Timeless
Goldie
1995
Album Summary
Timeless is the debut studio album by British electronic musician Goldie. It was released on 31 July 1995 and is universally regarded as a groundbreaking release in the history of drum and bass music. The album blended the complex, chopped and layered breakbeats and deep basslines of jungle and drum and bass with expansive, symphonic strings and atmospherics, and female vocals.
WikipediaIt is very rare that a 10+ minute track earns its length, even in classical music or jazz, much less pop, so when I saw that the first eponymous tune on Timeless clocked in at 21:02, I was like "Uh, oh." Uh, oh indeed. The track starts out with godawful, ugly orchestra synth swooshes before some breakbeats kick in. I've gotta be honest. This kind of dance music has to be really creative and innovative before I can enjoy it and this music is just nothing special. At least Goldie is lucky enough to have a decent singer in Diane Charlemagne, although the melodies are pretty remedial. Actually, remedial is a good description for the entire track and this goes on for 20 fucking minutes. Good God! Given that the title track is obviously the centerpiece of the album, it would have been a miracle if the rest of the album was an improvement. Alas, a miracle was not forthcoming. Goldie makes The Knack look cerebral and deep.
Yeah, if ever there were an argument for revising the list of 1001 albums you must hear, it's this unfortunately titled record from Goldie. From the opening 20-minute track that, surprise, does not need to be 20-minutes, it sure does sound like jungle-whatever from 1995. It would be easy to pile on to a genre of music that does absolutely nothing to me, but it's no fun being mean-spirited. I'll just say that there are records from this era that have really aged well, that sound like they could have come out any time in the past few decades, that I could see myself listening to in another decade. This is not one of those records.
It was a day at work today, but you know what is great for cranking through the inbox? This album. Put it on, let the drum and bass set the groove, and zone into what needs to get done. This is adult adderall. I put it on when driving to lunch, and it wasn’t so interesting. But that’s not the point. This is an album with a specific purpose. And when heard through that acoustic lens (it’s a thing…and it sounds cool), this album deserves recognition.
Goldie's influence on D'n'B cannot be overlooked, but oddly enough his tunes have never been ones I've really loved compared with other producers. But I do recognise that if it wasn't for him, then some of the artists I prefer may not have existed. Was fun to listen to a whole album of his stuff as I wouldn't have if it wasn't for this.
Classic album. Created the foundations of an entire genre. You can't knock it's importance and you have to remember it's over 25 years old! Also, important to remember Rob Playford's involvement! Plus RIP Diane Charlemagne. 9/10
1.6 - The type of bullshit Jeremy and Super Hans from "Peep Show" were into. "This is a Bad" by Goldie might as well be called "This is Outrageous" by Jeremy Osbourne. At best, some (2? 3?) of the tracks might work as background music for an outdated hotel lobby. The rest are junk. What a complete and utter SLOG. Shitty fucking album cover, too
What the actual hell did I just listen to? Two hours of pointless, repetitive noise is what. The first track "Timeless" (a 25-minute drum loop) is clearly the title track. However, it should be the fourth track that gave the album its name: "This Is a Bad." What a trash album.
This is, indeed, Timeless. What a FANTASTIC album to just put on and forget about everything else. The first track is over 20 minutes long; the second is over 7. This is a LONG album that you can just keep playing. Also, definite heads-down coding music, which will always push it toward 5-star territory for me.
I really don’t like Goldie as a person. Might be an irrational hatred, I dunno. But whenever I see/hear him interviews I think he comes across as a massive prick. So I’ve never really been that fussed about exploring his music. This album was good though, a lot more tuneful in places than I thought it would be. The first track is pretty self indulgent in length, but Inner City Life is a tune so I forgive.
Yeah, I dig this. Great beats, inventive sounds, clever mixture of instruments. A nice add to my collection.
