I (A.R. Kane album)
studio
ArtistA.R. Kane
CoverI (A.R. Kane album).jpg
ReleasedOctober 1989
GenrePop, rock, reggae, house
LabelOne Little Indian
ProducerA.R. Kane, Ray Shulman
Prev year1988
Next year1994

i (sometimes stylized as "i") is the second album by A.R. Kane, released in 1989 on One Little Indian.[1][2] The album engaged more overtly with pop, dance and electronic styles following the group's debut Sixty Nine.[3] Like its predecessor, it was released to moderate sales figures and topped the UK independent charts.[4]

Reviews

In a mixed 1990 review for Artforum, critic Greg Tate stated that the album "seems both more rudimentary and more calculating by comparison with the organic and uncontrived otherness of 69," noting their incorporation of "various received rock, reggae, and house song-forms" and opining that "the results are spotty."[5] In 2004, Chris Ott of Pitchfork called i "a stylistically incontinent album" fragmented by "unchecked ambition," noting a "drastic shift toward clearer production and pop choruses" but concluding that only the album's final quarter would be capable of "convincing anyone A.R. Kane's genius."[6] The AllMusic review by Jason Ankeny stated that the album "now seems like a crystal ball prophesying virtually every major musical development of the 1990s" and concluded that, "largely overlooked upon its original release, i is still an underappreciated masterpiece."[7]

Personnel

  • A.R. Kane – arranger, audio production, engineer, guitar, multi instruments, producer, string arrangements, vocals
  • Gini Ball, Sally Herbert, Jeremy Metcalfe – violin
  • Benny Di Massa – drums
  • Colin Cairns – bass
  • Sue Dench, Jocelyn Pook – viola
  • John Dent – cut, cutting engineer
  • The False Harmonies – strings
  • Lincoln Fong, Gerard Johnson, Paul Kendall, Nigel Kennedy, Gail Lambourne, Mick Roasty, Sam Smith, Ken Thomas, Jeff Ward – engineer
  • Girl, Lorna – vocals
  • Bonjo Iyabinghi Noah – percussion
  • Art Kane – arranger, engineer, instrumentation, producer, string arrangements
  • Maggie Tambala – bass, vocals
  • Martin McCarrick, Audrey Riley – cello
  • Billy McGee – string arrangements
  • Ray Shulman – bass, producer
  • Chris Tombling – balloon, violin
  • Halpin Grey Vermeir – cover design, design

References

  1. ^ Colin Larkin The Encyclopedia of Popular Music article on A.R. Kane 0857125958 2011 edition p.2006
  2. ^ Buckley The Rough Guide to Rock article on A.R. Kane 2003 edition p39
  3. ^ "TrouserPress.com :: A.R.Kane". www.trouserpress.com
  4. ^ Reynolds, Simon. "ReynoldsRetro". Reynoldsretro.blogspot.com. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  5. ^ Tate, Greg. "Black to the Futurism". Artforum. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  6. ^ "i Review". Pitchfork Media. 27 April 2004. Archived 29 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ^ Ankeny, Jason. "i Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 April 2011.