1. What were your VERY FIRST impressions on listening to the album, say from the first five minutes in (first time)?
I was intrigued. It sounded very different from the one other Tipper album, Wobble Factor, that I was familiar with.
2. Did your first impressions change, i.e., did the album get better or worse as you listened to it (first time)?
It got better in the sense that, the more tracks went by, the more I realized how much I liked everything I was hearing.
3. Which was stronger in your opinion, the opening tracks (first 2-3 songs), or the ending tracks (last 2-3 songs)?
Impossible to choose, I love this album from beginning to end.
4. On repeated listens (if you did so), did you find you liked the album more, or less? Feel free to be very detailed if you like.
More. The more I've listened, the more amazing details I notice.
5. What is your favorite track from the album, if you have one?
Hard to say, I literally like every single song on the album, but I guess "Big Question small head", "Cuckoo", "Brocken Spectre", "Dead Soon", "Tit for Tat" and "Hourglass Infringement" are all contenders for the top slot.
6. What is your least favorite track from the album, if you have one?
None.
7. Did you change your favorite or least favorite track as you listened to the album?
Sort of. As I indicated above, I have a lot of favorites on this album.
8. How would you describe the variety of tracks available on this album? Feel free to be very detailed if you like.
Extremely varied while still feeling like a single united work. There's this whole pan-asian thing going with this album that I like, which pops up via a wide range of instrumentation throughout the album, and that's only one piece of the puzzle. There's classical influence here and jazz and steel drums and digital artifacts and even a hint of the Beach Boys.
9. What is the overall mood on this album?
It's like exploring a giant greenhouse satellite orbiting a gas giant in some far away solar system. Each section of the greenhouse contains plant life from all the different planets these space horticulturalists have visited, and you can almost get lost in the lush forests aboard, but above you there is always the glass dome and the stars and planets hanging silently beyond it.
10. Is this an album you would listen to again all the way through (for personal, recreational use, outside of listening to it for this club), or are there just a few songs that you would listen to?
Yes, I would listen to it all the way through and have done so many times since my first listen last week.
11. How well do you already know the band/artist?
I owned his album Wobble Factor for several years and really liked it, though for whatever reason I never got around to checking out anything else by him. When it was my turn to pick an album for this club, I figure now was a good time to check out another one of his releases.
12. If you are familiar with this band/artist, how would you compare this album to any of their earlier/later material?
I've listened to several of his releases now and so far I'd say this one is my favorite, though everything I've heard from him is very good.
13. Do you see any way the album could have been improved?
Maybe if it were a double album. I just wish the trip were longer.
14. Would you recommend this album to others?
Yes!
15. Are you interested in listening to more albums by this band?
Yes, and have already done so.
16. What sub-genre, if any, would you assign this music to?
IDM
17. (NOTE: Ignore this question if the album does not have lyrics.) Did you like the vocalist? Hate him/her? Any impressions?
n/a
18. Your overall album rating on a scale of 1-10 (whole numbers please. Also, please BOLD or otherwise make this rating easy to see)?
10/10
19. What do you think of the production?
I love the production—lush and layered with a great sense of space. It's the kind of production style I can really get lost in.
20. Any other thoughts you had about this album you would like to share?
Nope.
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