Parov Stelar returns with a brand new studio album. Entitled "The Burning Spider" the release opens a new chapter of his samplebased sound. Whereas Parov Stelar chopped and alienated sampled vocals in the past, he now places the names of the sound donors self-consciously beside his own: Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and Lightnin' Hopkins are also on the album as the singer Anduze from the American Virgin Islands, who already worked for Stelar before and who has a key position on "The Burning Spider". And, more or less as a bonus, there are still three "classic" Parov Stelar tracks with a decent portion of Swing on the album, because even if you are developing in giant steps you should not forget where you come from, and swing music is just a part of what Parov Stelar is. Many aspects of the unique Parov Stelar sound, that the worldwide Parov Stelar fans have been able to cherish and love remain, only influences and references are newly generated once again. On his last albums especially swing references made Stelar a global superstar of a genre, now he offers new sounds with blues and jazz elements to connect the decades. At the same time, he constantly rethinks his own musical history, and longtime fans will rediscover style elements that have been pushed in the background in the past years.
F**N
Nothing like Parov Stelar's live YouTube performances
My introduction to Parov Stelar was via their live YouTube performances, which I thought were GREAT. I ordered this CD hoping that some of that live energy would infuse the music on the disc. Alas, not. I think that they'd do well to release their live performances in CD quality - I'd buy all of those in a heartbeat.
B**S
A Must Have Album
This is a fantastic album all the way through. Parov Stellar live is a must see. so much fun and everyone dancing. This album, even being a studio album, is a great time as well. Not a bad track on it!
G**C
Great for the style
Parov Stelar is great for the style of music it is - I like the genre, but he's one of the best at it.
V**K
Really Great CD!
More great music from Parov Stelar!
J**R
Another great Parov Stelar cd!
I love the whole electro-swing movement going on today in music.
F**A
Great but short
Great CD, just a bit short. Wish we could get more of his music per installment. Still well worth it, though.
K**R
Love the blues tracks
Great album!
A**R
One Star
Lp too much curved....headshell jumping, but sound is good
I**O
Good but patchy sound quality let down by a restricted sound stage on some tracks, great music
The sound quality, sound stage and atmosphere on this recording are patchy. The bass in particular can sound “soft” and lacks control. On the other hand the guitars and piano can be excellent. Some of the vocals are great. It must be stressed that this is a patchy recording which may have suffered during re-mixing.I have not set out to write reviews of the music content as “beauty is in the ears of the listener”. These reviews are about the quality (or not) of the recorded sound. To read about how the reviews are done please see my profile. • Clarity – good but not great • Channel separation - good • Channel balance – good and interesting but some tracks are weak. All centre with only hand claps on left and right channels • Sound Stage – reasonable, not massive, a little limited to all centre on some tracks. Other tracks have a much better and wider sound stage • Distortion – non audible • Compression – no frequency limitation audible • Atmosphere – limited, very much disco sound, all centre soundstage and atmosphere. A bit disappointing • Bass – low frequencies – weak and muddied on some tracks. The drums in particular can sound “dirty”. Bass guitar and synths are good, other elements are weak • Treble – high frequencies – varies from track to track. The piano is often very good as are the guitars • Vocals good, detailedAs a general rule of thumb recordings from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s are nearly always better on the original vinyl. Remasters often fail to please as it’s just not possible to make a silk purse from a sows ear, i.e. the original recording lacks the necessary detail to be processed digitally and show an audible improvement. Indeed such processing can make the sound worse.Modern recordings which have been processed digitally from start to finish can be as good as vinyl. CD’s are often unfairly criticised for being poor quality. This is not the case, it is the original recording or the process which is to blame. Modern “remasters” can both enhance and degrade a recording. The statement GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out) is the limiting factor. Ignore this at your cost.
Q**R
another belter from parov
from the first track featuring lighting Hopkins to the last track on the album this albums a cracker love the bluesy feel to some of the tracks but still keeping that electro swing vibe going especially on last few tracks brilliant stuff
L**S
recorded at 45rpm!!!
Brilliant album and perhaps we have just been sent an anomalous version but this album has been recorded at 45 rpm! Our vinyl player requires the belt to be changed in order for it to play at this speed so I am never going to play it therefore its utterly useless. I've asked for a replacement in case we were sent a one. great on CD and MP3 but useless on vinyl!
C**E
you'll either love it, or not depending on your tastes
It's a Parov Stelar album, you'll either love it, or not depending on your tastes.That said, it did remind me a little of Moby's Play at times, so it's not as far into the electroswing end of his work as other albums.
L**K
Only half works
I absolutely love the album but the second vinyl is constantly skipping and has a great sound quality problem
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