Lazer Guided Melodies
Spiritualized
1992
Album Summary
Lazer Guided Melodies is the debut studio album by English space rock band Spiritualized. The album was recorded by the inaugural line up of the band, consisting of Jason Pierce (vocals, guitars), Mark Refoy (guitars), Will Carruthers (bass), Jonny Mattock (drums) and Kate Radley (keyboards) from 1990 to 1991, and mixed by Pierce in London in January 1992. The album was first released on Dedicated Records in March 1992, on cassette, Compact Disc and Vinyl (2 x LP, with initial copies containing an additional free 7"). Initially released on two 45rpm vinyl LPs, the album's twelve songs are segued together into four colour-coded (red, green, blue, black), cross-faded suites. As such, the album was included in Pitchfork's 2010 list of "ten unusual CD-era gimmicks".By 1995, the album had sold 10,000 copies in the United States.
WikipediaSpacey and gorgeous. Spiritualized albums exist in their own galaxy, orbiting a lonely planet inhabited by disembodied creatures longing to make physical what exists in the aural realm of these tracks. I may not always be in the mood for the ethereal vibrations the music provides, but when I am... damn.
Loved this album and will absolutely be listening to it again. I love the use of an organ for the ethereal feeling.
What a treat of a lovely record. I have always loved Spacemen 3 but for whatever reason I hadn't given Spiritualized a good enough shake. Absolutely blissful repetition, building, and then instead of a climax it is a \"whooosh\" inside my brain. I can't wait to listen to all their other albums too, but I'm gonna give Lazer Guided Melodies plenty of time to grow on me, this thing has gorgeous depth.
Wow. I have never heard of this band or this album before but I'm 2 minutes in and I think I'm hooked! I thought it was going to be a dance album by the cover... Well, this has just been an amazing experience. I have fallen in love with this album and discovered a genre I didn't even know existed known as "Space Rock". This album has been added to my high rotation.
I really enjoyed “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space” from Spiritualized. So this time I get to go back to the beginning. 90o0 This album felt more stripped down I guess but still unmistakably Spiritualized. Really enjoyed listening to this - it put me in a real calm, meditative state without feeling boring or repetitive. I think it may have brought my blood pressure down a few notches. Some highlights for me included “If I Were With Her Now” (tells such a dramatic, tight little minimalist story), “I Want You” (bordered on a pop song), “Smiles” (sweet little song), “Take Your Time” (a very slow, taking-their-time build), “Shine A Light” (fits the artist name well!), “Angel Sigh” (a lovely, understated, minimalistic love song), “Sway” (felt almost religious in the choruses - I’d float in space to this one too), then it closes with the amazing “200 Bars” where they actually count out the first 100 bars - as a former junior high French Hornist I felt a special connection to counting out a long series of bars). Fantastic. Lovely. Soothing. Wonderful.
Nothing short of amazing, quite possibly my introduction to a genre that I'm yet to get into (Dream Pop), but I'm eager to.
Loved this - reminded me a lot of Slowdive (one of my new favourite bands, new to me not a new band). Chilled and kind of psychedelic. Will listen again
This album showcases all of what I love about Spiritualized and Spacemen 3 - the droney, hazy, extended musings, usually built around one major chord. Very pleasant both as background and also as a focused listen on headphones. I think I prefer this album to "Ladies and Gentlemen..." which sounds a little more dated at times.
Oh my god, it just took me away to somewhere else...where I was murdering over and over.
че-то похожая ситуация с предыдущим альбомом. сперва бомбанул даже немножко, ибо вообще-то к жанру спейс-рока отношусь более чем положительно, и надеялся на годноту со стенами звука и няшной лиричкой. и как-то разочарован был, когда какая-то околоуныль началась. ну типа блять, альбомы Hum, Failure, да даже ранних Muse в подборке не представлены, а это говно есть. вообще все сильнее с выбора авторов начинаю гореть. но потом попустился немного, сложил 2 и 2, и все-таки прикинул, что это скорее я спейс-роком считал пост-хардкор и прочий тяжеляк со спейс элементами. а чистый комик-роцк, вероятно, такой и есть - немного ленивый, торжественный и атмосферный. но все же сказать, что полностью зашло не могу. отчасти из-за иногда проглядывающей скуки, отчасти из-за кринжовейших текстов. прогнал все ж не без удовольствия, думаю под настроение будет вообще на кончиках пальцев, но пока сильным фанатом себя не чувствую (хотя, как оказалось, у меня даже в аудио какая-то их песня с другого альбому была). склоняюсь к той же семёрке, может опосля вся эта тема во мне вырастет. 7/10
I want to give this five stars. My right hand is desperate to click on the mouse to give it five stars. I run through the highpoints of the album continually, yearning to give it five stars. I recall how mesmerized I was by the third quarter, how warm and blissful and singular and vast and searching the record is, and I want with all clarity and desire to give it five stars. And I can't. The issue emerged in the fourth track, Run, where they make a rather blunt allusion to the Velvet Underground's Run Run Run. This distracted more than anything, and threw me from the music. Was I listening to genuine sentiment, or rather a demonstration that the band owned a cool record collection? Is that even a problem? I don't know. I can still hear the beating of a heart within this album, but it's muffled by a leather jacket the album insisted its mum got it in order to impress the girl albums.
