I got this CD in the mail today because I had listened to a couple tracks online and thought the lead singer's voice was amazing. It is a compilation of two e.p.'s that were released in 2001 and 2000 respectively.

First up was "the great beast February" from 2001. The lead singer of this band has a wonderful range that sways in and out of an urgent test of his vocal range all the way into a beautiful falsetto that would melt many a heart. The first two songs show their moderately paced rock sound. There is nothing too special about them, but at no point do they make you want to turn them off either.

It seems like everything I have listened to recently has had that one song which really makes a piece of music worthwhile. This is the case with the Velvet Teen as well. The third song "Mother of Love" comes out of nowhere to really grab hold of the listener. It is very soft and slow as it layers from the most infinitesimal levels of music and atmospherics into a larger than life anthem. I can imagine how powerful this e.p. was on it's own with a closing song like that.

Tracks four through nine make up Comasynthesis. This one starts out more electronically with "Your Cell." A grungy synthesizer and electronic beat bring in an interesting more eclectic version of the Velvet Teen's vocal based rock music. I am not sure that it is necessarily good for the band's style. The effects seem slightly forced in an 80's synthesizer kind of way. It distracts me from the vocals, which are easily the forte for this band. I think they are good songs, but this sweeping aquatic synthesizer needs to go away.

The disc finishes out like this for the most part. The two exceptions are "Penning the Penultimate," and the disc's closer "Reverie to Chanticleer." "Penning" was recorded all on a 4-track according to the liner notes. I think this commitment to simplicity is good for them, and it is definitely the song I like best from the second e.p. It is the e.p. from 2000 so I am happy to know that by the time they got to "the great beast February" they had moved past this heavy reliance on electronics. Electronics have worked for bands like Radiohead, but I think it is rare that a band can interweave them into the mix without detracting from their sound.

I would recommend this for fans of slower indie rock like Mineral, and the Gloria Record.