MORPHINE

MORPHINE
YES (1994)
320 KBPS

It's amazing that just a few simple instruments - a sax, drums, and a two-string bass - can come together to create something as complex and ingenious as Morphine's music. I sincerely regret that I never had the opportunity to see them live before vocalist Mark Sandman died doing what he loved the most - on stage in 1999. Morphine had so much more left to teach the music world - and Sandman's death was every music-lover's loss.
Yes is an excellent album - one of my all-time favorites. It's driven by the band's trademark sax - which seems to have a mind of its own. And Sandman's hypnotically playful vocals are dark and distorted - part spoken, part sung.
The songs are erratic and slurred. They feel pleasantly intoxicating - like a few too many gin and tonics. "Whisper" is lazy and seductive - like a Caribbean sunset. "I Had My Chance" sounds like the drunken ramblings of a street-corner bum. The entire album is a collection of experiments - concluding with a curveball. "Gone for Good" is quiet, peaceful, and acoustic - sad, but sweet. It's so unlike the rest of the album, but it's absolutely beautiful.
If you're musically open-minded and looking for something out of the ordinary, Yes is the album to buy. You won't be disappointed. It'll give you a great buzz - and you won't have to deal with the headache the next morning.

1. Honey White
2. Scratch
3. Radar
4. Whisper
5. Yes
6. All Your Way
7. Super Sex
8. I Had My Chance
9. The Jury
10. Sharks
11. Free Love
12. Gone For Good