Starfish
by The Church

REVIEWS and COMMENTS


Aah! The shimmering cold-desert-star guitars and the languid harmonies, the finely fag-burred drone of Steve Kilbey's vocals and the hazy imagery. There you are, drifitng down the night-time freeway of the Church's US pop/rock atmospherics, whan all of a sudden ... nothing happens! Except you might nod off at the wheel.

What starts off on side one as winning restraint soon turns into colourless mediocrity. The Church inhabit a landscape located somewhere between U2 and REM, but their inability to offer any original angles on the plangent guitars/abstract lyrics configuration soon has them bogged down in a Bolshoi type no-man's land. 'Hotel Womb' is the nearest to a distinctive song, mainly because of the naff title. Just dull, rather than dire, this is a jellyfish in starfish's clothing.

★★ (two stars)

Psychedelic sounds haunt the Church

Have you ever been on a long trip in a car and caught yourself gazing out the window looking at nothing?

In The Church's newest release, "Starfish," the music makes you feel as if there are no cares in the world an a hundred easy miles to go before reaching the destination.

As a matter of fact, "Destination" is the name of the first song on "Starfish," a slow-moving tune that at times sounds like a cut from Pink Floyd's "The Wall." Even though there is too much Pink Floyd going around lately, this is a very relaxing song.

From beginning to end, the album makes you feel like you're traveling on the highway on a warm, sunny day.

In its latest issue, Rolling Stone describes The Church as a band that looks for these "unifying concepts" for all of its albums, and "Starfish" is no exception.

The Church formed in Sydney, Australia in 1980. Since then they have recorded six albums, and have been through three record companies.

The members of the band do not hesitate to criticize their albums. Steve Kilbey in the Rolling Stone interview called the band's previous releases everything from "so-so" to "accurate reflections of the band's musical style."

The band strives to capture its concert sound in its album. In "Starfish" there is a clarity you don't get in other psychedelic cuts. For one thing, you can make words out of the music. Kilbey, lead vocalist, and bass guitarist, possesses a smooth voice that opens the listener's imagination to the lyrics.

But the smooth tone is not only in Kilbey's voice. The Church tries throughout the album to involve the guitars in the easy, traveling mood.

Drummer Richard Ploog, guitarists Marty Willson-Piper and Peter Koppes and Kilbey agree that too much emphasis on keyboards, horns and strings ruined their other albums.

Even though the keyboards are gone from The Church's music, "Starfish" still sounds as if the keyboards are used.

Actually it's Willson-Piper and Koppes using distortion and feedback from their guitars to create the sound.

Rolling Stone said members of The Church are believers in "guitar power."

So much power that the listener forgets Kilbey is even there in certain songs.

One of these songs is "Lost," probably the most powerful song on the album. The song has power because the guitars combine to paint a desperate scene. It's unreal how a song can recreate such strong emotion.

The song makes one imagine a scene of being alone and looking for a scene of being alone and looking for a way to go, but not having anywhere to go.

One line out of the song Kilbey sings gives the feeling of being lost. "I'm coming down to worship a god, but he never speaks to me. And then he says you're never listening."

The rest of the album describes different parts of the journey. Songs such as, "Under The Milky Way," "Hotel Womb" and "North, South, East and West" describe the remainder of the band's journey.

On the inside of the album is a short poem describing things imagined on the trip, things like "swimming in the shallow end, down, down, remember a need, a gnawing longing for what? Shapes and faces come slowly into mind."

"Starfish," is a pleasant surprise. It's been a while since a band has made such relaxing psychedelic music while keeping an understanding of the lead singer's lyrics.

The album, like most others, has a tendency to drag on towards the middle — but when has anyone gone on a long drive and not been bored by the middle of the trip?

THE CHURCH
'Starfish'
(Arista 208 895)
KKKK½ (4.5 stars)

Quirky, intriguing and altogether irresistible, the Church could by no stretch of the imagination be dubbed a Metal band. I guess it's even dubious that you could label this Aussie four piece a rock band, but for some intangible reason, there's that little something in the Church's make-up that appeals to us rockers.

There are a lot of long-haired lotharios out there who are drawn to the ethereal sounds of the Church when 'heads down' just ain't the order of the day. Hey, even the hardest of hard lovin' dudes has his late night mellow moments.

The Church? The Birds' [sic] instant coffee of rock, perchance?