Man, does this take me back. Most of the 90s music that has come up so far have been things I have heard at least a bit of in the intervening decades. I didn't listen to Goldie or drum and bass until 98/99, then listened to it a lot for 4-5 years, and then haven't touched it since then. But it sure is familiar - took me back to that time about as much as it could without drugs and JNCOs. My good friend, who used the unfortunate moniker DJ Goon, used the first track in one of his mixtapes. "Inner city life/inner city pressure" immediately felt familiar - and missed! "Timeless" works great as background, but it rewards closer listening. Just as it settles in too much and gets too repetitive, it hits you with a break that just washes over you. Drum and bass presented an incredible leveling up of ambient music. Brian Eno walked so Goldie could run.
‘Timeless’ is a staggering record. It’s widescreen in every sense. The production is amazing, and on a proper system it will blow you away. It still sounds vital, alive, and important all these years later. It’s not perfect: it’s way too long, and parts of it haven’t aged well, but you certainly can’t fault it for its sprawling ambition and cinematic scope. It’s smooth, silky, slinky, jazzy, dubby and warm and succeeds for the most part because its sound is so accessible. ‘Timeless’ was the record that made jungle/drum & bass sound legitimate to the masses, and in its best moments it’s mesmerising, well and truly transcending its club roots.
Yet more British ephemera that seems to just characterize so much of this list. The beats are really good, complex, and the drum textures just make is sound so expansive; but that’s not why I listen to music. This would be great at a party or in the background of a modern JRPG. Favourite track: “Angel”
Best enjoyed with illicit drugs or after suffering blunt force trauma to the cranium. For very low IQ individuals only
Surpreso com a qualidade de produção e por ter gostado de muitas músicas, mesmo não sendo um estilo que costumo ouvir. Álbum enorme, com músicas de 20, 12, 10 minutos. Músicas destaque, principalmente as com vocais femininos: - State of Mind - Sea of Tears - Angel - Inner City Life
Yes. I enjoyed very much. A little stale THIRTY years after it was released, but a great respite from the traditional sounds on this list. What happened to this guy?
Oh boy, this is good. I went through a short DnB phase as a teenager, but that led me into breakcore, then IDM and techno. There's only so many rabbit-holes you can go down, so I never really made it back to much DnB or jungle. All the beat arrangements and the bass lines are great here. There's not a huge amount of melody on top - some occasional piano loops, etc. What Goldie largely does is layer up ambient textures. But instead of making ambient music with beats, the end result here is really lively and drum-driven, with the ambience giving it a floaty, cerebral quality. For many of these tracks, I felt like I was just a brain and a pair of ears floating in a jar of music. There's some bassy, noisy elements as well, to give some rougher edges. For me, the only weak point is the lack of variety in the vocals or vocal samples. Sometimes they verged on the cheesier side of house music for me. But they normally fit with the track and are arranged really well in the track, so it's a small grumble. For this corker, a solid 4.5*.
I quite liked listening to this! It was a total departure from what I'm used to, but I totally got into the groove. I had never heard of 'drums and bass' music before and I liked all of the other sounds (water, women moaning, you know) that came along for the ride. I do have to say that I was a little dispointed when I read 'Goldie' as 'Blondie,' but wouldn't you be?
A pioneering album that flipped the underground to the mainstream, Goldie hit gold with the chopped up drums, foreboding bass, synth strings and exquisite vocals from Diane Charlegmane (RIP). The scale and scope is ambitious and the album as a whole feels symphonic (no wonder Goldie’s interests turned to classical orchestral music later in his career). It may be overlong and perhaps a little dated but it is an extraordinary record, an example of a musician having a sound in his head with few predecessors and bringing it into life. It’s a really impressive record and whilst it won’t be universally beloved, it deserves its place on this list for its influence and impact.
This was one of those albums that still holds up well, and I think I appreciate the long opening "symphony" more as a grown up. It's a groundbreaking album that took drum n bass in a new direction that blended ambient, ethereal sounds with soaring vocals. A few tracks don't live up to the rest of the album, but overall I loved revisiting it.
