Heaven Or Las Vegas

I can't believe I get to listen to this album. The vibes are immaculate, just perfection. It's like floating along warm summer air. Everything feels so purposeful in it's placing, with every sound, word, and visual just lifting the album above levels I didn't know could exist. My only complaint is that it gets a little same-y here and there, but man I can forgive that with how beautiful it all is. Perfection.

Oh my God. Who let this be such utter perfection? This was really really really good. Wow. The atmosphere. The vocals. 10/10.

The mystery of the lost great Cocteau Twins album: What was it on the other side of the recording studio glass that so distracted them when they made this, and what would they have produced if they'd been paying attention? We may never know. I will never care.

Beautiful ephemeral pop that I could listen to on loop forever.

A truly unique dream pop album that doesn't have one lackluster song. Fraser's vocals are the highlight of this album, purring with energy and life. Some of her vocals are unintelligible, but that doesn't take away from the ethereal sound. The guitar work and drums are amazing as well, complementing the vocals perfectly and coalescing to provide the unique soundscape. The band complements each other so well yet you get the impression of improv. Not to say it isn't focused, which it is, with songwriting about childbirth and also death. Favorite tracks: Cherry-Coloured Funk, Iceblink Luck, Fifty-Fifty Clown, Frou-Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires

It's not exactly BAD but it sure is super boring. There's nothing–literally nothing–about this album that stands out except for the fact that the vocals are utterly indescipherable which takes the album from a "meh" 3 stars to a "nope" 2 stars.

I can not tell what language this is

Great atmospheric album. Definitely worth the listen.

Cool and dreamy - good drum machine work and the bass in quintessential 80s. Probably the lyrics and vocals are the most memorable. Got me on a shoegaze kick after and I listened to My Bloody Valentine for awhile.

Can you believe we wrote this beauty off as “their commercial album” when it cam out? Lush, sensual, prickly in spots and featuring some Elizabeth Fraser’s most aggressive, full-bodied singing and toothsome lyrics. Only the Twins could make this kind of music while “selling out”.

5.0 + It's hard to pinpoint why this album makes me feel like soaking in a hot bath. There's some kind of strange alchemy between the shimmery guitar and vocals that's mesmerizing. It's a gentle swirl of arpeggiated synth lines, thumping bass and soothing vocal wisps. At times, my mind gets lost in the background sounds and I'm put in a smiling trance.

hypnotic, psychedelic, and poetic. complex rhythms and melodies paired with beautiful tones and reflective lyrics. fav songs = all

I'm not sure I'll ever fully understand people who do not love the Cocteau Twins. I'm sure there are some very nice people, we are just different on a fundamental level. This album is like an old jumper you have had forever that you put on when you get sick, a comfort blanket. The Cocteaus at the poppiest they got, and probably the most fully formed. One listen to Fotzepolitic and I could take on the world. Bliss.

Ethereal but grounded. Incomprehensible but clear in their messages. The Cocteau Twins are one of the most antithetical bands I've come across, and this may just be their masterpiece. Elizabeth Fraser is such a unique talent.

If there was a zero I would pick that

What’s that you’re saying??? Sorry. Can’t hear your words. Is that French? I literally don’t know.

This is my go-to sleep album along with "Souvlaki" by Slowdive. It makes me feel like I'm levitating. Absolute ethereal perfection. Once the last part of "I Wear Your Ring" hits, I'm instantly teleported into the eighth dimension. Ten out of ten, you already know it.

The dream pop group of all time, its not even my favorite album by them but good god is it good.

#112. While listening to this album you might find yourself wondering who or what is this for. Well let me paint a picture for you. You have begrudgingly agreed to go to a dinner party at one of your wife's coworker's house. You know the one. The one with the combover and the crooked moustache. The one that always touches your arm when he talks to you. With the crack skinny wife in the wispy dress that doesn't speak loud enough to understand what she's saying ever. Every wall in their house is the same shade of off-white and every room has like one or two pieces of furniture, and maybe some stabby brutalist "art." You keep looking over at your wife to see if you can leave yet, because every minute being here is a minute closer to your insanity. And... this is the music that's playing in the background the whole time. Oh, and the brisket they served was dry. 2/5: please don't make me listen anymore

All the songs sound the same. Very winy (as most dream pop goes) and lyrics often abandon recognizable language

terrible, absolutely terrible

like ABBA on acid.

cat ham cat

I really like this album. I listen to quite often as background, it's nearly perfect for writing or creating. The songs just drift together with those soft mumbled vocals. I think Treasure is a but better but happy to see this on the list.

