Sonic Boom - Angel

Angel is an intriguing mini-album. Sonic Boom, AKA Peter Kember, was still a member of Spacemen 3 when he recorded this solo. The band didn't officially break up until 1991. Kember then went on to form Spectrum, under the name of Sonic Boom.

Certainly there are other instances we can quote where a band's member went off and did a solo album while the band was still doing full-band works. Still, one has to guess that this work was a sign of Kember's unhappiness with the overall direction of Spacemen 3, and a sign of where he would head once he was free.

This CD only has three songs on it. They are Angel, an extended mix of Angel, and a drum mix of Help Me Please. These aren't the super-short under 2 minute songs you often find on radio stations. The first Angel is almost 8 minutes long. The second one is almost 10 minutes. Help Me Please is the shortest of the three, at just under five minutes.

I love Kember's works in both Spacemen 3 and in Spectrum, so it probably goes without saying that I enjoy these songs. They are soft, gentle, droney, and soothing. Angel (both versions) has an easiness to it, with lush keyboards, that draws you in. Help Me Please has more of a snap to it, but even so I would count it as quite mellow.

Well worth listening to for any fan of the Spiritualized / Spectrum / Spacemen 3 set.

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