I'll be honest. I've heard the name Goldie before and simply assumed that it's a random female pop singer. That should tell you more or less how much I know about D'n'B. That said, I really enjoyed this album a lot more than I expected. Especially the first half. My favorite track was State of Mind. eventually I found the album dragging on for too long however. And it being a bit samey, it started to get boring eventually. Therefore rounded down from 3.5.
Well, that was certainly unexpected. This group and album, and pretty much the whole genre they're in (not sure what to call it; "electronica," I think? but it has vocals, so not really sure), are all so new to me, and not what I usually listen to. There are some very interesting things going on here. Don't like all of it, but I really like 'Inner City Life.' The vocals are so soulful and soaring, with a really great bassline and beat under it. I don't usually like a lot of synthesizers but some of these tracks are really good. I think it's the rhythms they use, and, as mentioned, the vocals.
Very bold choice to open this album up with a 20 minute song. Almost to say, either you're going to like us or hate us. Well, I'm here to say I'm in the middle. For this being a pretty cool electronic album that came out in the mid 90's, I think that's impressive. For it being as long and repetitive as it is, that makes it less impressive. I don't know the history behind Goldie (maybe a cousin to Blondie?) but I'm imagining they inspired a lot of future electronic artists. It's a very intriguing album, it just runs way too long on every track.
From what I understand, this is an important album from the genre of Drum and Bass. Drum and Bass is a pretty niche genre, so your mileage will vary with how much you like the genre. For my money, I thought it was enjoyable enough. I like the atmospheric elements and how it enhanced the Drum and Bass (reminded me of Parkour Fortress. If you know you know). The obvious drawback is that it's an overly long double album. 105 minutes is a lot for any genre.
I'm sorry, I get drum and bass but it's just not for me. I really don't want to rate this one star because it's good, I'm just not the person who would enjoy 2 hours of this. Unless I was on something.
I like beats and drums, but unfortunately I was not high enough to enjoy this on a weekday. Maybe once murphy figures out how to sell weed in New Jersey I can come back and reassess.
I was not expecting to like this, but lay that melancholy upon me! This album luxuriates with infinite sadness, like you're heartbroken but you're lying on the beach in Rio so it's not wholly bad. Each song takes it time, taking the listener one step deeper into sadness. There is no solution, not upbeat "you'll get over it" vibes. No, the album leaves you on that beach with tears in your eyes and the realisation that being there means nothing when there's no one by your side.
Drum and bass for outsiders like me. The pretty guitar loops and sound effects signify pop, while the female voices add emotional depth. But as the ambience sets in and the sense of time dissipates, it gets increasingly tedious, though never so specialist that it feels hostile.
You might remember his full mouth of gold teeth from such films as ‘Snatch’ and ‘The World is Not Enough’
slower and more chill than I remember, but loving it, laid back beats taking me back to a time and a place!
love this. Have heard bits bit never the whole thing. definitely on my play again list
Crazy that this was released in '95. Quite ahead of its time. Heavy 90's action sci-fi vibes. I enjoyed this a lot.
When I first heard this when it came out, Timeless was like entering another world. There were echoes of trance and jungle but this was so much more. The depth. The build ups. This was punk as f**k and furious cloaked under a veneer of something Mellow
Ambience. Je moet er maar in de stemming voor zijn maar dit is geen slecht begin van het genre
Feels very spacey in a good way. Easy to listen to while relaxing or working.
Reminds me of the music they play in british tv shows for when they are clubbing. It's an early drum and base album.
