Project 1001: Heaven or Las Vegas by The Cocteau Twins
I'm seeming to be glad a lot / I'm happy again, caught, caught in time / Expose the doubt and arm yourself well / Me, I defend with sober heart
I remember the Cocteau Twins, but just their name. I can’t really picture their faces or any of their music other than a vague recollection that they were kind of new wave-ish with a splash of new age. Maybe. I don’t really have a firm grip on what they sounded like.
Then I read their entry in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die and I was quite curious to listen to Heaven or Las Vegas, which is an interesting title seemingly asserting a definitive choice between Sin City or life everlasting.
“While they never made much of a dent on the charts, the Cocteau Twins have always had a passionate and devoted following...With their impenetrable lyrics and intense privacy, the band quickly developed an aura of mystique. The Twins were largely responsible for defining the 4AD (the British record label) esthetic in the late 1980s, they have proven hugely influential over the years, and have been namechecked by artists as diverse as Prince, Madonna, and My Bloody Valentine.”1
I’m always down to explore artists’ influences because that offers some insight into their creative process and inspirations helping one better appreciate and understand said artists. After listening I understand all the descriptions like ‘ethereal’ and ‘ephemeral’. There is a certain airy-ness permeating throughout the record. I like that aspect, and I really enjoy the lovely vocals of Elizabeth Fraser. While this is not something I’d go out of my way to spin, I respect the craftsmanship. My rating:
Sounds was happy with this record:
Fortunately, with Heaven Or Las Vegas the translucent membrane that threatened to take the Cocteaus beyond our ken has been pierced. The music here is still exultant, yet a change in attitude - most notable in Fraser’s singing style - draws the band from its erstwhile, er, ethereal altitude to equally bright, though more firmly rooted surroundings nearer earth.2
The approach of the band on this album produced “an adorable, highly successful formula”3
In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Rob Morton wrote:
“For those unfamiliar with the Cocteau Twins, there is no better introduction than Heaven Or Las Vegas. This was the strongest and most cohesive set of songs the Twins had released since 1984’s Treasure.”4
Enjoy and listen without prejudice. Cheers!
Prime Playlist: 218. Heaven or Las Vegas by the Cocteau Twins
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For details about this project, read this: Project 1001 Albums
Charts
• Peak on Billboard 200 album chart: #995
• Singles on Billboard Hot 100 chart: n/a
• RIAA certification: n/a
Released on September 17, 1990. Here’s what else was happening:
Pop Culture
• Number one song: “Release Me” by Wilson Phillips6
• Number one album: Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em7
• Number one movie: Postcards From the Edge by Mike Nichols8
• Most watched TV programs: Cheers, 60 Minutes, Roseanne, A Different World, The Cosby Show, Murphy Brown, Designing Women, Murder, She Wrote, Golden Girls, Monday Night Football9
• NYT bestseller, fiction: Four Past Midnight by Stephen King10
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: Darkness Visible by William Styron11
Some other albums released that month
• Cherry Pie by Warrant
• Under the Red Sky by Bob Dylan
• Dear 23 by The Posies
• Glider by My Bloody Valentine
• Unison by Celine Dion
• Home For Christmas by Dolly Parton
• Painkiller by Judas Priest
• Mama Said Knock You Out by LL Cool J
• Romantic? by The Human League
• Room to Roam by The Waterboys
• The Wall Live in Berlin by Roger Waters
• In a Priest Driven Ambulance by Flaming Lips
• Lawn Boy by Phish
• Nomads Indians Saints by Indigo Girls
• The Razors Edge by AC/DC12
Sport
• Sep 18 Atlanta is chosen to host 1996 (centennial) Summer Olympics.
• Sep 21 Oakland A's Bob Welch becomes 1st 25 game winner in 10 years.
• Sep 22 Andre Dawson steals his 300th base & is only player other than Willie Mays to have 300 HRs, 300 steals & 2,000 hits.13
Notable Births
• Sep 8 Gerrit Cole, American MLB player (NY Yankees), born in Newport Beach, California.
• Sep 10 Chandler Massey, American actor (Days of our Lives), born in Atlanta, Georgia.
• Sep 21 Christian Serratos, American actress known for "The Walking Dead", born in Pasadena, California.14
Historical Events
• Sep 12 US, United Kingdom, France, USSR, East & West Germanys sign agreements allowing 2 Germanys to merge.
• Sep 15 Florida lottery goes over $100,000,000
• Sep 20 East and West Germany both ratify reunification.15
Notable Deaths
• Sep 4 Irene Dunne, American actress (Cimarron, Theodora Goes Wild), dies of heart failure at 91.
• Sep 6 Tom Fogerty, American rhythm guitarist (Creedence Clearwater Revival), and singer-songwriter, dies of tuberculosis at 48.
• Sep 10 Samuel Kanyon Doe, president of Liberia (1980-90), assassinated.
Morton, Rob, 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Fifth printing, ed. by Robert Dimmery p. 634.
Morton.
Ibid.