Wow - this was a pleasant surprise. I only knew one of the songs before hand (run run run). Really interesting soundscapes, one of the few albums I've played more than once.
A master class in mediocrity. Lacks substance. Or, as Pitchfork.com puts it: "...feels almost weightless, an astral take on the blues that seems to drift by on cosmic winds. It’s one of the most gentle rock records of its time, with spaced-out guitars and rolling bass lines tenderly nudging Jason Pierce’s vocal melodies along like a weathered stone rolling slowly down a hill."
Unsure what to expect but loved it right off the bat. Adding this to my list of go-to albums.
Amazing. Life changing 5 out of 5 10 out of 10 . One of my favorite albums now
I liked this a lot! The album name suits the sound. Overall it just calms your mind very well, I didn't really listen to the lyrics but they seemed to match the music!
You know I've Been Here Before etc. is a great begin of a great Spiritualized record, which together with the Ladies & Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space album, are two of the best albums released in the 90s. I assume the latter album (being their best known album?) is on the list too (together with at least one Spacemen 3 album) but Lazer Guided Melodies is even better. To compare: some time ago Pitchfork published a nice list of 20 "Dream Pop" albums (Think Galaxie 500, Cocteau Twins, Beach House, Julee Cruise etc). LGM is on place 11 in this list. But even though I would perhaps not qualify LGM as "dream pop" (too much motorik) it should have been much higher in that list...
Sounds like a lot of psychedelics were used in the making of this record ,feels like taking some listening to it. Lovely warm ,floaty, atmospheric goodness . Induces feeling of wanting to be off my chops . Il be back for more
Zoals verwacht heel veel fuzz. Maar een aangename verrassing. Ei zo na postrock, en dat kan ik zeker smaken
Spiritualized are what me dreams sounds like. I was lucky enough to see them live a few weeks ago and it was amazing So of course I give this 5 stars
So apparently I gave four stars to "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space," would it be blasphemous to give this five?
loved this when it came out, still have the version with 4 conjoined song suites. The influences seem pretty obvious now and the middle sags a bit, but still an absolute wonder.
My most seen live band until I moved to Australia. Saw them a bunch of times touring when they only had this album and it could be my favourite, (although big shout out to The Complete Works Vol. 1). Back when it was Spiritualized as an actual functioning band, not just the guy from Spaceman 3 with a random cast of players on each album. There's a coherence about it with its simplicity when compared to some of the later albums. Saw them at Glastonbury playing these songs in 1992 and 1993 so this album is forever the sound of sunset at Glastonbury on a perfect summer's day.
Really beautiful. Going to listen to them a few more times now. Think I've found something I really like.
One of those rare albums that just works morning, noon or night, weekend, Monday, drunk, sober. Just suits all 500 versions of me.
Aw, too soon! Only just had ladies and gentlemen, hoped they'd space them out a bit. Ha. Pun not intended. Anyway, love this most low key Spiritualized album. Sometimes even more than aforementioned masterpiece. Certainly Shine A Light is one of the best songs they ever did. Everything builds so gently and beautifully, gliding into a blissed out haze. Elsewhere, both If I Were With Her Now and Take Your Time's one-paced, effortlessly rolling groove take some beating. Angel Sigh blows your socks off, Sway is simply gorgeous. This album starts and finishes so strongly. I'm not as fond of I Want You and the reworking of the Velvet's Run, Run, Run, but they're both still fun. Plus you get to have a little sleep and a float in the breeze in the middle of the album.
Full of 70s era psychedelia without any of the elements of dissonance common for that time. It drives on and on but never ceases to be beautiful and uplifting. One criticism would be that there are quite a few parts that sound verrryy Stone Roses. Not necessarily a bad thing but I did have to check who came first (SR by a few years). They're a bloody consistent bunch too, have been steadily releasing for a solid 30 years now.
This was really relaxing and honestly just really nice. I feel like I restate the same things a lot but it was just a calm album.
6/2 3.75/5. The softness of Dream Pop with spacey Rock elements. Standout Tracks: You Know It's True, Symphony Space, Shine a Light, Sway, 200 Bars
Angel Sigh is a fantastic track. Really cool album, nothing more to say.