'Starfish' is the band's seventh studio album if I'm not mistaken, and while there ain't no radical shifting of sound or structure, there's the same atmospheric interest that the Church understand so well.

Bassist and vocalist Steve Kilbey is the lynchpin of the sound, his love-lorn manner of singing positively reeking of atmosphere, of the lonesome lone strummer. empty bottle of Jack at his side in the deserted bar, lamenting the bad karma that follows his everywhere.

And y'know what, there's a true perverse delight in the mystique of misery. Hell, I'm gonna start blubbing if I listen to the likes of 'Under The Milky Way' or 'Lost' any more! David Lee Roth this ain't!

Despite having the most ridiculous surnames ever to grace a band, the remaining three quarters of the Church (guitarist Marty Willson-Piper, drummer Richard Ploog and guitarist Peter Koppes) give me a whole lotta pleasure by playing very much like a band. No egoing out here, just a minute attention to what each song needs, such as the Police-like choppy guitar of 'Blood Money' or the total laid-back feel of the epic 'Destination'.

If you're looking for Vinnie Vincent to sear through your speakers and singe your eyebrows with some well wicked axemanship, then steer clear of 'Starfish' by about a million miles!

However, if you've got a soft spot for Lou Reed in his more mellow moments, if you have an ounce of soul down beneath that there leather jacket, if you can appreciate a band that most patently ain't in this game for the bread, then grab a hold of this record. It's one to treasure, one that will last!

After a two year break for solo projects, books and the like, The Church return for their fifth LP of vaguely old fashioned though not nostalgic guitar songs. There are no big surprises—Steve Kilbey's songs still strum rhythmically along amid ringing, sometimes densely spangling guitars with the odd spacey effect, while Marty Willson-Piper and Peter Koppes contribute one rather more straightforward track each. Kilbey's songs are strange creatures—they don't try to attract with brash hooks and punches but rather a siren's call of dreamy, melodic atmospheres and thoughtful, intriguing lyrics blending the personal with wider, more allegorical (and sometimes slightly sinister) themes, such as the excellent opening track Destination. Pop dynamics are not The Church's strong suit but their low key approach can still bring some very attractive results in tracks like Milky Way and Hotel Womb. *** (3 stars)

Steve Kilbey, in his title poem on the cover of Starfish (Mushroom RML 53206), observes that "music reaches and awakens" — something The Church always manages to do on record.

This Australian group emerged at the beginning of the '80s with a heady mix of jangling guitars and melancholy lyrics. As the decade draws to a close that formula remains, but along the way Kilbey, drummer Richard Ploog and guitarists Peter Koppes and Marty Wilson-Piper [sic] continue to refine this melodic approach.

It coalesces perfectly on Under The Milky Way, the hit single from Starfish. Lush acoustic guitars and a rolling beat complement the spare vocal with its message of romance and desolation, piling on layers of synthesised orchestration, harps and bagpipes. Despite a nodding acquaintance with Al Stewart, this delightfully obscure song is one of the year's best.

The rest of the album, produced with Los Angeles pros Greg Ladanyi and Waddy Wachtel, does not quite measure up to the grandeur of Milky Way, but it is still compelling listening. The hypnotic Destination elaborates on the album's overall theme: an exploration of personal space; Lost overlays its resigned lyric with ripe guitar; and Spark is a cheerful, Who-like rocker with tremedous [sic] driving guitar riffs.

David Lindley's tinkling mandolin and the violin-like synclavier of Awesome Welles (Wachtel, I presume?) add sparkle to the folk-rock Antenna, and Hotel Womb is a neat Freudian pun for a song about nightmares.

Often accused of being too esoteric for their own good, local quartet, The Church, may have found a way into the mainstream with a change of record labels and a fine new rock album. Already established in the European and American markets, Starfish is more guitar-based than some of the band's more recent outings, while songwriter Steve Kilbey has come up with his best song in years, the shimmering Under the Milky Way.

The production on Starfish is heavily textured, yet still preserves the band's strong sense for melody and atmospheric if not surrealistic lyrics. Could be their strongest shot at success since the classic Blurred Crusade.

The dearth of dreamy, ethereal pop isn't something you often hear lamented, but even happy dips get moody occasionally, and this is a perfect accompaniment for any blue mood. The Church are nothing if not moody. Steve Kilbey's husky, brooding vocals and the sense layers of ebbing and flowing guitar sound like the Byrds with Lou Reed on vocals.