Att lyssna på DnB i två timmar i sträck är inte njutning i min bok. Trots det kommer jag på mig själv med att bli både lite nyfiken och imponerad vad jag hör. En och förmodligen den enda fördelen med riktigt långa låtar är att de kan berätta en historia på ett sätt som en 2 min popdänga inte riktigt mäktar med. Fastnade framförallt för Sea of Tears. Första 1.5 min målas ett dystopiskt &metalliskt ljudlandskap upp. Efter det ngt oinspirerande introt slängs trummorna på och efter hand även ngn jazzig gitarrslinga, vi lyssnar nu på klassisk DnB. Jag är på inget sätt imponerad, men ngt har satts i rörelse och jag vill veta vart vi är på väg. Så händer det. 4,5 min in i låten fadar trummor och ljud ut och ersätts av skriet från en fiskmås, vågskvalp och en kvinnoröst som viskar ordet tears. Från den här punkten har låten mig totalt hypnotiserad och det är inte först 7,5min senare när låten är över som jag väcks ur min trans och inser att det kändes som att jag färdats till en annan dimension och tillbaka. Vet inte vad som hände men jag vet att jag behöver mer av Sea of Tears
I like it! Now I'm wishing I would have been a raver in the mid 90s...
Música electrónica con voz de vez en cuando. Me ha gustado, pero disco larguísimo.
In keeping with the album being such a breakthrough for dnb, it’s more of a collection of ideas than a cohesive whole. This, in combination with the excessive length (which Goldie somehow managed to surpass for his next album) makes for lopsided whole. The tracks themselves, however, I have no issue with
dnb fever. soundscapes. vox. when the filter sweeps across the drums \<.<\
This album is a mini-symphony of hardcore techno that uses breakbeats to construct atmospheric music. (7/10) FT: Timeless
It's not just all about the bass, it's all about the drum and bass. It is also a great sonic landscape and if you like a an intense breakbeats with synth overlays with more conventional R&B and jazz elements, this will work for you. I can't listen to this "genre" all of the time, but when I want to, this is one of the few I reach for.
I love how dated this sounds. Adds to the charm of an already awesome record.
Liian vähän tulee kuunneltua tämmöstä melodista elektro-settiä. Hyvä levy! 4/5
Wow, one of these ridiculously long and bloated 90's electronic albums was actually... good?
Is not the kind of music i like, some parts of some musics are interesint, psicodelic...but the rapid parts are not the kind of EDM music i like it. However, i must say that the production of the album is quite good.
Muitas influências de eletrônica moderna, DnB, jungle. Me lembra bastante em especial SBTRKT, Squarepusher e Four Tet. Uma barreira alta de entrada, mas o ouro está mesmo no recheio do disco.
Välistä ihan tempaavaa biittiä, mutta oma maku on enemmän melodisen kuin bassolla pelaavan mmmtsin puolella. Kagonen ala- ja kolme yläkanttiin
Nice background and driving vibes, but felt the pace stayed the same a lot of the time
De zangeres hadden ze thuis mogen laten. Verder leuk om een keertje Drum ‘N bass voorgeschoteld te krijgen.
Interessante en met tijd en wijlen spannende muziek van naar wat ik las ern van de eerste drum 'n bass acts. Vond het toch een iets te lange zit en was ik datzelfde ritme steeds wel beu.
First track of the album is 21 minutes long... The album is about 2 hours long in total. A lot of the tracks has some really nice parts and is very inspiring, but in total it seems like there could have been some darlings that got killed. Good Drum'n'Bass and Jungle, but the vocals not so much.
really interesting to have a glimpse into this time capsule from the 90s! who listens to this today?
Me gusta el D&B pero este se me hizo demasiado repetitivo. No acabe de escuchar el disco.
I grunden gillar jag sån här musik men det faktum att första låten är 21 minuter lång visar att han har samma problem som jag när jag satt hemma med med eJay på slutet av 90talet och det är att komma på hur man avslutar en låt 😄. Lyssnade bara på två låtar dock
Not my preferred flavor of electronic music, but it felt very mid-90s and nostalgic
Break-beats. Ik houd hier wel van. Maar niet boven gemiddeld. Mijn favorieten zijn "State of Mind" en "Inner City Life". ***
en vérité j'apprécie vraiment la drum and bass, mais sur une courte durée (e.g. le quart d'heure de marche rapide pour ne pas être en retard chez le docteur)
I saw Goldie live in 1997. I didn’t realise that this album was so legendary, but I guess someone had to kickstart drum and bass. It’s a good listen, yeah, and so layered, but it does feel well dated.
