I sorta slept on this one for a long time for various reasons - not being released by 4AD chief among them, but also the admittedly reprehensible I Spy-esque artwork (can’t top 23 Envelope so why even try), plus the fact I’d never heard anyone ever say anything about it, good or bad. While it might actually be better (I certainly enjoy it more), it’s hard to drown out the cultish fervor surrounding Heaven Or Las Vegas. It’s some of the most straightforward pop music they ever made - Robin Guthrie’s pulled back slightly on his gratuitous reverb, and you can almost sing along to Liz’s vocals. Unlike the deliberately confounding song titles and pointlessly meandering songwriting of their mid-career records (which I love!), tracks like “Bluebeard” and “Know Who You Are At Every Age” are intuitive and down to earth. The entire side B is, in my opinion, the finest 20 minutes of music the Cocteaus ever cut to tape; starting with the utterly sublime “My Truth” through the new age excellence “Essence,” jangle pop earworm “Summerhead” and the crystalline wall of sound bliss of “Pur” - I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about listening to it! If you’re nodding your head yes, you too have probably been stalking D****gs literally for years trying to get a copy and can finally get some sleep thanks to this long-awaited official repress. Highly recommended.
- black vinyl pressing
- European import
- housed in high-gloss jacket w/ printed inner sleeve
- digital download included
- music label: Mercury 2019
reviewed by Peppermint Pig 07/2019