondering, it doesn't have anything to do with dub, don't know why he called it that but anyway... Again the track starts with some pretty annoying singing "Tokyo Out of My Head You Flow". Interestingly enough the singing is almost a copy of the main synth hook from Sash! - Primavera... WTF??? But once again, listen to the track a certain number of times and it will all start falling into place. For example, Juno manages to take the "Kbbb Kbbb" bassline formula that has been used and abused by the psytrance genre for years now and makes it original by using it in a DOWNTEMPO track! Now how come noone has thought of this before? Also that little japanese melody mixes in nicely with the rest. This has actually become one of my favorite tracks on the album.

 

Las Vegas Future Past is kindof a fusion between jazz and "juno reactor psytrance". Personally I think this is one of the weakest tracks from the album (probably because I HATE jazz...)

 

Mind of the Free souds very much like a downtempo Sci-Fi movie soundtrack. Simple and unsurprising but I like this one a lot... proof that you don't need complexity to make something sound good

 

Immaculate Cruxifiction this is THEEEE best track on the album!!! There is a guitar riff (well actually I'm not sure if it's an actual guitar or a synth sounding like a guitar). Anyway, it starts out as a whisper, then some trademark Juno Reactor arabic violins and then again a VERY creative use of the psytrance Kbbb Kbbb bassline formula, starts slowly, then the tension builds up and then WHAM at 3:45 the track just explodes in your face! The guitar riff that was there from the start is acompanied by other riffs, the Kbbb bassline is there but there is also a REAL drum percussion on top! The way Ben Watkins manages to fuse the synths with real instruments is just AMAZING!!! It really feels like listening to a psytrance track AND a 60s psychedellic rock track rolled into one and it sounds GOOD!!! Also the "Matrix soundtrack" feeling is present inside, the first time I've listened to this track in my car, it made me want to jump on the roof with a sword in my hands ready to fight the bad guys lol Anyway, this is a true masterpiece, I've listened to it HUNDREDS of times since I bought the album and it just gets better and better

 

City Of The Sinful is a downtempo track and kindof a mix between EBM, electro and reggae... again, it might sound a bit wierd at first but after a few listens it all starts falling into place. This one actually has rapping inside (yes, you've heard me right, I said RAPPING). But again, Juno is clearly trying out new stuff here like putting a ragga voice on top of a "Kraftwerk-style" vocoder voice, I like it

 

Tanta Pena (which translates as "Aunt Punishment"... ) starts with a woman screaming on the top of her lungs "TANTA PENAAAAA". The first reaction will be to turn down the volume lol But again once you pay closer attention to the track you notice that Juno is trying out new things and mastering with grace the fusion between acoustic elements and electronic synths. Like for example between 0:40 and 0:50 there is some arabic singing and a synthline... nothing new here. But at a moment the voice "drops" to a lower key and the synthline and bassline "drop" in exactly the same way as the voice does. It is little "details" like this that make Juno's work on this album amazing.

 

Now come the last 2 track Perfect Crime and Pretty Girl which kindof sound like filler material. You can hear Ben Watkins singing on top of a pretty conventional acoustic country-like arrangement (made me think of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds...). The synths are kept to a strict minimum, just a few atmorpheric pads. I don't quite understand why these tracks were put here, except that Ben Watkins wanted the world to hear him sing, they are clearly out of context...

 

 

Conclusion Some Juno fans will be put off by the singing which is present in almost all tracks and most will probably say that he's obviously catering for a larger audience to sell more albums (after all this one is sold on amazon.com for Pete's sake!). Yet other people will argue that Juno is just too creative to limit his art to the narrow boundaries of psytrance. Personally I believe that both arguments are valid That said the man clearly does someting that very few artists do: he isn't afraid to try out new things! Granted, sometimes it sounds pretty corny but other times it is GREAT! And for this I give him 9/10

 

favortie tracks: 2, 4, 5(!!!), 6

[NEMO.BOFH]

Conclusion Some Juno fans will be put off by the singing which is present in almost all tracks and most will probably say that he's obviously catering for a larger audience to sell more albums (after all this one is sold on amazon.com for Pete's sake!).

