Furious Angels
| Furious Angels | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Rob Dougan | ||||
| Released |
Disc 1: July 2002 Disc 2: June 2003 | |||
| Recorded | 1995, 1998–2002 | |||
| Genre | Trip hop, neo-classical, ambient, electronica | |||
| Length |
Disc 1: 71:10 Disc 2: 53:43 | |||
| Label |
UK: BMG, Cheeky US: Warner Bros., Reprise | |||
| Producer | Rob Dougan | |||
| Rob Dougan chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |  [1] |
| Kludge | 7/10[2] |
| Q |  [3] |
| Uncut | [3] |
Furious Angels is the debut album by Rob Dougan, released in June 2002 in the United Kingdom and in July 2003 in the United States and Europe. It was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package.
Release
Furious Angels was originally released as a single-disc album (14 tracks for its world edition, 15 for its home UK edition) dominated by vocal tracks. It was then rereleased as a two-disc album, disc one featuring all 15 songs and disc two featuring 10 instrumental versions of the vocal songs from the first disc, as well as two music videos; there's also been a special-edition set adding a booklet of lyrics and photographs.[4] The album was written, produced and mainly financed by Rob Dougan himself, rather than a studio, with funds generally raised through the licensing of tracks from the album to film and television.
A 2003 article in The Guardian noted:
Rob Dougan is a rather odd musician. He says he's not particularly interested in music, for a start. His most famous track, Clubbed to Death, is dance music that you could never dance to. He has written for both Matrix films, but doesn't seem to think much of what he did for those either. He spent six years working on his orchestral solo album, Furious Angels, which could either be an epic work of panoramic genius or a gargantuan monument to his ego, with strings—it's hard to tell. And he has just been asked to remix some Frank Sinatra tracks, even though he thinks remixes are a waste of time.[5]
Track listing
Disc one
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Prelude" | 0:42 |
| 2. | "Furious Angels" | 5:56 |
| 3. | "Will You Follow Me?" | 3:50 |
| 4. | "Left Me for Dead" | 4:39 |
| 5. | "I'm Not Driving Anymore" | 4:34 |
| 6. | "Clubbed to Death" (Kurayamino Variation) | 7:28 |
| 7. | "There's Only Me" | 5:37 |
| 8. | "Instrumental" | 4:28 |
| 9. | "Nothing at All" | 6:32 |
| 10. | "Born Yesterday" | 5:20 |
| 11. | "Speed Me Towards Death" | 4:32 |
| 12. | "Drinking Song" | 3:58 |
| 13. | "Pause" | 0:33 |
| 14. | "One and the Same" (Coda) | 5:45 |
| 15. | "Clubbed to Death 2" (UK Bonus Track. Opens with 1:00 of silence. Song is 6:10.) | 7:10 |
Disc two (instrumental)
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Will You Follow Me?" | 4:34 |
| 2. | "Furious Angels" | 6:04 |
| 3. | "Left Me for Dead" | 4:40 |
| 4. | "I'm Not Driving Anymore" | 4:34 |
| 5. | "There's Only Me" | 5:36 |
| 6. | "Instrumental" (Incorrectly labelled as Clubbed to Death [Instrumental Version] in some UK printings.) | 4:30 |
| 7. | "Nothing at All" | 5:54 |
| 8. | "Born Yesterday" | 7:33 |
| 9. | "Speed Me Towards Death" | 4:30 |
| 10. | "One and the Same (Coda)" | 5:45 |
| 11. | "Clubbed to Death (Video)" | 3:28 |
| 12. | "Furious Angels (Video)" | 3:58 |
Influences
The classical intro to "Clubbed to Death" is taken directly from the main theme of Edward Elgar's "Enigma Variations". The classical part of "Clubbed to Death 2" (only on the UK version of the album) is built around Chopin's "Prelude No. 4 in E-minor" (from Preludes, opus 28). The piece was played in the classic film The Amazing Mr. X (1948).
Song usage
Many of the tracks from the album have been licensed for use in feature films, advertising, or on television.[6] It is most memorable for its songs being in the Matrix series and on Top Gear. The song "Furious Angels" is used by the Los Angeles Lakers to introduce the visiting teams. The instrumental version of this song also appears in the opening FMV sequence of Grand Prix 3.
Also notable is that Five UK versions of the American crime dramas Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Criminal Intent uses the Rob Dougan instrumental tracks, I'm Not Driving Anymore (Law & Order and Law & Order: SVU) and There's Only Me (Law & Order: Criminal Intent).
Charts
| Chart (2003) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Electronic Albums | 8[7] |
References
- ↑ DJ Ron Slomowicz. "Rob Dougan - Furious Angels CD Review". About.com. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
- ↑ Mike King. "KLUDGE MAGAZINE - Review - Rob Dougan: Furious Angels". Kludge. Archived from the original on April 27, 2005. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
- 1 2 "Furious Angels Reviews - Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
- ↑ Discography from Faithless/Rollo/Sister Bliss & related artists - Unofficial Discography
- ↑ Sick of dance music, Will Hodgkinson, The Guardian, August 29, 2003
- ↑ "Furious Angels repackaged album". RobDougan.com. 27 June 2003. Archived from the original on 2004-05-02.
- ↑ "Furious Angels - Rob Dougan - Awards - AllMusic.com". AllMusic. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
External links
- Japanese inspirations for Furious Angels at the Wayback Machine (archived August 20, 2003)
- Piano adaptation of Elgar's Enigma Variations in MIDI file format (104 kiB) Close to Clubbed to Death are parts 0:00–2:00 and 16:00–16:30.