Not really my kind of thing, but interesting. Many of the songs last much too long, but I guess that works in the clubs and/or makes it easier to create remixes. Inner City Life (part of the 20 minutes opening medey) was the big breakthrough hit, and probably the best "song". Plenty of other enjoyable music though, just not much that is as catchy or memorable
I guess you had to be there. I came around to some of these sounds through the Asian Underground. I think I wasn't young enough for this scene.
Goldie was able to create an expansive atmosphere, coupled with ethereal vocals and a litany of stringed instruments. Timeless is truly a timeless album that will always take you back to the mid 90s house/trance scene. Best: Timeless Worst: Adrift
Sorry guys… ja lyssna halva å sen så ble ja mighty sick å ja ha int haft krafter att lyssna klart… min review kommer i chatten pr pr
I'm probably being generous here because mostly I found this repetitive and a bit, well, too drum 'n' bassy. But i can see the artistry and the effort shinign through.
A seminal release as one of the first *albums released in the genre of drum and bass and certainly one of my early major exposures. Not the best of its field - IMO other Metalheadz artists surpass this but did a lot for exposure of the genre in the wider media. Goldie claims a lot of credit for this but Rob Playford is probably more important, probably illustrated by Goldie's subsequent releases being fairly weak. TLDR, an important album and a decent one but overrated.
Definitely of an “era”. Noticed a sampled snare rhythm that I’ve heard before. The album seemed repetitious in its motifs, it seemed they were quite excited about being revolutionary!
Musically this is pretty nice, if a touch boring. The sort of thing you might put on if you wanted to slip in and out of consciousness while still being able to wake up and be alert when you needed to. Say, on a long train ride.
I haven’t listened to a lot of this kind of drum and bass music, but I will say it was great music to work in the office to. Not to distracting but also kept my foot taping through most of it.
I have always enjoyed the jungle EDM subgenre. It's blend of drum-n-bass, trance and house plays right around the edges of something you can dance to and something you can chill to. Unfortunately, as time has gone on the monotony of the compositions have stood out more and more to the point where I think I'm almost over it. While this album had similar moments (i.e. I definitely didn't need to hear the same dolphin chirps looped for 9 minutes on 'Sea of Tears'), it also did well to keep tracks varied enough to keep songs from feeling too stuck in a rut. I could see digging this album back out for workday focus, or for playing in the background.
I like this kind of music typically, but this was a little weird. The song with the dolphins was over the topo.
Not timeless by any measure, this is very 90’s. I like it but it is loooong and very repetitive
I read the artist as Blondie at first and was absolutely shocked, then I reread it and came back down to earth. Overall some pretty fun jungle DnB-style stuff. Never my favorite genre of EDM, but I think this is better casual listening than techno is. However I'd rather dance to techno than Jungle. Shits intense yo.
Moody and cinematic but unnecessarily long to the point of being almost absurd. Appreciate the dense rhythms but some of the synth tones are cringey.
Impressive ambience in sporadic and fleeting bursts but there’s hardly any album which can justify such a gargantuan run time (which I’m completely sick of by this point). Will return to this fascinating record at some point.
At the end of the day I think the EDM, the Drum and Bass, the Trance and House and Jungle is mostly not for me, at least not as a standalone thing at length. I just don’t get it. Lots of bits I liked here, but then these long stretches of what are, to me, just relentless repetition and monotony.
This is such a difficult album to review. First of all - at 100 minutes, it's too long. The runtime of most tracks is excessive and I could have done without songs like "Adrift". On the other hand... I just might have listened to this under the right circumstances. I listened to the title track at home and felt that it was, of course, too long but I was drawn in by the atmosphere and Diane Charlemagne's vocal. The rest of the album I listened to while driving on the freeway at night during a light rain. And then everything just made kind of sense. I mean it's excessive and too ambitious and some of the choices I can not defend. But I think I enjoyed this way more than I expected too.