Juno is Juno is Juno is Juno. Whilst I can not see the course that IM are taking as a good one, I can see the course Juno is taking as expanding. Juno Reactor are good musicians, have always made something that is out of the ordinary, and always tried to expand their musical freedom/thinking. If you listen from album 1 to the last album, you can see that there has been constant change, and not a sudden change from one thing to the other. Whilst I would love to hear old Juno Reactor "Psy" stuff, I still like what they are doing, and leave it up to the new Psy artists to create Psy.

 

I give this album a 10/10 for the production, 10/10 for the ideas/composition and 9/10 from my own taste.

[grimoire]

first i was a little disappointed since I expected more psy oriented stuff, but after a few listens I thought it was superb!

 

every next Juno album is better than the previous, big thumbs up for them!

 

 

I still like Shango, or once in a while bible of dreams, but my preference is now at the newer albums: Labyrinth and this one.

[yossi126]

After 4 years of anticipation Juno fans would've wanted something a little bit more inspired and creative.

But not. it's a disappointment for me.

 

Some silly stuff like Tokyo Dub, pretty Girl really turn me off from this release.

 

Also the higher beat stuff aren't that innovative too. Nothing new that we haven't heard on Labyrinth (Which was ground breaking IMO).

[Jon Cocco]

Samples (there are less expensive sites to order it from btw )

http://www.juno.co.uk/products/299276-01.htm

 

 

I got it here, on amazon, for 99 cents a track in 250 kbps.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Gods-Monsters-Juno-R...4192&sr=8-1

[Caffein:me]

i bought it and had really hiigh expatations, but i was throughoutly dissapointed in all aspects.

 

Can still listen to it though, but only because my playlist is set on shuffle/random

[advance]

Heard it once, so I won't pass judgment until I hear it a couple of times more, at the very least.

 

However, track 5 popped up as a GoodTrack for me, as well.

 

Also, the style - with my small experience of the album - still has the Juno vibe but is very, very commercial and seems to be quite cheesy.

[Jon Cocco]

Juno Reactor - Gods & Monsters

Metropolis Records

2008

 

 

 

 

1. Inca Steppa (7:45)

2. Tokyo Dub (7:08)

3. Las Vegas Future Past (5:59)

4. Mind Of The Free (6:13)

5. Immaculate Cruxifiction (7:38)

6. City Of The Sinful (4:43)

7. Tanta Pena (5:51)

8. Perfect Crime (6:24)

9. Pretty Girl (5:28)

 

 

 

Nice review btw Lemmi. Wow. Some people are going to really like and dislike this album. I thought Labyrinth was excellent. Juno Reactor always seems to try some different things with each album release. Often the result is praise and smiles amongst many happy fans both old and new alike. So what went wrong here? I generally love and find exiting their intriguing, energetic, and evolving sound and style. I enjoy and own all of their albums, save for the rare and epic self-titled album and track "Luciana." I could never really get into the ambient (no beats, hardly a melody) Luciana for some reason.

 

 

1. Inca Steppa is musically great. This is the dark Vs. light, or aggressive and elegant sound combined that I liked so much on Labyrinth, combined with some classic earlier approaches by Juno, though modernized. It even has male altered voices similar in sound and concept to God Is God from 1997's cult classic Bible Of Dreams album. The female voices definitely add a different flavor, and I don't mind them. I believe listeners' will be split here due to the female singing. But if one can accept or enjoy the addition of a female voice, he or she will likely enjoy this song. Naturally, this isn't the first or second time Juno has used female voices. Furthermore, this isn't Psytrance whereas such voices often seem to have a negative connotation. The track may have been more repetitive without the voices. Regarding the music, it's aggressive and builds up to a surprisingly beautiful location part from 4:00 to 4:14. They should have repeated this again at 4:24 in my opinion, as it is such a refreshing sound that elevates the song to new, less repetitive heights. However, additional drums, ambient, and atmospheric sounds, and eventually a new instrument or two is cleverly mixed into the returning aggression. The female voice returns as well, and even the beautiful elevation in combination with the voice at around 6:45. Also beautiful is her voice hymns and a conclusion to the pretty melody work. B+

 

