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| Name: | Christian Schreier |
| Review or Comments: | For me this album starts a new phase in the sound of The Church. The self-production is a mayor factor in their approach and the fact that Peter Koppes is a permanent member again, is evident in the interplay of the guitars (the trade mark of the band anyway).
“Louisiana” is the first example of this mellow, dense and ambient sound that goes on in the other similar sounding tunes; “Tranquility”, “Buffalo”, “Another Earth” and “Glow-Worm”. The use of guitar feedback, reverbed distortion and radiotronics gives the music an almost symphonic sound that disperses very well and produces a huge wall of sound. My favorite song from the bunch is “Buffalo”, which has all the characteristics previously described, plus it really recreates musically a snowy atmosphere. The acoustic guitar with the tambourine feels like slow falling snowflakes, and the flanger effect makes you see the northern lights in a white forest in the middle of the night. But from the other corner of the album is where the most interesting sounds come. My favorite song from the album is “Anesthesia”, maybe because it makes me close my eyes every time I listen to it and feel it. “Ricochet” is an awesome piece of music with very mysterious lyrics and very cool guitar interplay between PK and MWP. To be honest I am more attracted to the darker side of The Church than the softer side, that’s why I find more beauty in pieces like “The Great Machine” and “This is It” with the spacious yet claustrophobic feel. The rocker of the album is “No Certainty Attached”, a very cool song with a nice work in the vocals and of course the rocking guitars. This could have been a nice radio hit in an ideal world. Hologram of Baal is very nice album that starts a new phase in The Church sound, and shows that the band can reinvent them self in every album without loosing their trade mark quality in well crafted pieces of music. For my taste it has a little too much mellow songs, but not that they aren’t good. |
| Name: | fip |
| Review Source (if not you): | Uncut - 1998 |
| Review or Comments: | The Church
Hologram Of Baal Cooking Vinyl ***** (5 Stars) Great lost Sydney rockers return after a three-year absence When The Church were tagged "the best guitar band on earth", the rivalry was pretty fearsome, as the likes of Nirvana, The House Of Love and a peak-period R.E.M. plied their magical trades. Now the praise is no more and the "competition" consists of the Manics, Mansun and, er, that's it. Hologram Of Baal sees The Church reunite for what must be their finest album. While their contemporaries spawned numerous imitators, nobody has ever really sounded like The Church. Nobody could. This is still the most hazy guitar beauty imaginable. Peter Koppes' and Marty Willson-Piper's trusty axes shimmer like gaseous heat clouds over a barren desert, Steve Kilbey's gloriously disaffected voice sounds even more like sand permeating honey than ever, and the album has the hushed, magical atmosphere of Brian Eno's 'Another Green World', only with guitars. - Dave Simpson |
| Name: | Richie |
| Review or Comments: | "Anaesthesia's coming...Anaesthesia's numbing..."
Thus spoke Kilbey on a beautiful return to form after the mess of "Magician Among the Spirits." What marred Magician was the consistently somber mood (except for the painfully brilliant pop rock of "Comedown") but "Hologram of Baal" more than makes up for the misstep. "Anaesthesia" is the perfect sit back with a friend or two, roll a joint and turn the lights down song that sets the mood for the rest of the album. While I can honestly say that every single song doesn't grab me here, The Church have recorded some of their all-time best work on this album. "Louisiana" is worth the price of a full disc alone. Distorted landscapes and a musical journey in just over 6 minutes, it ranks among the most listenable songs EVER transcending even The Church's own catalog. The standout track here is "Tranquility." In 7:38, The Church achieve here what most bands can't even come close to in a twenty year recording career. Marty and Peter have never sounded so cohesive and Steve's lyrical delivery is both spiritual and mind-blowing at the same time. "Protected by her mantra Following the nebula In the sun thy will be done Chasing her rainbows Talking with the animals Who say "You see, it's Tranquility" Sublime and brilliant. Things that are standard in the the realm of The Church. |
| Name: | Artie M. |
| Review or Comments: | After 16 years of listening to this band, I am prepared to state with conviction that this album ranks with the best stuff the boys have ever done. It is a vibrant, well-produced masterpiece that demonstrates their many facets: jangly prototypical Church-pop (Buffalo, Louisiana), psychedelic modern rock (Ricochet, Another Earth), and dreamy sweeping epics (Tranquility, Glow Worm). A "must". |