Nice surprise. Never know what to expect with these kind of albums but I enjoyed the drum & bass. Made for a nice workday.
After listening to (a low rated) album of the day yesterday I mentioned that sometimes you just need a different concept of the song. It doesn't necessarily need to stray too far outside of the bounds of tradition, but it also shouldn't cloyingly cling to it either. This record is almost an expression of something else, but still hews a bit too close. At least it was a welcome relief of sorts. Today's rating might be some kind of relative recency bias based off of reacting to yesterday. But what does that tell anyone about what this even sounds like? The album is a mix of soundscapes colored in an industrial palette all cut with drum and bass beats. The record is a little overlong with some tracks feeling aimless at times, but more enjoyable than I would've thought at first glance.
Kyllähän hyvä junkka aina putoaa siinä missä just rumpubasso alkaa pidemmän päälle puuduttaa. 3/5
Big songs. I can see why it’s on the list. Seemed like he was experimenting a lot and just trying to figure it all out.
This was a bit difficult to get through. Drum and bass just isn't really my thing.
i was not expecting this site to have drum and bass on it why is it so long
I'm sure it's very good, but I can't handle those drum & bass style ra-ta-tat drums...gives me palpitations.
Lol major techno vibes. It’s decent, just kind of sounds like everything else like this
Not very Timeless, and not really my thing, but it's interesting to see what's a really important landmark in DnB
This album did not do to well in the Netherlands. I found it an interesting album to listen to. Some numbers sounded a bit like Soft Soul. These songs I liked.
Pretty decent DnB album but hasn't aged especially well for an album called Timeless, it doesn't stand out at all now.
Znawca elektryka nie jestem, ale dwa gatunki zawsze rozpoznam dubstep oraz drum&base, calkowicie nie moja bajka, zbyt szybka muzyka jak dla mnie, jednak ten material ma tez wolniejsze tracki, adrift you&me state of mind, z dziwnie skompononowanymi wokalami, ale jednak ma, mimo tego strasznie meczylem ten albumik, jego spotifajowa wersja ma prawie 2 godziny, wiec przyjalem ponad programowa dawke elektronicznosci, na plejke leci saint agnel oraz this is bad, wacham sie miedzy 2 a 3, pewnie gdyby albumik mial godzinke, to byloby 3, ale zbyt mnie ta sesja wyssala z zycia
When I first read the artist I thought it was a different Goldie. Interesting to hear D&B on this list. Interesting but not a fan of the lilting crooning woman. Some of the high pitched synth sounds are a bit grating too. Repetitive, but that's the style of music.
Not really my thing, kind of difficult to listen to all the way through. Some good songs on there though.
Tbh I don't see nothing special in case of d'n'b, even taking into consideration the fact of releasing this album back in XX century. Nevertheless, it is still quite good, but I don't really understand why it is put here.
Really? 2 hours of monotonous beats, strange slightly musical noises? A breakthrough? A masterpiece? I don't get it. Do I have to listen to all of this? How about we pass a law that albums like this be no longer than 45 minutes. Not totally bereft of value. But I have no desire to ever listen to it ever again. 2 stars
“Brings jungle to a new level of cross-fertilization.” But not as good as Vivaldi.
"This is a Bad" - Goldie Sorry, I couldn't resist. The fact that this nearly two hour record starts with lines that would come to be the centerpiece of a Flight of the Conchords track did not help me take this album seriously. Nevertheless, I have to admit that it's fine, I guess. There's some interesting moments, but I feel like it mostly washed over me. I can appreciate that this is regarded as an influential record in the history of drum and bass music, but I just don't find it all that compelling to listen to. Favourite track: "Sea of Tears"
Despite it's title, album is the opposite of "Timeless", it's a time capsule of what was to come for the drum and bass genre. And to be fair, the beats are interesting and fairly complex, and there are some wild moments tucked away on this 2 hour long album, but that's where it lost me. I didn't feel engaged enough to warrant a two hour runtime, and frankly, it's difficult to judge Timeless without the satire music that has surrounded the d&b scene in pop culture. Fav Track: None
I understand the influence this album has in the drum and bass scene but feel it is better left in the clubs. To listen to this all the way through is difficult as it just doesn't go anywhere, I find it repetitive with no direction an from my standpoint uninteresting. It is also way to long. Listening to the entire work does not take me to a place that most music does, in fact it does the opposite in that it brings on a feeling of sadness listening to the album. There are a few tracks that are fine ("Inner City Life", "Sea of Tears") but overall it is not for me. I give it a 1 and a half - 2 stars.