2. Tokyo Dub is an experimental, downtempo track. I like how it begins, but I don't like how the first minute or two is basically the whole track as it continues for the next four or so minutes. Personally, I find this song too repetitive. The "Tokyo... out of my head you flow... From my heart to my soul... Watch the energy flow..." lyrics as sang by the female voice start out unique. But it begins to grate on my senses after the fifth, sixth, seventh, etc. A catchy eerie, sustained note is effective around 2:15. The music overall is gentle, attractive, atmospheric, and moody. A piano sound compliments the atmosphere. Unfortunately, the song never seems to evolve or develop past the first several minutes. Juno Reactor has been known for building strong tracks out of fewer instruments; they seem to accomplish a lot with less. But here, I'd argue that too little takes place to arrest the general listener's attention throughout. And while there are some nice musical elements and ideas, such as the psychedelic yet slow and chill speed, the ambient, piano, and what appears to be a violin too, the track as a whole never seems to go anywhere interesting. It generally circles in repetition, ever finding a delicious location or ground unless you are in love with he first two minutes that basically takes place throughout the whole track. I would actually say that the first bump in the road or the first real dip that Gods and Monsters takes is with this number. I love the idea of Juno Reactor doing downtempo, but this is not what I consider a great or even good downtempo piece. It does however have good elements and ideas, and it would have been awesome if this felt less redundant, more developing and catchy while still keeping the chill speed in tact. Update: Repetitive and boring. I like the music in the background and this could have been a great piece if those sentences were repeated less and more was done to advance the musical department. Everytime I feel that the song is finally moving forward, introducing a new catchy sound, the damn repeating the same words voice returns. I feel like I am stuck in a bubble while hearing this, as if every day is the same, desperate to break free. I asked my friends what they thought and the girl in the passenger seat pressed the button to skip to the next track. One in the back said, "I was thinking the same thing," and I felt a bit embarrassed because I speak highly of this group. It's just a very repetitive track with some good musical elements overshadowed by the repetition. And I suppose some people will like it. It feels IDM (intelligent downtempo music) at times around the damn repetition. C

 

3. Las Vegas Future Past is much more to my liking than the previous track. This starts off fairly slow with a slow progressive drum combined with Jazz presentation. It appears to be building up to something. The volume raises into the second minute, the speed picks up a bit, the rhythm, aggression, and the sound of a drum. At around 2:49 the song lifts to an organic sounding climax, setting off the adrenaline, charged rhythm. And this is what I love from this group. Even my female friends who were with me in the car instantly liked this track more than the previous number. The song explodes into a powerful, energetic, pumped up driving sound of fury, drums, etc. Later on at around 4:34 the Jazz from the opening presentation is injected into the mix. But at this point it sounds good, innovative, different, and somewhat catchy. Jazz by itself generally bored me, but to the thumping rhythm of a song like this, I find it creative and appreciative in its small doses. I've never been a fan of Jazz but the song never loses too much edge because of it, in my opinion. If you really dislike Jazz you may not care for this number, but the song isn't dependent upon it. Overall I find this one of the stronger tracks on the album, the most powerful since the first, and that doesn't mean slower, downtempo tracks cannot be powerful; I found the second number weak. Also refreshing is the lack of vocals here. The music lets the mood breath and the mind imagine whatever it desires, as often is the general nature of Juno Reactor, a rare factor on this album so far. B+

 

4. Mind Of The Free starts off like a mysterious orchestra, the sound of a pretty piano, ambient, strings, and more. The slowest track since the second, the first two minutes are interesting. Where is the music taking us? It's stirring, relaxing, and subtle. A male voice begins to tell a unique story from his perspective. He describes a voice, what appears to be that of a female. Her voice is soon accompanied into his travels, taking turns with his. The song is okay. It lacks infection and emotion. It remains poetic, dreamlike, and mysterious, probably the effect they were going for. But the end result is often soft and passive to the point it barely stays in my mind. I thought much more could have been done to make this song more arresting. Even for a downtempo number, it lacks groove to compensate for its lackluster art direction. That said, it kind of just.. floats on by. I'm never captivated by the voices or the music, and I can easily skip over this song to something more gripping. It's not about every track being high energy per say, but each track being enjoyable enough to hear again and again and again, a memorable piece that is fun to hear. Fortunately, the song is less monotonous than the previous downtempo number, track 2. And although this isn't my type of track, I think some people will enjoy its more peaceful, chill approach. I just know that Juno Reactor can create so much more catchy, even for chill, downtempo. C+

 

