THE HIGH LLAMAS

THE HIGH LLAMAS
HAWAII (1997)
320 KBPS

Sean O'Hagan has a gift for orchestral pop, creating lush soundscapes that are awash with sonic detail. He clearly owes a lot to Brian Wilson, and Hawaii, the High Llamas' third album, falls somewhere between Pet Sounds and SMiLE. Sonically, the rich, orchestrated production is reminiscent of the former, but Hawaii is paced like SMiLE, with brief instrumentals and song fragments framing the full-fledged songs. Each is carefully arranged and recorded, offering an inviting tapestry of strings, guitars, keyboards, brass, and percussion. For much of Hawaii, the sound of the record is intoxicating, but the album drags over the course of 77 minutes. Among the 29 tracks, there are some beautiful moments and gorgeous songs, but Hawaii winds up being too much of a good thing, lacking the focus of Gideon Gaye. Still, it's worth your time for the beautiful Wilsonesques moments O'Hagan has been able to carefully craft.

1. Cuckoo Casino
2. Sparkle Up
3. Literature Is Fluff
4. Nomads
5. Snapshot Pioneer
6. Ill-Fitting Suits
7. Recent Orienteering
8. Hot Revivalist
9. Phoney Racehorse
10. Dressing Up The Old Dakota
11. D.C. 8
12. Doo-Wop Property
13. Theatreland
14. Friendly Pioneer
15. Cuckoo's Out
16. Peppy
17. There's Nobody Home
18. Hokey Curator
19. Camper's In Control
20. Double Drift
21. Island People
22. Incidentally N.E.O.
23. Tides
24. Nomad Strings
25. Pilgrims
26. Rustic Vespa
27. Folly Time
28. Hawaiian Smile
29. Instrumental Suits