I was most familiar with Elizabeth Fraser on vocals for Massive Attack’s Teardrop and discovered Cocteau Twins (and this album) from there.

Perfectly listenable but doesn't thrill me. Another "won't turn it off but won't turn it up" album.

i'm just a sucker for dreamy, ethereal guitars and vocals to match. this was great.

This sure as hell sent me to Heaven rather than Las Vegas.

Fairly unique, might come back to it

Dreamy indie.... what’s not to love? Nothing!

Headphones on. Sit down in a nice chair. Dream away. Absolutely brilliant and beautiful.

I love that dreamy sound, and this album absolutely drips with it. Hell, they practically invented it. I just wish there were a few more standout tracks, but overall a great album.

Really good gothy dream pop. It lays on the 90s sound a little thick, which is probably because the group pioneered the sound to some extent. Still a bit dated in that regard.

Was this album in English? Maybe it was French. The lack of clarity of the vocals did add to the dreamy soundscapes of a kind of relaxing, warm fog. In my mind, this should create some sort of timeless feel, but it still sounds like the 90s. I don't know that if that is a good or a bad thing. It's just an observation. Good day.

Listened. Shite. Can't tell what she's saying.

Sucked. Can I give 0 stars? Guess we will see what happens. Turns out you cant give zero stars. You have to click at least one to activate the vote button. Consider yourselves lucky Cocteau Twins.

Droll background music.

Один из самых красивых пост-панк альбомов, которых я когда-либо слушал. Волшебный и мелодичный вокал успокаивает и вводит в некое состояние сна, выходит за границы языкового барьера и передаёт сущность песен не через тексты, а через пение, ну и просто звучит замечательно. А гитары вписываются не менее гармонично - тонущие в тоннах реверба, они тоже создают некий колыбельный эффект, погружающий в умиротворённое состояние, из которого не хочется выходить никогда. (9 - 9.5)

Lovely. No words. A new world.

Cool 80s vibes, with echoey synths and floaty riffs. There's a good amount of reverb on the vocals, it seems, and I don't know if it's that, but I find the woman incomprehensible. I wondered at several points if she was singing in French. I still don't know. Highlight was the title track, 5, Heaven Or Las Vegas. Also, 8, Wolf In The Breast. Vocals on Cherry-Coloured Funk remind me of Shakespeare's Sister. This album is from 1990. I don't know how I didn't come across it before. I may have seen Cocteau Twins on "Now That's" compilations, but I don't think they would have clicked. I'm not blown away by this. It's good, interesting, but would I listen to it regularly or repeatedly, probably not. Three stars seems harsh, four too generous...

Spot the fake Cocteau Twins track name is the quiz round we never knew we needed... a) Iceblink Luck b) Fifty-Fifty Clown c) Socketface Grapefruit d) Frou-Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires Some albums just scream 80s at me from the first few seconds and I immediately fear the worst (despite being released in 1990). In fairness, it has some hooks and the overall sound is richer and less cheesy for the most part than I was worried it could be. I find myself quite enjoying the shoegazy production and her vocals somehow both irritate and intrigue me, at times I swear she's singing in a strange foreign language. Spotify doesn't have the lyrics so I never bothered finding out.

Gorgeous synth washes over ethereal vocal melodies. With singing this gorgeous, who cares if you can't undersand the words?

I’m at a 3.5 that I’ll bump up to a 4. Gotta tell you – not used to an album without proper lyrics. I just don’t know that I could personally give a 5 to an album with vocals, but without lyrics, simply because I’m a sucker for storytelling… but I think a 4 means the album was pretty damn good regardless. And this was pretty damn good. Sometimes, soundscapes do make an album, and even though this is a 1990 album, it’s very much the dying gasp of the 1980s in full effect – everything here is a sort of pastiche on every 80s trope and style you could think of musically, and it comes together really well. Vocally, I think she’s got a mesmerizing tone to her voice that usually meshes pretty well with the instrumentals, but occasionally, I think the production blends them together too harshly on some tracks where it just kinda negates the positives of both. That’s not to say there’s any bad tracks here, just some suspect mixing – this is even more of a car album than the last one was, but it’s honestly more of a dreaming album to me (I guess that’s why it’s “dream pop”). I could easily see myself falling asleep to these, or even dreaming up something close to these – good soundscapes with lyrics just out of reach, but the occasionally clear word or two to keep you a little grounded to reality. I just had fun with it – I can’t wax too much about it because the extent of my criticism is “that sounded really good, but sometimes it didn’t,” and that’s kindergarten-level criticism. It’s a very nice listen; it sounds great, it’s relaxing as hell, and while it does go a little bit too long, I think it doesn’t overstay its welcome long enough to be actively annoying. I’m fine with bumping it up to a 4.