5. Immaculate Cruxifiction takes several minutes to build and develop a solid foundation before igniting at 3:42. The buildup is very well done. I'm not a big fan of guitars in Psy music, but this isn't Psytrance, and I find such guitars very well placed here. There's a good change in sound around 5:24, what appears to be an organic shift in sound. It's catchy. Packed with strong instrumentals and a groovy, electronic current in the background, the song doesn't change course, yet it remains appealing, solid throughout. There's a melody, guitar maybe, as is heard in the final thirty seconds of the track that is often played throughout. It's excellent, like a continuous hook to hold on to through the revolution of sound, pun intended. This goes to show how something simple can go a long way, and be very effective and gripping. This sounds like an organic Psy-Rock number if I've ever head one. Whatever you want to call it, JR's vibe is here. And I like it, and many others seem to agree with me, though I find it less the masterpiece some claim it to be. It's very cool to see Juno creating such an inventive track that's generally aggressive and kicks so much ass. And so far this album is more hit than miss. But I'm still not a fan of their downtempo or slower work on this album, and downtempo is one of my favorite genres! Juno Reactor is at the top of their game and breaking new ground when they stick to this energy, for starters. B+ / A-

 

6. City Of The Sinful is a down/mid-tempo meets rock/psy tech and RAP, experimental fusion. It begins very dark and aggressive, in the style I find fearless and exciting. Altered voices are added, what appears to be Funk and/or Jazz, and even rap. Yes, rap. And it works, all of it. Novel. Modern. Artistic. Catchy. The lyrics aren't bad either.. the song is basically saying WAKE UP. Love it or hate it. I like it. And that classic JR undercurrent only compliments. B

 

7. Tanta Pena I like. ALOT. If you're going to have female vocals, let them compliment the power of the music, even if its a screaming in the opening. The vocals mix well with the flute or the more organic sounding instruments. Again is the background (sounds more like foreground) electronic current that I like so much, adding to the movement and aggression. Why can't Juno Reactor make an entire album filled with powerful tracks. Wait, that was arguably the past four albums, save for a track or two less from each of them. It's ethnic. It's organic in a sense. It's also psychedelic in some ways. Hey, I like this ALOT. Bring on the more powerful track 1, 4, and what most people agree to be number 5. We're getting into the album now. I really like the music combined with the female voice and direction throughout. The drums are excellent. And the female voice energy. And the sound alterations. And the rhythm. And ENERGY. I think this song is pretty awesome actually. And it's my favorite track on the album next to track 5 and then 3. Oh hell, just listen to it from around 3:57 to 4:20 and how the music then returns like a dangerous fireball. And they throw in Jazz over the high octane current and slamming, driving beat. Why not? Go crazy, over the rolling, thumping drums. This is awesome. A-

 

8. Perfect Crime is no track I'd ever imagine coming from Juno Reactor. It's a slow synth, rock-influenced, downbeat, solo piece, sang by a leading male throughout. I like how it begins, as a deeper voice slightly reminiscent of David Bowie, if at all. The track isn't bad per say. But it is kind of depressing and repetitive the more it continues. The first 2:20 seems to win my attention for some reason, the vocals in the background, much like a choir are decent. What album are we listening to again? There is an interlude around 2:40 without any vocals and I'm beginning to wonder how much potential this had to appear stronger on a JR album without the voices. I'm also beginning to skip this one now, because I'm not really in the mood to hear this after the more JR styled tracks that almost everyone seems to favor more before this song. And I think many fans will be disappointed with this track, especially after Tanta Pena. I felt so refreshed after the previous song actually, that something like this felt a bit too off course, as if someone burned me the new JR album and decided to randomly place two tracks that they favored on the end that I had never asked for or desired. In short, I wish this song was not on a Juno Reactor album. I love Juno Reactor. They're extremely imaginative and creative. But why this track? Why here? C

 

9. Pretty Girl is a better number overall than the previous one. Again however, it sounds out of place on a Juno Reactor album. It's okay. None of my friends seem to like it though (guys and girls); they like the previous tracks, before track 8. Regardless, I find the lyrics here nice, and the song isn't as repetitive and melancholic as the previous one. And I think more people would have appreciated these two final songs more if such songs were on a non-titled Juno Reactor album. These are thoughts that go beyond myself alone. Because they don't blend well with the previous numbers and I think fewer people will be in the mood to care to here these again and again. Furthermore, Labyrinth ended with a bang, and this final track isn't poor. But the album here appears to end on a whimper. Another more attractive would have been to place these as two bonus tracks as opposed to filling up tracks 8 and 9 with them here. I already heard Mono Lisa and Navras on The Matrix Reloaded soundtrack, but those were to super songs, JR modified Mono Lisa, and I bought the album anyway. But here, it feels like two oddly placed closing tracks are taking up a chunk of the album. C+

