Smoke & Mirrors – White Roses Painted Red
by Tysa Banks
If you ever wanted to hear Alice in Wonderland instead of watching it, White Roses Painted Red by Smoke & Mirrors (MySpace) would be the album of choice. This album accurately captures the essence of the story and I found myself imagining the story in my head as I was listening to it.
The first song, “Alice,” instantly makes you picture the most perfect image of Alice, going along casually throughout her day. It’s the soothing melodies in this song that make you think the appropriate thoughts about who this Alice really is. The second track begins with sounds from nature, such as crickets, frogs, and birds chirping. Then a cow moos and a dog begins to bark. Next, a church bell rings and begins to echo. A whippoorwill hoots and the bell grows louder and louder until it overpowers the nature itself. Finally an organ is heard then a harp and it turns into eerie twilight sounding music. I don’t mean twilight in the vampire sense but Twilight as in the Twilight Zone. The organ goes off key with a few base cello notes perhaps? Then a very loud ticking clock dominates the entire song and it ends, abruptly. The name of this song was called “The White Rabbit.” What a perfect way of describing him through music.
The next song, “Falling into the Underground,” begins pretty much the way the previous one ended…loud, off key notes, synthesizers, a faint electric guitar here and there…the song is trippy. This goes on for a couple of minutes and it eventually fades out into something quite calm and, daresay, even pleasant. Another bizarre song comes on and then the next song, “Pool of Tears” begins with loud drops of water, probably falling into another bowl full of water. A few moments of that goes on and then this amazing beat starts and you find yourself grooving to it after about five to eight seconds. You start to feel as bubbly as the song is. The song makes you close your eyes and feel at peace with everything around you. You don’t want it to end, but when it does it’s not so bad because you hear the sound of rushing water, like in a stream. Then a startling violin begins to play a low and quick tone. Enter the off key guitar. The violin keeps playing the same low, warning tones while the guitar gets higher and more off key. It seems to be leading up to something yet simply fades out and the song ends with the soothing sound of the stream of water.
“Caucus Race” violently interrupts your peaceful moment with a high pitched violin, bullfrogs croaking, a rooster cawing, and a sheep baaing. You can’t help but skip to the next song but then you’re back in the Twilight Zone. You patiently listen for half a minute, antsy to skip to another one, just as the song transforms into a beautiful and elegant song just as alluring as a caterpillar metamorphosing into a butterfly. It’s no wonder the song is called “Wonderland.” The next few songs sound like eerie, kooky, twilight zone, off key organ, and sounds of nature thrown in a blender.
The style of the songs fluctuates between being strange and creepy to sounding stunning and serene. The good news is, it paints a nearly identical picture of the story, Alice in Wonderland. I think it’s the kind of music you want to listen to when you’re trying to wind down at the end of a long and stressful day because it relaxes you. The first three times I have listened to this album, it has lulled me to sleep. It’s the strangest thing. I seem to make it halfway through then I’m out. It’s hypnotic and far from boring. It’s Tangerine Dream meets A Clockwork Orange.
I would highly recommend anyone buy this, regardless of what type of music you prefer. This album can help soothe the pain of insomnia and days full of stress. Everyone needs to wind down once in awhile, right? White Roses Painted Red can either be your sleeping aid or your daily dose of serotonin.
Random Posts:
- The Juan MacLean – Find A Way
- Sex and the City Volume 2
- First look: Nikki and Rich
- Gin – Holy Smoke Won’t Be Your Last Look At This Artist
- Kylie Minogue – Boombox
-