Released in 1984 as a single, 'Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops' features Elizabeth Fraser's ethereal vocals layered over shimmering guitars and a driving rhythm. This iconic song, found on the EP 'The Spangle Maker', showcases the Cocteau Twins' dreamy, atmospheric sound, defining a generation of alternative music.
As a #bassist, I love this line from @pitchfork’s just-published retrospective review of #CocteauTwins’ 1983 album ‘Head Over Heels’:
“Rather than locking with the beats to form a conventional rhythm section, the #bass is like a brocade stitched along the song’s hem, decorative and harmonic rather than propulsive and bolstering.”
#GreatAlbums1980s - #CocteauTwins – Treasure (1984). The dreampop with which the Twins are most aligned takes flight on this, their third album. The music on "Ivo" and "Lorelei" breathes lighter than the gothier sounds of previous LPs and EPs.
"Beatrix" has an almost Baroque feel, and "Pandora" is a blissful trip to the clouds. Occasionally the electro-stomp intensifies, as on "Persephone" and "Amelia," adding variety to Treasure's colorful textures.
#GreatAlbums1980s - #CocteauTwins – Garlands (1982). A staple of 4AD's unique stable of artists, Scotland's Cocteau Twins emerged on their debut LP (after an earlier EP) with a beguiling blend of minimalist 808 drumbeats, phase-shifted guitars, and Elizabeth Fraser's ghostly vocals.
Songs like "Blood Bitch," "Wax and Wane," and "The Hollow Men" are very much the Cocteaus in nascent form – darker and more angular than the blissful dreampop of their later work.
Great little documentary about the Cocteau Twins. i can't believe their music is this old already. I still enjoy them on the regular. #4AD#CocteauTwins
"Iceblink Luck" is a song by the Scottish band Cocteau Twins, released in 1990 as the lead single from their sixth studio album, "Heaven or Las Vegas." The track showcases the band's ethereal sound, blending Elizabeth Fraser's distinctive vocals with lush instrumentation.
#GreatAlbums1990s - #CocteauTwins - #HeavenOrLasVegas (1990). The 80s weren't quite over in 1990, but the Twins provided an apt transition as their willowy dreampop inspired the shoegaze bands that formed the 90s' first distinctive movement. Elizabeth Fraser's vocals became easier to parse, and the sugar-high hooks of "Iceblink Luck" and "Wolf in the Breast" made the disc accessible without sacrificing the enigmatic spirit of the Twins' "cherry-coloured funk."
#JuleeCruise sang the theme to "Twin Peaks". And much more: dream pop in the same space as #CocteauTwins, regular collaborator with Angelo Badalamenti, and some stage work.
Julee was as picky as #TheBlueNile, released an album every ten years, though kept collaborating with those ethereal vocals. She died in June last year, leaving a small but precious legacy of music.