 

 

In conclusion, do not expect Labyrinth II. Repeat those words. Because the spirit is here at times. But if you go searching for it you may be disappointed, primarily with the even numbers. The odd tracks (1, 3, 5, 7) are generally more the sound and style I've come to love from this group. Whereas the even numbers try different things; God's and Monsters appears to be geared more towards the mainstream than previous efforts. But the final result is less mixed than Infected Mushrooms controversial Vicious Delicious, in my opinion. There is still some really wonderful work here. So far I like 2004's Labyrinth more. Not everyone will like the direction taken here on certain tracks, those with singing for instance. At times the female voice seems to compliment the track, depending on how you look at it. But tracks 8 and 9 sound as if they could have been by another group, done on a different album. Maybe the male lead could have produced a solo album? Because they don't seem to correlate with the sound and style of Juno Reactor, nor what we love about Juno or why we love this group. In some ways, the last two numbers contaminate and severely weaken the rocket that this album had been flying more or less high on. Nonetheless, fans seem split with this album based on reviews throughout the internet (amazon for instance, and here), but it's Juno Reactor. It's different. But some tracks don't appear to be Juno Reactor, not the beloved sound or an evolution of it either. Yet some tracks and new ideas are great, although the rap may be iffy with some. And I think many people would appreciate if the group continued to evolve what they're wonderful at. 2004's Labyrinth had a powerful, momorable ending with Navras. Gods and Monsters doesn't. But up until track 8 there are some excellent moments and tracks.

 

 

Favorite tracks: 1, 3, 5, 6, 7

 

 

B

 

 

 

Samples

http://www.juno.co.uk/products/299276-01.htm

 

You can order it (for less) here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00...4192&sr=8-1

 

 

After reading some mixed reviews, I decided to legally download this here on Amazon for $8.90. Great price. Great quality (250 kbps) IMHO.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Gods-Monsters-Juno-R...4192&sr=8-1

[Mindphilux]

I like a couple of the tracks (non vocal ones) but ghetto priest really ruins it for me.

[healium]

ghetto priest?

[Lemmiwinks]

ghetto priest?

 

he's the artist that did the rapping parts I think

[Jabaquara]

haven't heard this yet... must give it a listen soon !

 

sounds interesting

[advance]

haven't heard this yet... must give it a listen soon !

 

sounds interesting

Thank you for your input!

[DJ_Psykick]

Juno is Juno is Juno is Juno. Whilst I can not see the course that IM are taking as a good one, I can see the course Juno is taking as expanding. Juno Reactor are good musicians, have always made something that is out of the ordinary, and always tried to expand their musical freedom/thinking. If you listen from album 1 to the last album, you can see that there has been constant change, and not a sudden change from one thing to the other. Whilst I would love to hear old Juno Reactor "Psy" stuff, I still like what they are doing, and leave it up to the new Psy artists to create Psy.

 

I give this album a 10/10 for the production, 10/10 for the ideas/composition and 9/10 from my own taste.

 

Well, I have to agree that Juno have always expanded their musical taste with every album they released. But i can't help hoping that they would put some more psychedelic elements in their works. I don't expect them to produce 4X4 beats like any ordinary trance, but at least i would want to hear more electronica than ethnic\tribal sounds.

[Jon Cocco]

I'm disappointed with this album because I feel that with Gods and Monsters, Juno Reactor has given us less of everything most of us love, and more of what most of us do not. I'm not saying they shouldn't take risks. They should. But at times on this album, I'm searching for that energy and sound that I love from this group. And I love the organic, instrumental uprising track Immaculate Perception. It's not the energy or sound I'm used to and I find it great, and I'd love to hear more songs in that direction and territory by Juno Reactor. And maybe a more involved and infectious downtempo number or two than what we have here. To be honest I'm impressed anyone likes tracks 2, 4 because I find them too slow, and boring. Tanta Pena brings me closer to the style I care for, and I favor it with other, more animated tracks. And I like the rapping song. It's nothing like the Heavy Weight song on Infected Mushrooms Vicious Delicious that basically felt like a Linkin Park rip off. City Of The Sinful, regarding the moments of rapping in it and the song overall appears to be this groups own, individual and artistic pop art, combined pop culture, Psy bag of tricks. And I realize it will be liked and disliked regardless of what I say. But on here, an album that plays more like a compilation of different Juno Reactor styles, I like it. I like its combination of musical tones and idea; its moving and catchy.