You may not want to listen to this over and over, (and if you find someone that is, keep an eye on them) but there are some neat, minor-key classics. The best include the medium beat "Under The Milky Sky," [sic] "A New Season," "Blood Money," "Lost" and the slinky "Reptile."

Some head-scratching over Australian rock

[excerpt]

Besides, at least the members of Midnight Oil rely on specifics in their songs. That's more than can be said for the Church, a semi-psychedelic act from Sydney whose new album, "Starfish" (Arista AR-8521) is as atmospheric as it is empty. Sure, singer Steve Kilbey and his band mates have developed an exquisitely detailed ensemble sound, one awash in shimmering guitars and ethereal backing vocals. Though there are some undeniably beautiful melodies wafting through the album, ("North, South, East and West" in particular stands out), Kilbey's allusive, elusive lyrics seem too fond of their own wordplay to matter much to anyone but their author.

Neo-Psychedelic Glory

The pairing of Australia's opaque, moody Church with the straight-ahead American production team of Greg Ladanyi and Waddy Wachtel seems like a desperate attempt by the band to get a hit after years of struggling. Yet, surprisingly, there's no sense of compromise of "Starfish." The dense, shimmering, exquisite guitar pop that has built the quartet a sturdy cult following is here in all its neo-psychedelic glory. The only obvious hint of their time spent in the U.S. is the anti-L.A. bias of "North, South, East and West." But even diehard Angelenos could be swayed by the ringing, propulsive "Reptile" or the hushed, quietly magnificent "Under the Milky Way," which is marred only by a misplaced, distorted guitar solo. The Church probably won't receive that big hit this time around—singer Steve Kilbey's vocals are still too deep and brooding for mass acceptance—but that doesn't lessen this album's fragile beauty.

The long awaited LP by Australia's most varied and innovative band shows a growing mastery of their chosen genre. Slightly left-field material, full of tension and atmosphere, some strong songs and a playful way with arrangements make this record a dark delight. Check out Under The Milky Way, Blood Money and Reptile.

These are damn good times for this talented Australian band. Pre-orders for Starfish have already surpassed what the band has sold in the U.S.A. on all their past records combined. As The Church slide into this week's Alternative Top Ten (hence getting some additional exposure on Rolling Stone's chart page and MTV's "120 Minutes"), mainstreamers have all the more reason to check out from where "Under The Milky Way" was culled. Besides the usual Beatles/Byrds influences, leader Steve Kilbey cites some interesting roots like Be-Bop Deluxe, Big Star, Steve Harley, Can, Neu and Amon Düül. Guitarist Marty Willson-Piper is an innovative spark plug who supplies the band with an additional dimension of integrity while Kilbey's writing is ethereal and airwave-friendly. Choice trax also include "Destination," "Blood Money" and the Dylanesque "Antenna."

Australian outfit rewards Arista's intrepidness in signing it after no-gos at two other majors by delivering a shimmering, thoroughly satisfying album sure to win the hearts and playlists of college programmers; rarely is band's proclivity for rambling in evidence here. Album rockers can join the Church's acolytes by getting behind "Under The Milky Way."

The Church - Starfish (Deluxe 30th Anniversary Edition) (Second Motion)

To celebrate the Church's 30th anniversary, Second Motion has reissued the band's entire back catalog featuring remastered sound and unreleased bonus tracks. Theirs is one of the most unlikely stories in rock - the Church, who had little success outside their homeland of Australia, got signed in 1988 by the same man who was guiding Whitney Houston to superstardom, Clive Davis. The label mogul must've seen something in the underground band, who had a penchant for psychedelic jamming, when he signed them to his Arista record company.

Even stranger was their choice of producers - Greg Ladanyi and Waddy Wachtel, two LA sessionmen who were coming off success with Don Henley's "Boys of Summer." Not surprisingly, the match was not a harmonious one; the band constantly clashed with the producers. Yet, from chaos beautiful things emerge. The result was Starfish, the Church's highest charting album. The centerpiece of the record is the dreamy "Under the Milky Way," a surprise hit in the spring of 1988. With its swirling keyboards and odd bagpipe solo - it sounded like nothing else on the radio at the time.

