Unlike most DJs, the German duo of Piet Blank and Jaspa Jones actually write some of their own music.
Hence this impressive album, the duo's fourth, which consists almost entirely of original compositions.
Would that it also consisted almost entirely of original beats, but alas, most everything thumps along in predictable Euro-dance fashion, with the exception of the wonderfully funky and breakbeat-based title track.
What redeems the sameness of the beats, though, is the shifting array of fine vocalists, the lush atmospheres, and the unabashedly sweet melodies that dominate the album.
More impressively, the singers even make it possible to overlook the songs' giddily horrible lyrics ("Like a ghost that came from an old beginning/You heated up a freezing destiny," etc.).
"Mind of the Wonderful" and "Perfect Silence" are two highlight tracks, but the one that's going to move retail units is the duo's adaptation of the old Cure song "A Forest," on which Robert Smith himself contributes vocals.
This one being the centerpiece of the album, it's presented here in three separate mixes.
Nice stuff.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MonumentPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 00:46 | 1 MB | 4 MB |
| 2 | What You NeedPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 03:34 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 3 | City of AngelsPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 04:48 | 11 MB | 30 MB |
| 4 | Mind of the WonderfulPiet Blank, Adrian Broekhuyse, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold, Raz Nitzan | Blank & Jones | Play | 09:18 | 21 MB | 56 MB |
| 5 | Zero GravityPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 05:34 | 12 MB | 42 MB |
| 6 | Stars Shine BrightPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 04:42 | 10 MB | 31 MB |
| 7 | Perfect SilencePiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 06:14 | 14 MB | 44 MB |
| 8 | FlowtationPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 07:31 | 17 MB | 54 MB |
| 9 | Waiting for the LightPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 06:22 | 14 MB | 43 MB |
| 10 | Urban HymnPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 05:46 | 13 MB | 44 MB |
| 11 | That's RightPiet Blank, Jaspa Jones, Andy Kaufhold | Blank & Jones | Play | 02:26 | 5 MB | 15 MB |
| 12 | A ForestSimon Gallup, Mathieu Hartley, Robert Smith, Lol Tolhurst | Blank & Jones | Play | 06:51 | 15 MB | 51 MB |
| 13 | A ForestSimon Gallup, Mathieu Hartley, Robert Smith, Lol Tolhurst | Blank & Jones | Play | 06:51 | 15 MB | 51 MB |
| 14 | A ForestSimon Gallup, Mathieu Hartley, Robert Smith, Lol Tolhurst | Blank & Jones | Play | 06:51 | 15 MB | 51 MB |
| 77 mins | 177 MB | |||||
| 77 mins | 546 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blank & Jones | Primary Artist |
| 2 | Piet Blank | Arranger, Composer, Instrumentation, Mixing, Producer, Programming |
| 3 | Adrian Broekhuyse | Composer, Vocal Producer |
| 4 | Elles de Graaf | Vocals |
| 5 | Simon Gallup | Composer |
| 6 | Mathieu Hartley | Composer |
| 7 | Jaspa Jones | Arranger, Composer, Instrumentation, Mixing, Producer, Programming |
| 8 | Andy Kaufhold | Arranger, Composer, Instrumentation, Mixing, Producer, Programming |
| 9 | Bunny Lake | Vocal Engineer |
| 10 | Raz Nitzan | Composer, Vocal Producer |
| 11 | Brad Pressman | Executive Producer |
| 12 | Dirk Schelpmeier | Cover Photo |
| 13 | Marc Schilkowski | Artwork, Photography |
| 14 | Robert Smith | Composer, Guest Artist |
| 15 | Sandy Solomon | Mastering |
| 16 | Lol Tolhurst | Composer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |