Spiritualized
Complete Works, Vol.1

Spiritualized, perhaps one of the coolest names in rock history, are the brainchild of the probably troubled mind of Jason Pierce. The continuous and unrepentant ingestion of drugs and a healthy obsession with repetition have helped him to write valuable works including “Lazer guided melodies” and “Ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space.”

His music emerges from the union of two seemingly distant trends: on one hand, a sort of self-indulgent minimalism; on the other hand, a sometimes baroque taste for orchestral, soul, and gospel arrangements (Spiritualized’s latest album “Let it Come Down” reaches the peak of this latter trend).

The tracks present here refer only to the first part of the career (a vol.2 is promised to be released before the end of 2003) and in them, the search for simple, essential music often prevails. However, don't be fooled by the title: it is not a “complete” collection but rather a midway point that is in some ways pleasant and in others frustrating between a collection of hits and a collection of b-sides. In fact, it contains singles, alternative versions of already known tracks, rarities.

The result is 2 CDs of music that glide by relatively well, even if many may miss the reason to listen to three different versions of “Feel so sad” in a row and a fourth on the second CD, or the first version of 100 bars (in which a female voice counts to 100). Final advice: Only for fans or if you can find it at a good price.