 

When I play this album, I often stop it right after track 7. It's too bad actually, to neglect the last two songs. But they're just too not the energy and soul I care to hear by a group of such power, imagination, and interest, whether displayed as peaceful or climactic. Juno Reactor has always worked best as a musical group, not a singing one, but one where voices occasionally compliment the powerful music. Overall I find the last two songs misguided in their placement. It's like Ott's new album. I had to create a playlist because something romantic or pretty is placed next to something repetitive, dub, and out-of-place relative to the wonderful mood that parts of the album were setting. I feel that Juno Reactor is their own worst enemy and if the lead singing or whoever had most power here turns the mirror to face them, this person will see that the answer is not in the ego that wants to sing, but the soul that wants to be move and be free.

 

I love Juno Reactor, and it would be amazing to hear them produce another album that reaches for the stars as opposed to one that reaches in so many directions that it doesn't know which way it wants to go in the end, thus disappointing many of us (amazon, psynews, numerous other sites for more on this being a mixed bag).

[Lemmiwinks]

I'm disappointed with this album because I feel that with Gods and Monsters, Juno Reactor has given us less of everything most of us love, and more of what most of us do not. I'm not saying they shouldn't take risks. They should. But at times on this album, I'm searching for that energy and sound that I love from this group. And I love the organic, instrumental uprising track Immaculate Perception. It's not the energy or sound I'm used to and I find it great, and I'd love to hear more songs in that direction and territory by Juno Reactor. And maybe a more involved and infectious downtempo number or two than what we have here. To be honest I'm impressed anyone likes tracks 2, 4 because I find them too slow, and boring. Tanta Pena brings me closer to the style I care for, and I favor it with other, more animated tracks. And I like the rapping song. It's nothing like the Heavy Weight song on Infected Mushrooms Vicious Delicious that basically felt like a Linkin Park rip off. City Of The Sinful, regarding the moments of rapping in it and the song overall appears to be this groups own, individual and artistic pop art, combined pop culture, Psy bag of tricks. And I realize it will be liked and disliked regardless of what I say. But on here, an album that plays more like a compilation of different Juno Reactor styles, I like it. I like its combination of musical tones and idea; its moving and catchy.

 

When I play this album, I often stop it right after track 7. It's too bad actually, to neglect the last two songs. But they're just too not the energy and soul I care to hear by a group of such power, imagination, and interest, whether displayed as peaceful or climactic. Juno Reactor has always worked best as a musical group, not a singing one, but one where voices occasionally compliment the powerful music. Overall I find the last two songs misguided in their placement. It's like Ott's new album. I had to create a playlist because something romantic or pretty is placed next to something repetitive, dub, and out-of-place relative to the wonderful mood that parts of the album were setting. I feel that Juno Reactor is their own worst enemy and if the lead singing or whoever had most power here turns the mirror to face them, this person will see that the answer is not in the ego that wants to sing, but the soul that wants to be move and be free.

 

I love Juno Reactor, and it would be amazing to hear them produce another album that reaches for the stars as opposed to one that reaches in so many directions that it doesn't know which way it wants to go in the end, thus disappointing many of us (amazon, psynews, numerous other sites for more on this being a mixed bag).

I don't get it... you post a review saying you like it and then you post another review 2 weeks later saying that you don't? :blink: :blink:

[Jon Cocco]

I don't get it... you post a review saying you like it and then you post another review 2 weeks later saying that you don't? :blink: :blink:

Okay, good point. I had gone back to edit it to make it appear less imbalanced, and then I saw your observation. I like the album. It has at least two of the best songs I've heard all year on it. Naturally, my review stands as it is. It's just that.. I find tracks 5 and 7 so solid and above everything else, it's hard not to wish there was more of what they did so well here. Track 3 and 6 are very cool too, and the opening, though I find the opening a bit repetitive, I like it. I wish that the album had more energy, more super songs around that great work, and less whatever-those-songs on the end are. And I realize some people like the slower tracks 2 and 4, though I just cannot get into them, especially the second. It's just that their previous albums are all more or less excellent IMO. And when I hear Immaculate Crucifixion and the energy of Tanta Pena especially, I think "Wow, this is great!" So I'm grateful for the refreshing kickass, new tracks. And I'm disappointed because there's not enough of them when compared to their previous albums. Much like Ott's Skylon album, I'm enjoying about half the album like a car driving on a newly paved road with several big bumps to off-set the otherwise great ride. So I wish their was more *oomph* from beginning to end as apposed to going from hard to soft on almost every other track and then arguably crashing with an off-beat ending.

