Peter Adams

I Woke With Planets In My Face

Record Review by Amber Henson

It shouldn't surprise me that I didn't appreciate all that Peter Adams’ first album, The Spiral Eyes, had to offer me back in 2006.  It was the second album I reviewed for The Red Alert, a full three years back, when I had no idea what appreciating music was about (not to say that I do now, but let's hope I've grown at least a little).  But listening to it now makes me hang my head that I didn't promote it more, put in on my best of ‘06 list, make mix cd's with it.  Not that I gave it a bad review.  Far from it.  But Adams is clearly a genius, and I missed it.

Thankfully, he's given me another chance.  If I Woke With Planets in My Face hadn't come out, there's a good chance that Spiral Eyes would have lived in the shoebox where I keep reviewed albums for the next three years.  This electro-indie pop is simply astounding.  Adams takes the best of what Phillip Glass does (layering) and adds crushing lyrics about the infinity of space and his own guilt about human nature.

The first track of the new album is breathtaking.  It's beautiful and compelling, inspiring and pulsating, obsess-able and full of mystery.  Please do me a favor and just listen to it.  I’m gonna get all “Wonderful Life” on you and say that every time this song is listened to by someone new, it strengthens a bit of my soul.  Or, at least, encourages Adams to make more music.  Same thing.  And please be sure to listen with awesome headphones or great speakers.  It needs justice done.  (Actually, there’s a note on the album that mentions to listen to this cd a little louder than other albums as the sound of the individual instruments was less compressed than normal).

I would be hard pressed to call Adams a singer songwriter, since this album is full of an entire orchestra (each recorded individually and put together later), but the feel is of someone sharing their emotions, alone, under a spotlight, in the middle of a small stage.

So I’m a fool for missing Adams’ brilliance the first time.  Don’t make the same mistake I did.