Conflict or not, Starfish is the Church's most-focused record. Everything here works, from the swelling opener "Destination," to the jangly "North, South, East, and West," to the hypnotic "Reptile." But, where their previous albums contained layer upon layer of guitars, the producers chose to leave the tracks more sparse, and the result is an airiness not found on any other Church record, and it still stands up after all this time. This 30th anniversary edition contains an entire bonus disc, featuring demos of songs that didn't make the final album, but which are still quite good. Of note is "Anna Miranda," which contains the line "wish I knew what you were looking for" later used more effectively in "Under the Milky Way." There are also several acoustic versions of songs from Starfish. For those who choose to purchase the physical CD version, you're in for a real treat: the liner notes are written by Church guitarist Marty Willson-Piper. These are some of the most exhaustive and honest notes ever penned for a reissue like this. Willson-Piper chronicles the circumstances surrounding this record and takes the listener track by track, giving the story behind each song, and his (sometimes brutally honest) opinions of each. Even if you already own a copy of Starfish, there's enough here to make it worth picking up again.

THE CHURCH - Starfish (Reissue)
(EMI)

AKA the big one with Under The Milky Way on it.

The Church's 1988 US breakthrough, Starfish captured the Sydney janglesmiths at the apex of their powers. Co-produced by the band and veteran Californian hitmakers Waddy Wachtel and Greg Ladanyi, the album remains a sheer sonic marvel 23 years on - all the way from Destination's haunting intro to Hotel Womb's last heart-tugging notes. It was here that Steve Kilbey married his alternately mysterious and emotive lyrics with concise, stripped-down melodies - pinpointed by Marty Willson-Piper and Peter Koppes' (who respectively take excellent solo turns on Spark and A New Season) intertwining, snaky guitars. Classics like North, South, East and West, Antenna and Reptile anxiously seek, waltz and slither away, while it's now hard to imagine that the still-captivating calling card Under The Milky Way (co-authored by Kilbey and then-girlfriend Karin Jansson) was considered "filler" by engineers. The extra CD compiles choice rarities like Texas Moon, Anna Miranda and Frozen And Distant - plucked from the initial LP release's accompanying 12-inch EP and 1991's odds-and-sods collection A Quick Smoke At Spot's - and acoustic demos of Spark, Antenna and UTMW. Following Starfish's success, the combination of label pressure for another chart single and growing internal conflict resulted in 1990's commercially underperforming Gold Afternoon Fix and the departure of drummer Richard Ploog, yet the subsequent chaos begat 1992's 24-carat "magnum hopeless" Priest=Aura.

At a recent live appearance in New York, The Church once again displayed their mindless penchant for amplifying beyond recognition, songs which on record have won them a loyal audience over almost a decade. No doubt they will continue to apply the same indelicate touch to tracks off their fifth album, 'Starfish', during the current Australian tour. 'Starfish' contains enough painstakingly created mood, enough tastefully layered guitar work for the boys to make a meal of on stage.

And, of course, the thoughtful, if sometimes obscure lyrics of Steve Kilbey will be utterly swamped in the noisefest, which is why you will have to go out and buy the album to appreciate the subtle progression from their previous release, 'Heyday'.

On 'Starfish', the dreamy ambience of the first single, 'Under The Milky Way', is instantly pleasing and, therefore, more commercially acceptable than its predecessors. With other tracks -- 'Antenna', 'Hotel Womb', 'Blood Money' -- the result is equally atmospheric and almost as satisfying, but only after a few extra spins. The guitars of Peter Koppes and Marty Willson-Piper are overworked on 'North, South, East and West' and sound momentarily like Pink Floyd on 'Lost', but are otherwise played with innovation and finesse.

'Starfish' is typically patchy, but has enough powerful moments to indulge loyal members of the Church congregation. Those among the unconverted who thought that 'Milky Way' was the Church's first release since the 'Unguarded Moment' might also be surprised.

You only have to look at the cover. The grim black and white photographs of the four Church members contrasts starkly with the colourful and cheery paisley cover on the "Heyday" album. There is a similar contrast with the music inside the cover on this new LP.

Where "Heyday" was ornate, layered with countless guitar overdubs, brass and strings and produced with Peter (New Gold Dream) Walsh's light touch, "Starfish" presents a bare, almost live-sounding Church.

With the production guidance of Americans Greg Ladanyi and Waddy Wachtel, the Church sound more rocky and less jangly, with rarely more than the standard vocal/2 guitars/bass/drums heard at any one time in the slightly thin-sounding mix.