Shimmering, dreamy musical confections. Gorgeous arrangements elevated by Elizabeth Fraser's ethereal vocals and expressionistic lyrical style. Listening to this album is the musical equivalent of floating on a cloud. At its best, this is some of the loveliest music you'll ever hear. The quality of the individual songs is a little uneven, but it's overall still a joy to listen to. Launches me straight back to my sophomore year in college. Fave Songs: Cherry-Coloured Funk, Iceblink Luck, Heaven or Las Vegas, Frou-Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires, Pitch the Baby, Wolf in the Breast

True to the mission of this project I am glad this record came up on my list. Although this may already belong to my own personal canon of soul-defining albums thankfully this might have been a backup contingency plan. This made an enormous impact on me decades ago. There was nothing else like it, the world was different after I first heard the Cocteau Twins, and still nothing else compares. This record felt like it was an opening and a big break into a wider audience. It also felt like further slipping from an ideal after Treasure that diluted down the drain awash with new age pathos and intelligible lyrics instead of a cosmic brain transplantation. I only wish I could find a giant poster again of the album cover to pin up on my wall as I improvise the lyrics to Pitch The Baby.

This is the sound track to my dreams, the nice dreams though, not the dirty ones I wake up from erect.

Lush, gorgeous. Like a giant blanket. Seems like a great album to get high to. Reminds me of MBV. Favorite tracks are "Pitch the Baby" and "Frou frou Foxes in Midsumner Fires".

Wow, another Cocteau Twins album in my first 130. I had never heard of them before and I continue to be pleasantly surprised. Their ethereal sound and fun harmonies sets it apart. The 80s textures aren’t my favorite, but their creativity overshadows it.

Very synthetic, but in the wrong way for me. The instrumentation feels too sharp and brittle. I preferred “Treasure” over this one, which has a bit more meat to its sound, but Heaven or Las Vegas is not a bad record overall.

I was on the cusp of giving this a 4, Cherry-Coloured Funk has been a favourite for as long as I care to remember with its haunting synth and contrasting range of vocals, some of which are Kate-Bush-like in nature but ultimately all gel together brilliantly as a song that doesn't go on too long (unlike this sentence). And the rest of the album is, well, alright. But always found myself wishing I was listening to the first track again.

Pretty good. Kinda blends together like most Cocteau Twins albums. 7/10

This whole exercise is so frustrating because I would swear up & down that I like fuzzy dream pop (Beach House, Bat for Lashes, Washed Out, Warpaint, Mazzy Star, etc.) But between these guys and mbv, I'm feeling totally gaslit. Like, this is just...not great. Maybe if the choruses were in English? It all just kind of blends together into a droning nothingburger of a sound landscape that NEVER catches your attention. I guess it's good if you're on a fentanyl bender, but not great if you're actually trying to enjoy what you're listening to. Maybe a low 3 / high 2 kind of scenario - but I'm going with 2 for the fact that this list makes me doubt my own perceptions.

This was ok. I have been meaning to listen to Cocteau Twins. i have now i guess

I could not stay interested in this at all. 2 stars or D+.

Cool ideas, but very one note for every song. Hooks repeat constantly and there always feels like a lack of emotion. The song settle in on one vibe, but what that vibe means is utterly incomprehensible.

Erm... lovely shoegaze soundscape, but genuinely unintelligible lyrics. Enunciate, woman.

Not just boring music, but almost painful because of the singer's voice and pronounciation. Not my cup of tea, obviously, but this time I have a really hard time getting how anyone else could stand this let alone consider it a classic.

I'm not sure how this album ended up on this list. I'm pretty sure I could find a better album not on this list in any used record store in the world. Maybe there's political or historical information I'm lacking that would help change my opinion, but I'm not going to waste any more time on it.

"The album was voted 18th of Scotland’s 100 Best Rock and Pop Albums in 2003" My heart breaks for Scotland.

So dreary and uninspiring. Tuneless lift muzak at best. Awful production, tinny with weak drums. With the music being so much of absolutely nothing, at least the lyrics could have been profound, interesting, etc., but no.. might as well be sung in Greek. The inability to pronounce English words correctly is apparently intentional, but just makes the songs frustrating and bizarre to listen to. If I never hear this album again before I die, I will die happy.

