This is a Random Album Generator.
One album a day.
From the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Heaven Or Las Vegas

Cocteau Twins

1990

Buy At Rough Trade
Heaven Or Las Vegas
Album Summary

Heaven or Las Vegas is the sixth studio album by Scottish alternative rock band Cocteau Twins, released on 17 September 1990 by 4AD. Despite 4AD president Ivo Watts-Russell proclaiming it one of the best-ever releases on his label, he released the group from their contract at the end of 1990 because his relationship with the band had soured. Heaven or Las Vegas peaked at number seven on the UK Albums Chart and number 99 on the US Billboard 200, becoming the band's most commercially successful release. It eventually sold 235,000 copies by 1996, according to Billboard. The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, and was voted number 218 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums. In 2020, Rolling Stone listed it at No. 245 in its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Wikipedia

Rating

3.31

Votes

13596

Genres

  • Rock
  • Indie
  • Shoegaze

Reviews

Like a review? Give it a thumb up to help us display relevant reviews!
Sort by: Top Date
Feb 11 2021
View Author
5

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.

👍
May 04 2021
View Author
1

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.

👍
Nov 02 2020
View Author
5

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

👍
Jan 27 2021
View Author
5

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

👍
Nov 01 2021
View Author
5

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

👍
May 12 2021
View Author
2

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.

👍
Feb 05 2021
View Author
1

I can not tell what language this is

👍
Apr 10 2021
View Author
5

Great atmospheric album. Definitely worth the listen.

👍
Jan 14 2021
View Author
4

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.

👍
Nov 01 2021
View Author
5

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

👍
Jan 09 2022
View Author
5

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.

👍
May 10 2022
View Author
5

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”.

👍
Mar 15 2021
View Author
1

If there was a zero I would pick that

👍
Apr 18 2023
View Author
5

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.

👍
Jan 30 2021
View Author
1

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

👍
Jan 07 2023
View Author
5

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.

👍
Jan 15 2023
View Author
5

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.

👍
Sep 19 2023
View Author
5

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

👍
Apr 04 2022
View Author
4

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

👍
Sep 20 2023
View Author
4

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.

👍
Jan 14 2021
View Author
2

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

👍
Jan 27 2024
View Author
2

#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

👍
Oct 26 2020
View Author
5

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

👍
Jan 25 2021
View Author
5

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

👍
Dec 28 2020
View Author
5

Fairly unique, might come back to it

👍
Apr 28 2021
View Author
5

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

👍
Jun 14 2021
View Author
5

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

👍
Jul 14 2022
View Author
4

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.

👍
Jul 14 2022
View Author
4

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.

👍
Mar 22 2023
View Author
3

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

👍
May 24 2021
View Author
1

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.

👍
Jan 17 2022
View Author
1

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

👍
Dec 31 2022
View Author
5

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)

👍
Sep 21 2020
View Author
4

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".

👍
Mar 10 2022
View Author
4

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

👍
Mar 17 2022
View Author
4

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.

👍
Aug 18 2022
View Author
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

👍
Aug 26 2024
View Author
4

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.

👍
Sep 15 2024
View Author
4

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

👍
Sep 24 2024
View Author
4

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...

👍
Jun 12 2021
View Author
3

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

👍
Jul 15 2021
View Author
3

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.

👍
Nov 09 2023
View Author
3

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.

👍
May 02 2024
View Author
3

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.

👍
Jul 31 2024
View Author
3

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.

👍
Sep 23 2024
View Author
3

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.

👍
Jan 22 2021
View Author
2

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

👍
Apr 16 2021
View Author
2

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.

👍
Oct 15 2021
View Author
1

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.

👍
Nov 21 2022
View Author
1

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

👍
Oct 12 2023
View Author
1

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.

👍
Feb 15 2024
View Author
1

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.

👍
Jan 25 2021
View Author

It's good, I just never loved Radiohead

👍
Oct 26 2020
View Author
5

Now we're talking! Har lyssnat på albumet några gånger nu, så det säger allt. Känns som en korsning mellan typ The Cranberries, Highasakite, och lite annat smått o gott.

👍
Jan 13 2021
View Author
5

Why haven't I listened to this before?

👍
Jan 26 2021
View Author
5

First song was sampled on the morning by The Weeknd. Old rock easy listening

👍
Jan 17 2021
View Author
5

The original vapourwave. Listened

👍
Jan 14 2021
View Author
5

Good indie sound with a heavy 90s feel.

👍
Mar 02 2021
View Author
5

Lovely album, very 80's synth pop feel but also beautifully arranged vocals and mixture of sounds. Very enjoyable album

👍
Jan 30 2021
View Author
5

One of the best sounding records I’ve ever listened to

👍
Feb 11 2021
View Author
5

I've already heard this album a few times before. It's lovely.

👍
Mar 16 2021
View Author
5

I got introduced to this album about a year ago, and at first it was kind of hard for me to entirely grasp it. Still I fell in love with the first and last tracks so I gave it a couple of tries more and now I think it is just lovely.

👍
Apr 24 2021
View Author
5

Cant understand wtf liz fraser is singing. 5 stars

👍
Apr 24 2021
View Author
5

sehfjahfbeljdlhsdfjashkdf streeeet

👍
May 07 2021
View Author
5

I liked this album a lot. It reminds me of MGMT and I’m glad to have found this.

👍
May 14 2021
View Author
5

Heard this bad boy quite a few times Really really good!

👍
Aug 27 2021
View Author
5

Gets better as it goes on...great last 2, 3 tracks

👍
Sep 06 2021
View Author
5

Very ethereal and dreamy. Love it!

👍
Oct 19 2021
View Author
5

A classic dreampop album, for good reason.

👍
Nov 29 2021
View Author
5

Stone cold classic album. You can hear the influence in so many other albums. I'm a huge sucker for dream pop and this is just one of the titans of the genre.

👍
Dec 06 2021
View Author
5

This music just always makes me feel so dreamy. Her voice is perfect for dream pop . One of the best albums of this genre

👍
Dec 06 2021
View Author
5

Its a 5 star from me! Loved this album for a while now. Its fun and different from anything else I know really.

👍
Jan 28 2022
View Author
5

Truly genuine pop music with a distinctive sound.

👍
Jan 31 2022
View Author
5

Goodness, this album is superb, so soothing and calm/

👍
Mar 22 2022
View Author
5

The only "Dreampop" album that matters truly.

👍
Mar 23 2022
View Author
5

I love this album, have always loved it, will always love it. Blast to listen to today!

👍
Apr 05 2022
View Author
5

Frábær plata! Þarf að hlusta meira á þetta band.

👍
Apr 22 2022
View Author
5

Amazing. Beautifully painted soundscapes all thought the album make it a true classic of the genre. Can't help but adore it.

👍
Load more reviews