Multi-instrumentalist/songwriter Daniel Crommie has been quite active over the last 25+ years releasing a wide assortment of solo albums as well as participating in group projects with Group Du Jour, Echo System, and Saturnalia Trio. Selective Amnesia-The Best of 1984-2009 looks back at some of the best material from that time period, and gives you a good idea of all the different styles Crommie has undertaken over the years. With 17 tracks in total, some never before released in digital format, this collection gives a great overview for those that have never experienced the music of this talented musician.
The CD goes chronologically, starting from 1984 and working its way to 2009, and the first few selections here have a very early '80s ambient/new wave/pop feel, complete with bubbling synths and effects laden vocals. Fourth track "Ranch -Style Sushi" features vocoder vocal effects over layers of synths and drum machine programming, perfectly representing the year 1986. Fast forward to 1990 and Crommie begins to dive into New Age sounds, beginning with the Jade Warrior influenced "Small World" (great flute here), as well as the more pop based, Talking Heads styled "Hall of Fame", both from the Shadowgraph album. The flute is back for the lovely "Tiny Red Spiders", and "Tidepool of the Sky", from 1991's Chrysanthemum, signals Crommie's jump to smooth jazz sounds, featuring some nice melodic sax melodies.
The next few tracks are from 1992 & 1994, and are more vocal oriented pieces, with Crommie's voice drifting in and out of New Age and ambient styled arrangements featuring flutes, synths, and programmed percussion. Synth fans will love the instrumental mix of "Mango", a previously unreleased version of this song from 1996 that has loads of bubbling synth passages and programmed percussion, as well as some catchy melodies. The cassette single of "Mouse", from 1996, is also included here, though it's kind of an oddball tunes with strange vocals and synthesized drums, while the more ambient "November 42" is the closest any of these songs come to prog rock, and features some wild, spacey synths. "Living in the Dark Ages" sees Crommie and company going the folk route (sounding a tad like Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson on the vocals), and "The Spell is Broken", from 2007's Life Rattle has a dreamy, New Age feel to it, with soothing keys and calm drum programs. Closing number is a bizzarre one called "Sidewinder", as Crommie tries to combine New Age and heavy metal. It doesn't really work, but is interesting nontheless.
With so much material to his credit, Selective Amnesia-The Best of 1984-2009 only really scratches the surface of what Daniel Crommie is all about, but if you've never checked out any of his many releases, this little collection will give you an idea of what he's been all about for the last 25 years.
Track Listing
1.
From the Start 03:55
2.
Age of Information (long version) 06:01
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3.
Walls That Crumble / Crescent Moon 05:04
4.
Ranch-Style Sushi 04:35
5.
Small World 07:15
6.
Hall of Fame 04:44
7.
Tiny Red Spiders 06:36
8.
Tidepool of the Sky 03:38
9.
Cool Drink From A Poison Well 03:15
10.
Shaky House (single edit) 03:55
11.
Out of My Head (single edit) 03:21
12.
Mango (instrumental mix) 03:26
13.
Mouse 04:41
14.
November 42 01:32
15.
Living in the Dark Ages 02:41
16.
The Spell is Broken (single mega-mix) 04:09
17.
Sidewinder (2010 remix) 04:26
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