Unlistenable

It's good, I just never loved Radiohead

+ Influential to modern pop music I'm drawn to + Production stands out for the time period + No duds + Leaves me wanting more

Cerramos la semana volviendo con éste bandón, pioneros del shoegaze. Discazo, automáticamente los temones que tiene nos llevan por paisajes soñados, dejándonos durante las diez canciones en ése estado. Más que destacable la preciosa voz de Elizabeth Fraser, que magnifica todo lo anterior. Hasta el lunes.

10/10. This is such a beautiful album!!! The lyrics are unintelligible, but there is something really mystic about the music. It's gorgeous!!!

Not sure if this one can be topped - one of my favourite albums of all time. Every time I listen to it I notice something different it never gets boring. Elizabeth Fraser is the absolute GOAT. Wish there were more than 5 stars.

lovely, lush, dreamy sounds Liz Fraser has an amazing voice

very chill and i like that it’s jsut the music and their voices making you feel something

Dreamy, sublime

I’ve not listened to ‘Heaven of Las Vegas’ for a number of years, and despite always loving it, was still entirely unprepared for just how good it actually is. Jesus Christ. As is always the case with Cocteau Twins; I have no idea what any of this is about. Despite being more lyrically intelligible than they'd previously been, Elizabeth Fraser may as well have been making random noises for as much as you can understand anything she’s saying. None of this matters though, as you still understand everything. This album is like a monument to uncertainty and desperation filtered through dream logic. It’s presumably what the title is referring to; Am I actually in heaven or am I in a gaudy, corrupted Las Vegas recreation of the real thing? This is an album of shifting glances, second guessing and desperate longing. It’s all there in songs like ’I Wear Your Ring’ which almost sound like Fraser engaged in a loosing battle to escape out of the drooping confinement of the songs slushy instrumentation, the record’s pensive power ballad of a title track and of course, ’Cherry-Coloured Funk.’ I can’t think of many more things in music that are as much of an emotional gut punch as the first time Fraser goes into falsetto on that songs chorus. The sheer naked vulnerability and almost naive hope that comes though in that moment… it’s almost too much. I am also amazed by just how ahead of its time ‘Heaven of Las Vegas’ actually is. It does still sound very much like a 90’s record, just not one THIS early from that decade. You can almost hear later released songs like ‘Venus as a Boy’ by Bjork, ‘Missing’ by Everything but the Girl and ‘Confide in Me’ by Kylie bubbling under the surface here, starting to take form. This album is just too good. It’s just an endlessly addictive world this so easy to slide back into. I have no idea why it took me so long to come back to it, and will now reassess all life decisions that led to this.

Loved this! Dreamy, floaty, floral, relaxing. Had always intended to check out Cocteau Twins but never got around to it before, so I’m glad this finally forced my hand and I’ll be seeking out their other albums immediately. Made me think of Kate Bush, Kate Miller-Heidke, even Magdalena Bay. Also this is a strange reference but I Wear Your Ring reminded me of a piece from the Donkey Kong Country soundtrack called Aquatic Ambience which I listen to probably too often. So many great tracks, I can only understand like 2% of the lyrics (and frequently wondered what language I was even hearing) but it’s all so melodic, maybe how mermaids would sound.

Phenomenal 10/10. New favorite album second to muse

it always makes me laugh when I look up the lyrics to cocteau twins songs bc there’s a good chance it’s actually gibberish

one of my favorite artists and i already know and LUV this album :)))

One of the nearly perfect albums. I loved a couple of songs that I had in my own personal rotation, but I held off on listening to the album on my own because I figured I would get it on here someday. Amazing.

beautifully written, the melodies are soo good.

What a little gem. I had forgotten about this band and it was great to hear them again. I got hints of Chrissie Hind and Kate Bush vocally at times throughout the album. The guitar sound that you only get with top class indie music was great throughout. Brilliant 👏

Loved this, I hadn't ever listened to the Cocteau Twins before but will definitely be listening more

A heavenly atmosphere one could live in, love iceblink luck and the title track

Listened to them for the first time last year after Cherry Coloured Funk appeared in a music league. It became my most listened to song and these guys became my most listened to artist. Love this album, easy 5/5.

