Mazzy Star
So Tonight That I Might See


4.0
excellent

Review

by RobotFrank USER (27 Reviews)
November 19th, 2009 | 423 replies


Release Date: 1993 | Tracklist

Review Summary: While "So Tonight That I Might See" might not be the most exciting record to ever meet the needle's drag, the album is a fully realized attempt at exposing and revealing the darkest layers of expression and resignation.

Haunting and ethereal. These are the two words that could embody the entire spectrum of descriptors when contemplating the qualities within the sound created by Mazzy Star. So Tonight That I Might See had one lone radio hit. A minor blip on the pop music radar that came at time when everything was alternative - no matter how wide its appeal, nor its actual genre of origin. “Fade into You” was a dreamy, somber resignation of a song, with aspirations larger than the band and the moment from which it drew forth. With a quivering slide guitar, a modest chord progression and airy vocals, “Fade into You” was a once in a decade ballad, capable of branding a moment in time. A California pixie, floating on a psychedelic plane, Hope Sandival is without a doubt the strongest instrument in her band. Soft as tissue and light enough to drift for miles, her voice creates a hologram of sound that establishes itself as the focal point of every song it bestows itself upon. Formed in the late '80s, Mazzy Star was the combined effort of guitarist and songwriter, David Roback, and Sandival, the ghostly-voiced frontwoman/lyricist. In 1990, they released a debut, She Hangs Brightly, which received about as much attention as Hope's stature commands. It wasn't until unearthing the career defining hit on 1993 sophomore release, So Tonight That I Might See, that anyone would take much notice.

The immense weight of the album's lone hit single severely imbalances the record for those not prepared for (or expecting) a journey into lifeless abyss. Accessibility takes a plunge after the opening draw of “Fade Into You.” While the album as a whole is a well executed exploration into moody territory, the overall sound of the record is suited for contemplative relaxation and introspection, with individual tracks less independently sturdy than the album opener. Immediate intimacy and aural appeal is less discernible throughout the remainder of the listen. This does not, however, create for a weak offering. It only makes the fruits more esoteric.

Hope floats her other-worldly vocal across the dreamy haze of instrumentation on “Bells Ring.” Rich in seduction, her voice is a soothing breeze – a breath of melody and polished-smooth drawl; Lyrics nearly inaudible, strewn over a backdrop of alternating chords and tamborine. A bad mushroom trip manifesting as a song, “Mary of Silence” slows the album down to a near halt, with each bpm unwillingly forced into existence. The verse's lyrics expressed through a tripped-out string of incoherence, lost amidst a bed of reverb and wavering pitch; The stylistic manifestation of Roback's understated approach. Three arpeggiated chords make up the simple beauty of “Five String Senenade,” one of the albums finest moments. Simple, delicate and minimal in nature, the track could be considered runner-up for album's best. With little deviation, So Tonight That I Might See never tries to do too much, but continuously achieves its specific intentions with commendable results. “Wasted,” rooted in its distortion-riddled, electric blues riff, is the punchiest of the album's ten compositions, but is still a laid back excursion, by any conventional standard. Album closer, “So Tonight That I Might See,” introduces Native American inspired percussion and the intermittent tamborine crash, covered over with a spoken-word vocal, executed with the trademark passive enthusiasm demonstrated throughout the record.

Songs on So Tonight That I Might See bleed together, unwavering in their solumn resolve to remain completely subdued, resistant to any kind of hope or need to pick themselves up; Instead, content to wallow in limp, listless misery. Ambivalent to its self-imposed constraints, the album flows as a consistent, tangent sentence, drawn out across a dreamy, dusty landscape. Certainly not the most exciting record to ever meet the needle's drag, yet still a fully realized attempt at exposing and revealing the darkest layers of expression and resignation. The perfect soundtrack to a rainy day or indulgence in self-pity. The kind of record anyone can appreciate and take comfort in, at one time or another.



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user ratings (457)
3.9
excellent

Comments:Add a Comment 
RobotFrank
November 19th 2009


344 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Review might not read like a 4, but this album could be a 5, depending on individual interpretation. It could also be a 3.5, if this kind of thing tests your patience, which would also be understandable. I'll settle somewhere in the middle on my rating. Read, comment, vote.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eptj2EZ4xE

EasternLight
November 19th 2009


2711 Comments


i want this

Epilogue
November 19th 2009


1822 Comments


I didnt know this didnt have a review.

Good album.

jingledeath
November 20th 2009


7100 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

indeed it is, nice review too pos'd

RobotFrank
November 20th 2009


344 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Thanks, Jingle D. Happy to fill another hole in the sputnik database...

rasputin
November 20th 2009


14968 Comments


great album

CreamCrazy
September 5th 2010


733 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Great album, the calm yet dark & haunting sound really matched the mood I'm currently in. Depressing yet uplifting me at the same time, weird.

jingledeath
September 5th 2010


7100 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

creamcrazy sighting

Yotimi
September 5th 2010


7668 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Just listened to Fade Into You cuz of the new Pitchork list. Great song, might get this album

MentalityOfA
September 5th 2011


1217 Comments


Gears 3 brought me here. "To Dust" sounds pretty good.

Yotimi
September 15th 2011


7668 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Fade into You is amazing

Bloodhail
May 20th 2012


1218 Comments

Album Rating: 5.0

So is anyone else excited for the new Mazzy Star album this year?

YankeeDudel
December 19th 2012


9342 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

chill

chambered99
January 20th 2013


889 Comments


hey this rules

chambered99
March 3rd 2013


889 Comments


this is so awesome

chambered99
March 7th 2013


889 Comments


ughhh this is so good

Vakarian12
April 5th 2013


4091 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

agreed great album

Vakarian12
May 2nd 2013


4091 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

this is great, but Among my Swan>

rien333
June 20th 2013


254 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

pure dream folk

Vakarian12
June 20th 2013


4091 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

yeh, band rules



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