Very floaty. Enjoyed this, not as much of the floating through space album
Un disco muy interesante: música electrónica de los 90's muy diferente a la que comunmente se asocia con esta década: eurodance, house, etc. Aunque en general el disco es "chill" y tiene canciones muy relajantes, del estilo de "Cigarrettes and Alcohol" como Sway, también canciones energéticas como Run. Es un disco muy agradable y fácil de escuchar, o de utilizar como fondo para trabajar (comprobado al menos 3 veces).
I'm a massive fan of "Ladies & Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space", but I haven't listened to this album much, which seems.... weird. It's got all the elements I love. I think I just need to spend more time with it, so going into my third play through now... Fave track - "Take Your Time", at the moment, but there are a couple of other contenders... I really don't know why I never got into this album as much as "Ladies & Gentlemen..."!?
more of a ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space kinda guy. pretty good but its the archetypal you've got to be in the mood for it music.
As background music during work I quite enjoyed it. It was relaxing, pleasant and the slight "space-sound" touches made parts of it interesting too. Still as pure background music it's not interesting enough for a 5.
Psychedelic, Brit-Pop, Electronica, this album has it all! I had never heard anything this early in Spiritualized's discography, but I'm glad I got to experience it. Hoping "Ladies and Gentlemen..." is on this list somewhere too.
Another album of which I was completely unaware, and liked more than I expected to. I particularly enjoyed "Run".
Cigarettes After Sex vibes CAS vibes just getting stronger Very long songs mein gott Final Thoughts: 4/5
Definitely not my favorite album by them, but it's still super dreamy and space-age, which is a delight to hear.
Loved this. Lush, dreamy, spacey arrangements. I want to explore more of the band's work now. Fave songs: Shine a Light, Sway, Step Into the Breeze, 200 Bars
This band is the reason I wanted to listen to this 1001 albums list. Never heard of them before now I am a fan. Love the sound. 4/5
I liked it a lot! Great kinda spacey psychedelic dream rock. Probably excellent for watching the rain on a cool morning.
I like the wildly schizophrenic dynamics that flung most songs between acoustic and quasi-symphonic passages. (7/10) Favourite Tracks: Step into the Breeze, If I Were with Her Now
Kolejny album z serii brytyjskiego grania, zarowno nazwa bandy jak i plyty nic mi nie mowi, chociaz az tak bardzo undergroundowy material to nie jest, bo jednak 370k sluchaczy w ciagu miesiaca na spoti, ale co to w ogole za plyta, lazer guided melodies najtrafniej mozna okreslic jako space rocka, albo przynajmniej mocno eksperymentalna odmiane rocka, ale lirycznie blisko jest tez do dreamowego popu, przez prostote jaka jest wykorzystana w tekstach, jest to debiutancki material piecioosobowej grupy, ktorej liderem i jedynym stalym czlonkiem byl Jason Pierce, jak to na lidera przystalo teksty sa jego autorstwa, pokrywa on rowniez bazwe wokalna i gitarkowa, choc jeszcze ma jakies fragmenty na jakis egzotycznych cymbalach czy autoharpie, wiec multiinstrumtalnie, nigdzie nie widze jakis mega synthow, a niektore dzwieki klawiszowe brzmia wrecz kraftwerkowo, czy tam krautrokowo, wiec gitarki czy klawisze musialy ciekawie byc przesterowane dla osiagniecia takiego brzmienia, bo co do samego brzmienia, to tak jak przystalo na kosmiczny rock jest nie z tej ziemi, tajemniczne, w niektorych momentach jak z sennego marzenia, a w innych razej dziwacznie niepokojace, czasu na budowanie klimatu jest wystarczajaco duzo, bo calosc trwa rowna godzine i jest podzielone na 12 trakow, ciekawa sprawa jest jeszcze jak zostalo wytloczone wydanie vinylkowe bylo podzielone na 4 roznokolorowe sekcje, co zdecydowanie uderza w brzmieniu tej bandy, to szczera prostota, nie ma tutaj zbednych dzwiekow, oszczednosc liryczna i wykorzystanie licznych powtorzen jeszcze bardziej buduje senna hipnotycznosc materialu, ciekawe sa tez nawiazania, ktore mozna powiazac z spirytualnym poszukiwaniem w jakiejkolwiek religii, no z jednej strony mozna je brac jako typowe love songi, a z drugiej strony jako zwrot do blizej nieokreslonego adresata, jak na shine a light, i want you, czy smiles, co lepiej pasuje do ezoterycznosci brzmienia tego materialu, wiec teksty proste, a i tak pozostawiaja wolne pole do interpretacji, wiec kolejny dobry dobry pick z wyspiarskiej kolekcji lat 90, bo plyta wydana w 92, na plejke wrzuce otwierajacy you know its true, take your time i sway, jedne z najbardziej lirycznie rozbudowanych kawalkow, zeby jakos pasowaly na rokowa plejke, ale caly album leci na poleczke ciekawych pickow
лёгкий воздушный космический, понравился. приятный инди звук без напряга, всё летает, качественные аранжировки
Atmospheric while preserving melody, which is not easy to do, but not quite the achievement that Ladies and Gentlemen is. Best track: You Know It's True
This is some awesome ass work music. Where did this album come from? I've never heard it or heard OF it. It does a really admirable job of getting into a groove and then pressing it along like a rolling boulder, which is honestly its major charm in my opinion. It takes a lot of the prog rock methodology and puts it in an alt/pop/post-new wave format. 1992? I'm impressed!