Another one of my mother's influence, I listened to a descent amount of Cocteau Twins growing up, albeit I can't remember which albums, so this may or may not sound familiar. I have a particular love for Garlands, so I expect to like this album a lot. 'Iceblink Link' is a song that evokes a lot of nostalgia, so I can comfortably conclude I have listened to this album before. What I love about this album is the undercurrent of new wave goth is there but it has this more optimistic and melodic sound throughout. The ambiguous lyrics add to it well, and it has nice highs and lows.

An absolute classic. Another album I never tire of listening to.

One of the best musical discoveries I've had in my life. Thanks to Steven Wilson. It sounds so different and original. The way the band works with the guitar sounds and the layers of voices by the great Elizabeth Fraser results in a very pleasant musical atmosphere. It's the type of album that you get involved in listening to from start to finish. Everyone should listen to this album obligatory.

An all timer. Shimmering, ethereal, beyond "dreamy", conjuring a thick wave of sound that's warm but forceful. Emotive and human and dark but pure. Their other work that I've heard is good but they're on another level here. I went into this expecting I'd think a few tracks were a little weak, but everything on here shines.

literally nothing beats this album. even when i'm not listening i think about "singing on a feeboo stree" every day at least once. one of the many albums that makes me think of my wonderful boyfriend.

In my mind, no matter what I am always presented with one of two scenes. Dark green patterns in a pitch black world. These patterns are all squares and triangles in straight lines that turn 45 degree angles at a time. These patterns continue until the world becomes nothing but angles in the darkness. Marble pillars infinitely growing like wires tangling everything in my vision. They are engraved with vines and leaves that progressively fade as they grow. These pillars turn into a perfect striation filling my vision. I can't remember when this started. I feel it's always been a part of my life. I always thought the world I lived in would return to that. When I listened to this, the marble untangled. The sharp angles became rounded. The world became saturated. This album made me learn there were more patterns.

I get the same feeling listing to this as I do when I wake up from a really lovely dream. uplifting, comforting, vivid, but without any true understanding of what just happened.

Feel like we’ve had a stretch of pretty mediocre albums, but this one fucking rocked! I’d never heard of this band at all so this was a nice surprise. They remind me a bit of Jesus and Mary chain, but more dynamic. Bit of the cranberries and sinead O’Connor with the Celtic flair to the vocals and off beat but hooky melodies. I hear a lot of them in the 2010s indie world, like passion pit and sleigh bells and tame impala. All that said, and despite these references, I’m giving this a 5 because, in addition to sounding good, their sound itself feels wholly original to me, like an unexplored land, at least to my ears. Found myself muttering ‘fuck yeah’ at a certain turn or beat drop several times alone in my car while blasting this. There’s something really exciting about hearing a whole new sound at 35, after 30 years of listening and playing music every day. Just when this exercise was starting to bore me a little, feel a whole new appreciation and gratitude for all this awesome music we’ve listened to.

interesting, different from what I expected.

Heaven, please!

Perfect dreamy ethereal vibes. Wonderful layers of sound and a lot of musical texture to pick apart. A little split on if it's a 4 or 5 just because I don't see myself reaching for it often. BUT for the right mood I think this is very hard to beat.

Stunning. 9/10

Really fresh album!! I had hear of the Cocteau Twins before listening to this album, but I wasn’t aware of their creative talent and range. “Heaven or Las Vegas” was a ton of fun, and I would happily recommend it to others!! Fav song: Fotzepolitic

Pre-listening thoughts: Bro I never have any clue what the Cocteau Twins are saying but I bet this is going to slap regardless Post/during listening thoughts: if someone asked me to transcribe these lyrics by ear I think I’d get maybe four words correct per song. But my god these instrumentals are so lush! This is a wonderful album with fantastic production and lovely harmonies that make up for the fact that I can’t understand 90% of the words. 9/10 DID I NEED TO HEAR THIS BEFORE I DIE: nah Fav tracks: Cherry Colored Funk, Iceblink Luck, Heaven or Las Vegas, Fotzepolitic, Frou Frou Foxes (but this is a no skip album) Least fav tracks: none

Already listened. Greatest thing to ever happen.

Harmonic beautiful and atmospheric, sets such a magical joyful mood

i wish i could play this record for my the cure- and my bloody valentine-loving 16 year-old self.

круто, вайбово. подойдет для вечернего прослушивания с красивым видом

Really pleasant and nice

Now THIS is the type of music I enjoy. The vibes are immaculate, the songs are all similar but not in a dull way, the vocals float over the beat beautifully. I was immediately transported to summer by the lake with a beer in my hand staring off into the horizon. Not a skip on here and I’ll actually go back and listen to this again & again. This is why I came to this site in the first place!