Zoolook

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Jarre, the son of film composer Maurice Jarre, had already cemented his reputation as a seminal electronic/new age figure with the late-1970s albums iOxygene/i and iEquinoxe/i. But 1984's iZoolook/i was a more urbane effort, fleshing out tape-looped voices with gurgling, washy synthesizers and on-the-money live players, notably Zappa/Talking Heads guitarist Adrian Belew and Miles Davis bassist Marcus Miller. Less cosmic pretense and more information-age irony, iZoolook/i, with bizarre titles like "Wooloomooloo" and "Zoolookologie" had as much to do with media-manipulators like Laurie Anderson-who also makes a cameo-as proto-ambientists like Robert Rich or Brian Eno, with whom Jarre is usually bracketed. i--James Rotondi /i

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2009-04-07 rating:
Brilliant
After listening to Ethnicolor on youtube I was a little cautious of buying this since Ethnicolor disturbed me a bit, but after a couple of listens I love all the tracks on this album, I reccomend anyone to have this album, br / br /Best Tracks: br /Zoolook br /Zoolookologie br /Blah Blah Cafe

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review by: smartrad date: 2007-06-01 rating:
phantasmagorical
I love this album, having bought the original in 1985, I still play this loud and proud. br /I love Ethinicolor, its full version is a truly overlooked track, as it was shortened on subsequent albums. br /As for the others, they are great too!

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review by: date: 2007-05-03 rating:
Oh Superman....................
You just knew that Laurie Anderson had to be on it. Though I am not a fan of her work, I find her irritating and so far up her own black hole! I don't know why Nasa has funded her at all. But don't let this put you off, this is an original and great body of work. br / br /Sometimes when I play this I feel paranoid that they are talking about me, the cowards never finish their sentences and when I stare at the source they change the subject. Is it me? br / br /Zoolook is a strange beast with all these voices. But it works big time, the tunes are fantastic. My favourite has to be track 2 Diva, love it, love it! You wouldn't think you get that powerful tune from the odd voice at the beginning of the track. I sometimes play it at work and no surprise, then, I am left well alone to enjoy the pleasures of this CD. Blah blah cafe is another favourite along with Enthicolour II. In fact they are all great! br / br /It won't be everyones cup of tea, if you are new to this electronic demi god that is Jean Michel Jarre. Take the plunge, the water is lovely.

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review by: date: 2007-04-03 rating:
Essential
Together with Oxygene and Equinoxe, this is one of the three Jean Michel Jarre albums that any serious music fan should own. br / br /Putting this album on today makes you realise just what an amazing and overlooked piece of work this was. The first thing you notice is the epic production, with an almost unbelievable dynamic range. Played loudly enough this album shakes windows and floors in some places with chest-thumping bass. br / br /The centrepiece is the sprawling Ethnicolor, lasting nearly twelve minutes. For the first seven minutes or so, the pace is almost stately, reminiscent of whalesong with a keening quality. The second section of the piece however is much more driven, with some thumping drumming, fliud, organic basslines and an ending which sounds pretty damn near to orgasmic. This, I think, is possibly the single greatest piece of music JMJ has ever (or will ever have) written. br / br /Of the rest, both Zoolook and Zoolookolgie are interestingly dancey variants, definitely influenced by working in New York, with the electro culture there growing as it was. Blah Blah Cafe is fun and bouncy, while Wooloomooloo and Ethnicolor II are short, minor pieces, verging on filler. br / br /It is also interesting to note that Blah Blah cafe, Diva (without the Laurie Anderson vocal) and much of the soundscape of Ethnicolor II appeared on Jarre's now infamous Music For Supermarkets album recorded the previous year, at about the same time as artists like Yello, Peter Gabriel and the Art Of Noise were also beginning to use the same technology. This makes this album not only musically experimental but technologically pioneering too. Perhaps that's why it performed so unusually poorly on release in the UK on release, barely scraping the Top 50. Looking back from here however, it's possible to see this work as maybe Jean Michel Jarre's greatest achievement of all.


review by: jock_munro date: 2005-04-05 rating:
A Masterpiece from the 20th Century.
I first heard Zoolook way back in March 1987. Two years after it was originally released. I was 15 years old and unsure of what to expect. It totally changed my taste in music for the rest of my life. From then on I became a dedicated fan of Jean-Michel Jarre and deciple to synthesizers and electronic music. pAs soon as you play Zoolook you notice the quality of the production. It is astounding for 1985 and still sounds fresh two decades later. Jean-Michel travelled the world recording samples of the human voice spoken in various languages. He then manipulated these voices to great effect and used them throughout the CD. They can act as instruments in their own right, as backing sequences or as atmospheric effects. pEthnicolor Part 1 is without doubt the best track on the CD. It is an epic peice of music. It begins with erie like whale song that rises and rises until it breaks into a fairlight driven choir sequence. As it progresses voices and effects fade in and out, and can invoke a mixed bag of emotions. The piece transforms from erie to orchestral, to amazingly emotional and then eventually breaks into a powerful finale thanks to simple, yet beefy, drums and prominent bass line courtesy of the fine talents of Marcus Miller. pLaurie Anderson's vocals also help to add a unique feel to Diva, the second track on the CD, which again conjures an erie atmosphere, and in some places can make you feel quite cold. Once again the finale of the track is more upbeat and Andersons vocals bring you back from a strange sense of lonliness. pThe shorter tracks Zoolook, Zoolookologie are upbeat tracks, both good in their own right, but feeling rather like cheesy Europop. However the quality of the effects and production do make up for this. Wooloomooloo is a wonderful haunting track. Even Blah Blah Cafe has appeal. Finally we come to Ethnicolor Part 2, no way near the emotional rollercoaster as Part 1, but nicely concludes a great CD. pEven if you are not a fan of electronic music this could still be a great listen, thanks to the mix of synthesizers, vocals, acoustic drums, guitars and bass. I dont think I have ever experienced such a wide range of emotions in just one track, let alone the entire CD. Despite the countless releases in the electronic music arena since 1985 this CD still is my favourite because of its innovative production, fantastic music and originality. pIts worth the money 1000 times over, purely for Ethnicolor Part 1. Definately a MUST have.

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