23. Music Has the Right to Children

Music Has the Right to Children by Boards of Canada
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a dreamy bit of electronica. With strange, child-like voices droning out simple phrases and other spacey sonic manipulations, this album is a step into the future. "An Eagle in Your Mind" is like a spaceship time warp evoking a slow-motion ride through unknown frontiers.

"Sixtyten" definitely has a hip hop feel with heavy bass stresses along with very eerie melody transitions. It seems the duo was thinking in terms of geometry when naming some of these tracks with titles like "Triangles & Rhombuses" and "Turquoise Hexagon Sun". I can definitely hear the "turquoise" in that track. The minor tones evoke a cool, twilit evening.

"Bocuma" reminds me of PBS introduction music to a 1970s science program. "Aquarius" has a mix of childrens voices, a man, and a woman repeating the word "orange" as well as counting. I'm not really sure what to make of it.

"Happy Cycling" has a very catchy primitive beat with an eerie hint of background choral noise and an echoing xylophonic instrument (most likely a synth) accompanied with a screeching seagull. Probably the best track.

All in all, a strangely hypnotic album.



Track listing:

1. Wildlife Analysis
2. An Eagle in Your Mind
3. The Color of the Fire
4. Telephasic Workshop
5. Triangles & Rhombuses
6. Sixtyten
7. Turquoise Hexagon Sun
8. Kaini Industries
9. Bocuma
10. Roygbiv
11. Rue the Whirl
12. Aquarius
13. Olson
14. Pete Standing Alone
15. Smokes Quantity
16. Open the Light
17. One Very Important Thought
18. Happy Cycling

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Who are Boards of Canada?