3/10. There isn't a lot of space in my life for a 90+ minute album of electronic music. There were enjoyable tracks here and there, including the 20 minute title track, but there were also some tracks that annoyed me or bored me, which is pretty rough when the average track is about 8 minutes. A high 3, but a 3 nonetheless.
4/10 this had some positive qualities but it was a lot of fucking drum and bass and some of the songs really overstayed their welcomes.
Goldie? Never even heard of it. Bet it sucks though. Oh and apparently it goes for almost 2 hours. Good, grand, wonderful! aaaaand it's scungy UK techno, annoying drums, instant ps1 snowboarding game vibes. Fuck off. 2 hours? More like 2/5.
File under “good for them for essentially inventing drum & bass” but not my jam (unless I’m in a sketchy basement with lasers & strangers of course 😂 )
Good, but songs were a little long. I felt I got the vibe for a few songs at the 2 out of 7 or 8 minute mark, and not much else was added in the remainder of the song.
Meh. Every song sounds the same. Every song on the radio station that it played also sounds the same.
Too long. I finished my commute before the 1st track finished. Cover art 2/5
A gave this a go. Really not my jam but actually more likeable than I imagined
I appreciate Goldie for many things. Appearing on Come Dine With Me, accidentally giving away Banksy's first name, being in Eastenders. Musically, when he's at his most focused his output is exceptional. When i say focused..... I mean restricts his tracks to 7 minutes or less. I just feel that he sometimes veers into self indulgence and the more ambient side of his music just becomes a bit.....boring
Will say listening through this gave me more appreciation for DnB, but did not really like the album that much overall. Drum & Bass is already a very hit or miss for me as it is and this album did not hit. It felt like if the album had a thesis, it would've been "Melancholy". Much prefer Pendulum's style ;)
Well...this was an album. I can't say I HATED it, but the experience was profoundly underwhelming. It sounds like the stock music they used in early 2000s GTA games. It's not actively horrible, honestly. It's just really forgettable. I can't say I have a fave track but I also didn't hate it. A blah two stars from me.
Goldie was a new band for me, and Timeless was new music. The opening track reminded me of some of the soundtrack for the Power Puff Girls, but the rest of the listening experience dropped off after that. The album felt long. I did not enjoy many of the vocals, and the electronic music was repetitive enough that I had a hard time distinguishing between the tracks on the album. This album was not for me.
Glad to hear the flight of the concords reference in timeless. Otherwise, is this album really relevant on this album?
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is a 17 minute drum track. The producers of Timeless must've thought to themselves that that was a record that needed to be broken and created a 21 minute electronic drum track. The only problem is, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is good and Timeless' 21 minute eponymous opener and the rest of the album is total shit. From the original version of the book: "Some of Timeless sounds dated today, but few dance producers have come close to realizing such an ambitious artistic vision. It is the sound of future jazz from a distance planet, set to the sharpest beats." Andy Pickering, the poor individual charged with writing the paragraph for Goldie's entry must've fallen and hit his head. Nothing about jungle-drum-and-bass music is a must listen to and that music surely has not aged well. Nor has his entry for this album. 2/5.
Timeless??? I beg to differ. This album sucked the life out of most of my morning… keyword: sucked. There is no earthly reason for the opening track to be 21 minutes long, it could have accomplished the same atmosphere and mood in far less time. Overall, this album was way too long. I would have hated it much less had it not gone on and on and on with mediocre beats and obnoxious singing.