Despite the suggestions that the band might go for the commercial jugular and make a hit album this time, "Starfish" begins quite disarmingly with the stop-start jerkiness of "Destination" before settling down with the graceful first single "Milky Way" with its elegant fade-out.

The remainder of side one feels just a little underheated, recalling "Seance" with its succession of long, slowish tracks.

For a band that can kick it so well live the pace here is surprisingly leisurely.

But on side two the Church suddenly relax, with Marty's "Spark" ignited by a rocked-up treatment that borders on thrash.

Two killer tracks, firstly "Antenna" then second single "Reptile" follow. "Antenna" swings along in its waltz time beat with three strong chord motifs while "Reptile" powers along on a brutal riff from Marty with Peter Koppes adding the right counterpoint notes. This is the Church at their best: intertwining guitar and melody lines on a strong rhythmic base.

After that peak the album winds down with Peter's solo song "A New Season" and Steve's "Hotel Womb," songs that wouldn't have sounded out of place on their respective solo records.

It has been suggested that the Church might have been spending too much time on their solo albums and that the next band album would suffer, but overall "Starfish" is a solid and consistent effort. It may fall just short of "Heyday" and "The Blurred Crusade," but "Starfish" will still be hard to beat as Album Of The Year.

Ultimately though, one's reaction to this LP will depend on whether you prefer your Church in colour or black and white.

The Church, formed in Sydney in 1980, is a guitar band that prefers subtlety to brute force, and it has slowly built an American cult following via college radio and assiduous record importers; only half of its albums have been released here. In most Church songs, Steve Kilbey sings ambiguous, imagistic lyrics in a gruff voice as the band's two guitarists, Peter Koppes and Marty Willson-Piper, entwine riffs behind him.

Although the band is steeped in 1960's folk-rock and psychedelia, it sounds far less antique than most psychedelic-revival bands. The Church's current album, "Starfish" (Arista 6521 LP, cassette and CD), revolves around images of loss, absence and uncertainty - between lovers and between the singer and the universe. "Starfish" was co-produced by the band and two Los Angeles folk-pop mainstays, Greg Ladanyi and Waddy Wachtel, and it often sacrifices impact for clarity; compared to the sound of the Church on stage, the album is a letdown. Given a few chances, however, the songs and their circular guitar riffs insinuate themselves enough to keep a listener coming back.

THE CHURCH 'Starfish' (Arista 208 895/CD) ★★★★ (4 stars)

The Church's music has always sounded partly submerged, its emotions buried alive in a fresh-faced backwash of guitars, leader Steve Kilbey's poetic lyrics and sleepy voice propping up the pretty dreamscape. 'Starfish' sees them bringing together their stylistic strands, resulting in a record with potential mass appeal.

At times, as on 'Blood Money', it could be an REM/Dire Straits team-up. Elsewhere The Church prefer to be more elusive.

Coltish melodies and an acoustic leaning underline the first side of 'Starfish'. A direction is established with the single 'Under The Milky Way', but it reveals itself slowly. Ghostly choruses reach out through the layers of guitar and the energy of the songs seems to reverse its flow, moving across your attention like a slow-motion wave that never actually splashes you. The spray is visible but not accessible. Smoother music than this is hard to imagine.

'Spark' opens the second side sharply. The Church have obviously decided to withhold their teeth until you've been lulled and when they do clamp down the effect is all the more unexpected.

The teeth may not draw blood but then Kilbey's songwriting is not about attack but strategy. You begin to appreciate how ingeniously The Church have amalgamated their '60s inspirations and '80s realities. This is a style that doesn't have to look back to feel good, but the weight of history leans approvingly on it just the same.

'Starfish' is sure to provide Kilbey and co with substantial acclaim, to which they are wholly entitled for persevering with their ideas to create a really unique sound.

The Church's antecedents are the Byrds, Bowie and Pink Floyd, but the Australian band's guitar-charged sound is unique. Artful and phosphorescent, it's the result of eight years' work and startlingly sympathetic, original production by Los Angeles session veterans Waddy Wachtel and Greg Ladanyi. The Church is the brainchild of bassist and lead vocalist Steve Kilbey: until "Starfish," this band's best was "The Church" (Capitol, 1982), which yielded the gorgeous "The Unguarded Moment." The topics include space travel ("Destination," "Under The Milky Way"), the cost of love ("Blood Money" and "Hotel Womb"), and geography ("North, South, East and West," a lyrically muddled view of the West Coast, redeemed by the vaulting guitars of Marty Willson-Piper and Peter Koppes). The Church's focus on texture has often come at the expense of variety. But this boasts such individual touches as Willson-Piper's driven vocals on the atypically animated "Spark" and guest David Lindley's mandolin on the nasty "Antenna." While the dominant mood is brooding and dark (the insistent "Reptile" is absolutely scary), the textural range is refreshing.

