Zero 7 Album: “AnotherLateNight”

Simple Things is on of the coolest albums to come out in a while and Zero 7 certainly take you on a wonderful ride. Another Late Night is a CD of a much different type and purpose. The CD is great in it's own right because it stands firmly as a compilation and gives an insight into what inspired Zero 7.

Any idiot who thought this was a new disc by Zero 7 and bashes it accordingly because it is not, well...why read a review by someone who can't even read a CD's description before purchasing it.

This is Mellow, Classic stuff...for the refined ear.

Fans of Simple Things should not blindly drop their hard-earned cash on this CD before listening to a sample. Or better yet, read the small print on the back. This is a compilation CD with only one track by Zero 7. One track! Yet the cover leads you to believe the entire CD is Zero 7 and that we should expect the same great arrangements that we heard on Simple Things. Not so. I feel I've been had and you will too unless you're fans of Quasimoto, Roots Manuva, Slum Village, Cinematic Orchestra, Joy Zipper, Souls of Mischief, and other of bands that just roll off your tongue like Da Lata, Sylvia Striplin, Leroy Hudson, etc. Next time I'll read the fine print. Caveat emptor.

After sampling 'Simple Things', the eject button on my CD player became dusty with disuse. I was hooked, anticipating their follow-up effort and keeping my fingers and toeses crossed that they weren't a one-album-wonder. This compilation of favorites and influences dear to the band is a triumphant pastiche of ambient, downbeat, hip-hop/trip-hop tunes.

There's certainly something for everyone here (I'm on my third listening re-liking tracks I'd dismissed).

Zero 7 reach deep within and pull out a rainbow of different genres - trip-hop (eg. Souls of Mischief), jazz (eg. Leroy Hudson), Brazilian a la Gotan Project (eg. Da Lata) and tracks by Shawn Lee and Don Blackman that sound uncannily like Stevie Wonder. Zero 7 even cameo on their own collection with a standard fare instrumental sub-ambient cover of Johnny Osbourne's 'Truth and Rights'.

It's possible that this range of styles could intimidate hardcore fans of the first album. Personally, I embrace the 'Another Late Night' series and welcome broadening my own horizons - especially when Z7's taste is this good!

Simon

This a pretty good CD. I really dont know what all the riff-raff is about! People who mistook this for a Zero7 album, over a compliation don't deserve to listen to good music. AnotehrLateNight has been a compliation since as long as i remember, and the fact that other artist names are mentioned in the tracklisting on the back should reinforce that. Silly ignorance ruining a perfectly relaxing CD.

Now I also read some reviews by some closed minded individuals who like to peg all rap music as bad and hardcore. Au Contraire! Clearly very good underground vibes and meaningful rhymes have inspired Zero 7. Not hardcore by any stretch.

So, basically, if you get this album, your getting what you should expect to get. As title, descriptors, label, and tracklisting suggest... this is a mixed downbeat cd with records that inspired. Hip-hop refrences are obvious, so don't be suprised. Very light, and jazzy beats underlie the occasional mc. A bit too ecclectic in places, but all in all, a perfectly fine compilation.

This disc is a monster, not in a tree shaking, rip roaring, beastly manner, but more in an elusive, ecocative, all over your head-space style. A kaleidoscope of urban beats, european lounge, and domestic, downtempo soul, all highlighted with french subtitles. The panoramic range of possibilities starts with opening cut "Sunray's" by Yesterday's New Quintet, then picks up speed. "Christina Bonilla" - Jay Zipper, "Ghost Ship in a Storm" - Jim O'Rourke, "93 Til Infinity" - Souls of Mischief, "Pra Manha" - Da Lata, "Happiness" - Shawn Lee, "Cool Out" - Leroy Huston, and finishing with the classic "People Make the World Go Around" - Stylistics. I suppose it gets better than this, but not this year - so far. Zero 7 venture far and wide to collect this material. Showing SIMPLE THINGS was no fluke, they recomfirm their knack for stringing together what sounds great - first bar to last note. This one will sand the rough edges, and have you believing "getting lucky is just around the corner". Subtle suprises rule. Kick in the intuition, let the instincts take over. The boss of the nova. Oh speeding comet lead the way.