Back to Third Eye Foundation. Considering that this is supposed to be an album remixing songs by other artists, I've always been amused by the fact that it so blatantly references the previous Third Eye Foundation release,
Little Lost Soul. Usually one can expect the remixer to integrate his own style into the reinterpretation, but I'm not sure if I can recall many instances where he decides to completely ape vocal lines and sample from his own songs. When listening to this album for the first time, I
KNEW I wouldn't recognize any of the songs, because none of the names of the original artists rung a bell. Much to my surprise, halfway through the first track, what did I hear? The haunting female vocal from
Little Lost Soul's "Lost", the motif that I most strongly associate with that album. Later, the fourth track rolled around, and a minute or two into it, I swore I that I could vaguely recall this song from elsewhere. It turns out that this song was just as much a remix of "Goddamnit You've Got To Be Kind", the last track from
Little Lost Soul, as it is of Remote Viewer (whoever they are). The song begins with a new, unfamiliar squeak 'n squelch rhythm underneath, and then slowly introduces the individual components that hint at what's coming. It doesn't take long before, all of a sudden, BLAM! "Yeah! I know what this is!"
If you haven't become completely disinterested in reading this by now, you are at least probably wondering what the point of all of this is. In all honesty, there really isn't one. I guess I'm just hung up on how the album seemed to toy with my expectations. If you read almost any Third Eye Foundation review, you'll probably find a description along the lines of "soundtrack to a long lost surrealist film". This music tends to conjure up images of places that you know you've never been to and events you're certain you'll never experience. I thought it was interesting that an artist so renowned for drawing upon "false" memories would incorporate references from his own music, something so real and palpable. Add to that the fact that this was supposed to be a remix album of OTHER people's work, and the snippets from previous Third Eye Foundation songs become even more surprising. Now of course, I realize all of this is probably inadvertent on the artist's part. It is just a result of my familiarity with Third Eye Foundation and my lack of exposure to the groups that were remixed. However, that doesn't prevent me from feeling fortunate that circumstance allowed for this album to end up being a much more interactive and intriguing listen than it otherwise would have been.