Mad psychedelic cosmic shit going down here. Inebriation recommended!!
Very relaxing and enjoyable, though don't think any particular song is that memorable.
This kinda thing isn't normally by bag, but I really, really liked this album. The melodies were cool. It really did feel like they were guided by lasers. I'll admit the bias in my rating, but they get a bump for A) my never having heard of them before, and B) the surprise nature of my enjoyment.
Now I do like a space rock album, and this was no exception. I think it did drag a bit in a few places, but the atmosphere and songwriting were stellar.
Took a lot of the ideas from Spaceman 3's Playing with Fire, and actually executed them well. Dreamy, floaty, and almost zen.
Intricate, bisweilen noisy, ziemlich cool. Verliert ein wenig die eigene Aufmerksamkeit, aber könnte ein Grower sein.
Also The Stone Roses haben mit ihrem Album The Stone Roses ein tolles Werk erschaffen. Wenn man diese Formel jetzt nimmt und durch Reverb und WahWah zieht entsteht irgendwo das Spiritualized Debut. Ich kannte das vorher nicht, aber es hat mir ein wohliges Gefühl gegeben von vorne bis hinten. Das Album ist so lieb und irgendwo simpel, trotzdem kann man sich in unendlich drin verlieren. Ich kann so eine Assoziation mit späterem Britpop ziehen der ja durch simple Chords und Melodien trotzdem was ausdrückt, nur wurde das hier quasi zeitlich früher schon yassified. Glaube um das ganz zu fassen, braucht es noch mehr Zeit, finde es aber z.B. ein schönes greifbares Pendant zu dem oft sehr Abstrakten My Bloody Valentine Alben Sound.
Fand das ganz gut, hätte das gern in einer passenderen situation gehört, so wars im Endeffekt bisschen drawn out aber denke wenn man das fühlt ist das vllt sogar eher positiv Hörerfahrung war eine 3 aber seh mich da bisschen mit deswegen 4 fuck it!
Ja man, das isses. Ich wollte schon immer mal die ganze Diskographie von Spiritualized anhören, dieses Album ist dabei aber immer auf der Strecke geblieben. Wenn man die Band kennt, dann ist es überhaupt keine Überraschung, dass das hier die Anfänge sind, akustisch ist das sehr nah an Ladies and Gentleman, We Are Floating in Space, jedoch noch nicht so ganz die Ideen umgesetzt. Was ich ja interessant finde ist, mit welchen fast schon banalen Elementen inkooperiert mit Pop/Rock (auf jeden Fall auch von Britpop inspiriert) ein Bild im Kopf entstehen kann, das ganz klar mit dem Weltraum assoziiert wird. Das Thema wird auch vom Text her gar nicht so stark thematisiert, im Gegensatz zum Album danach natürlich, aber diese verhaltene und dennoch maximalistische Weise, wie hier die Songs realisiert wurden, finde ich auch hier einfach sehr bemerkenswert. Der Grundsatz wurde hier gelegt und so Momente wie der Climax von Shine a Light machen das hier sehr lohnenswert anzuhören. Wer das hier mag, dem würde ich ganz dringend auch Ladies and Gentlemen... ans Herz legen, das ist denke ich genau dieses Konzept zuende gedacht, vielleicht etwas rockiger aber auch genauso hymnisch. Sehe gerade auch, dass das auch in der Liste ist. 8/10
7/10 at first i was like. why are they playing the same chord so many times. but then my mindset shifted and i was vibing out
Admittedly I do not know much about the space rock revival, but this album bodes well for the genre. With sounds that are floaty, fun, and comforting, Spiritualized brings a great soundscape to the table that would surely be appreciated by the likes of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Sigur Ros, and maybe even My Bloody Valentine. Great record for the likes of 1992.
Lovely stuff. Overwhelming and ethereal, just a really great and huge sound