★★★★ (four stars)

The story of The Church is a funny old drama. Ever since they began people have been saying what a totally brilliant group they are now and how it's only a matter of time before they become a household name while at the same time not actually buying many of their records. So The Church apparently decided that it was time they wrote an album-full of songs with more of a chance at commercial success than their previous ones but also keeping their all-important "serious" image. Amazingly they have achieved exactly what they wanted with the oddly titled "Starfish". "Under The Milky Way" (complete with so-called "bagpipes" in the middle) aside, there are a number of sparkling pop tunes on "Starfish" i.e. every one of them. Only once do The Church "rock out" (as they say) which is on "Spark", and the others, for the most part, are more thoughtful, wistful warblings. All, of course, have the unmistakable (and often unfathomable) lyrical style The Church are well known for, so not surprisingly it occasionally sounds a mite pretentious, but the end result is a rather fantastic and cuddly album.

THE album.

My fave is Priest=Aura for what they achieved artistically with that album but one cannot deny Starfish.

Destination opens the album with that multi-layered vocal that engrosses from the fist words. A truly brilliant song to hear live as well.

Then, of course, there is the song that started them here in the U.S....Under the Milky Way. Brilliant piece of work that cannot be praised any more than it has. In fact, this works out to be one of my LEAST favorite tracks here due to the commercial appeal! NOT that there's anything wrong with the boys getting their due, but there is SO MUCH here to fall in love with that UTMW is surrounded by that bears repeated listening over it.

Lost is probably one of the most beautiful ballads that The Church have ever recorded. Simply, breathy lyrics along with an enchanting guitar riff make this a standout track and one that gets heavy rotation with me. This song could have been the title track for the TV show "LOST" if only someone had the balls to get the rights and put The Church into the mainstream...it's just that damned good! (not that they would probably have done it anyway, but I love this song way too much to not want to hear every week on a major network :)

Antenna is a waltz that makes me sing out loud with it every time I hear it. Ecstasy with sound here...

Reptile is a rock masterpiece. A friend of mine used to play the riff when he was learning guitar. Since he was still learning, I would always say, "I know that sound from somewhere..." Once he finally got it down, I said "HEY!!!! That's REPTILE!"

He said, "I know...I love this riff...my guitar teacher says this is required reading!"

Then I played him the Church song and he was like, "That's the song???? WOW!!!!"

It was a fun little moment :)

Hotel Womb is probably the finest thing Mr. Steven Kilbey has ever written, which is just ONE reason why Starfish is such a superb outing.

His lyric, "The mother of the storm has to roam the sky...searching for her child..." will give me shivers until the day I die...

As will The Church, I am sure...

jan pieter no seas posero si tegusta solamente un cancion no es necesario q te compre el disco.

Starfish is often credited as the album that gained the Church much-needed commercial/critical success, re the single 'Under the Milky Way'. Lush as this song is, it doesn't really do justice to the simple, sophisticated pop treasure that is Starfish.

The opener, 'Destination,' rumbles into ominous life with Steve murmuring about the secret life beneath suburbia. This sets the tone; no matter how the guitars shimmer and jangle under the studio sheen, there is always a sly darkness humming under the surface (Blood Money, A New Season). Although on subsequent records the Church would leave the three minute pop song well alone, Starfish showed the world just how it should be done.

Comprai quest'Album a "scatola chiusa" nel lontano 1988 soltanto dopo aver ascoltato il primo singolo "Under the Milky Way" e ne rimasi folgorato..........ormai LP è consumato.......e devo dire che nel corso degli anni costantemente ritorna nel mio lettore CD ed ogni volta sembra una nuova riscoperta... adoro tutti i dischi dei "The Church", ma questo occupa decisamente un posto particolare nel mio cuore....decisamente da avere!!!!!

I only know the songs Reptile, Destination and Under the Milky Way, but they are all in my all time favorite list. The sound is so beautiful! I have an acoustic version of Under the Milky Way and that one is 10 times better than the normal version! The normal version has a kind of ugly fading effect and the acoustic version is so much more pure and emotional!