 

Personally I think those curious who love/like Juno Reactor should go to amazon and/or iTunes music store and download Track 5, followed by 1, 3, and 7 (in no order). Because it seems like virtually everyone likes track 5.

 

On a side note, relative to your current signature, Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is one of the best books ever written. If we were giving scores to books on here, I'd give that an A. I also highly recommend The Alchemist and A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose, the latter by Eckhart Tolle. They are very aware books. And people will become more aware just by exposing their consciousness to them.

[Penzoline]

It was somewhat of a dissapointment, but the Full album itself isn't a dissapointment up to track 7, it's still very good, I just don't listen the tracks outside the album.

 

The last two tracks, after 7, aren't Juno Reactor, they're Ben Watkins. Even Watkins himself stated that he was pondering a lot if he should include those two tracks or not. Though, Perfect Crime isn't that bad, but Pretty Girl, oh boy, that was just a waste of space on the album. But still, neither of those songs should have been included.

 

Now those who want a bit more Juno Reactor itself, should look up the Dimension Bomb soundtrack, it has a ~19 minute instrumental track called Bombs Of Dimensions, completely made by Juno Reactor. It features Tanta Pena instrumental version(Much better than the album version imho) and also a new track called Butterfly, which is absolutely BEAUTIFUL, and some more, haven't listened it fully yet since I'm waiting to see Dimension Bomb first.

 

Dimension Bomb itself, is a short anime movie made by Koji Morimoto (Don't know who Koji is? He made the G&M album cover and, what you might have seen already, this Ken Ishii - Extra). It's on Studio 4C's "Genius Party Beyond" which will be released later on this year in Japan(Don't remember the date).

[Goa-Head]

Editors should remove this page. This has nothing to do with Trance.

 

Off-topic at best.

[Lemmiwinks]

Editors should remove this page. This has nothing to do with Trance.

 

Off-topic at best.

 

how about the fact that Ben Watkins is a psytrance producer...?

[Goa-Head]

how about the fact that Ben Watkins is a psytrance producer...?

Joking right ? BW is a psytrance producer ?!

 

Remind me his latest psytrance tracks please....

[Lemmiwinks]

Joking right ? BW is a psytrance producer ?!

 

Remind me his latest psytrance tracks please....

 

Mona Lisa Overdrive (2007)...

 

and if you're gonna take it that way, then why review Shpongle, Bigwigs or Tegas Fagott...?

[Goa-Head]

Mona Lisa Overdrive was released in 2004!

 

The 3 artists you mentioned still have a psychedelic touch.

 

Have you noticed that Gods & Monsters does not sell on on the 'regular' psy-shops ? (psyshop, saikosounds etc) whereas their 2004 album was sold by these ?

[Mindphilux]

i agree that this album is about as far away from trance as you could get... but then again i see artists like trentemoller get reviewed on here. if the music is good, i have no complaints.

[Basilisk]

I have been listening to this album a lot in recent days with the hope of finding out what Watkins was trying to do. There are a few songs here that I am really getting into, City Of The Sinful most of all, but also Mind Of The Free. The two instrumental tracks are alright but I prefer just about anything from Labyrinth to those. Inca Steppa is somewhat irritating; I mean, it has loads of promise, but something about the execution leaves me unconvinced. Tokyo Dub is a nice effort--Juno Reactor doing dubstep, you could say--but it feels empty or unfinished somehow, particularly when I hear that little hint of a melody that sounds like some track from Labyrinth. It lacks the broad scope I am used to from Juno Reactor. The last two tracks aren't to my liking. Perfect Crime suffers from poor lyrics--vacuous rhyming stuff that feels a little insubstantial even as it proves to be quite catchy. Tanta Pena? I'll give it another go sometime--I think I am usually a bit tired of the album by the time I get to it. Overall, I am not so impressed at this time.