Not for me. Didn’t hate but didn’t really like it. And it’s way too long.
Mostly it was just background music. It was a really long record and I won't be revisiting it. Lots and lots of the Amen Break though.
Maybe as cocktail party background, or swanky, hip hotel elevator music, but it just felt interminable. I kept checking to see if I’d finished the album and it had started over. I like the music, but I couldn’t tell one track from the next.
Well not really my thing.. I like the music, but vocals seem to be juxtaposed to the music. People need vocals so I get it.
Can see the love and the hate when it comes to this album. I prefer rating these albums I'm given based on tightness of tracks, filler etc. While I can appreciate the drum and bass and this records influence. These tracks could definitely be shorter as a listening experience. Otherwise it's just background music and not an experience. Might be more of a journey if you're consuming substances. It's good and I enjoyed bits of it.
Ovo negdje u klubu slušati. Dobro je, dugo traje, al to je normalno za ovu vrstu glazbe.
Oy, this was tough to get through. Nothing in particular wrong with it, but nearly two hours of electronic music is not my idea of an enjoyable Wednesday morning. I feel similar to this as I feel about the band Rush - I appreciate the technical skill that went into it, but that doesn't mean I like listening to it. 2 stars.
I only give it a two because I love modern bass music and what’s happening in the EDM scene and because this guy is a pioneer for all other breakbeats and heavy bass in edm. If I compared it to current stuff, it’s absolute trash but probably crazy dedicated and new at the time so I respect with the two star.
The beginning sounds like an endless song. And the end sounds like the beginning. 🤔
Not really my style. Can appreciate the significance the album had for the dance scene though. 2/5
This was an absolute chore to get through. '90s Drum and Bass is definitely not my genre. It sounds sooooo dated, too. Only reason I give it 2 stars is that every so often, the deep bass would shake my windows and I got a kick out of that.
I'm no electronic music expert, but I do enjoy the genre as a whole. So, despite reviews absolutely slamming this for being drivel, I thought "surely I'll find things I like about this album." Well, not really... Maybe Goldie is the pioneer of the classic drum and bass sound we know today that is so prevelant on this album. I don't know. But, listening to this, it doesn't sound innovative, it doesn't seem to stretch the boundaries, and half of the beats aren't even that catchy and danceable. I guess since this came out in '95 it was groundbreaking for the time? If you look at YouTube comments for each song as you go through, you will see that people LOVE this and consider it a masterpiece. Personally, I found it to be mostly boring and repetitive and the female vocals not outstanding. To say this album is too long is a massive understatement. I'm honestly looking forward to more EDM albums on this so I have something to compare it to, because in my mind, I don't see electronic music lending itself to "must listen" albums but rather signature artists and must-hear songs (a la "Sandstorm"). This one had it's moments, I suppose (the standout for me was one small section of "Sea of Tears"), but all the songs had basically the same drum and bass loop and never went anywhere.
This album was just nothing for me. It blended into the background really well once it started, and it only had me start listening a couple times throughout the album. Did I hate it? No, but the only situation I could imagine actually liking it is in the middle of playing something like Gran Turismo, otherwise I can't imagine dancing, or just listening to this.
How on earth do you review this kind of stuff? 'Timeless' is a long ass track. I like the beep-boop sounds around the 13 minute mark. 'Inner City Life' is the only part of the entire album that I recognize. 'State of Mind' is quite enjoyable and the album is atmospheric enough ('Still Life', 'Sea of Tears'), but it's just way too long. Even most movies have a hard time filling out such a runtime.
Underwhelming. An artefact from a specific moment in time – of historical interest/significant alone. An analogy: compare Dizzee Rascal and Goldie. Rascal was a Grime pioneer. He earned the right to 'Bonkers' (which is a cool song, btw. But, you know, cred and all that.) Goldie had been in the D n' B trenches. But much more a water-carrier. An enthusiastic water-carrier, but still. Enthusiasm just meant that everyone was hydrated. it doesn't change the course of wars or anything.