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Marc Almond - Chaos and a Dancing Star (2020)

Posted By: delpotro
Marc Almond - Chaos and a Dancing Star (2020)

Marc Almond - Chaos and a Dancing Star (2020)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks+log+.cue) - 370 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 150 Mb | 01:00:24
Pop, New Wave, Pop Rock | Label: BMG Rights Management

Constantly creative, Marc Almond releases his brand new album Chaos and a Dancing Star. The album was made in collaboration with producer, songwriter and pianist Chris Braide, who also worked on The Velvet Trail. An Ivor Novello winner and a Grammy nominee, Braide’s many high profile credits include work with artists such as Sia, Lana Del Rey and Halsey. The duo started writing for the album three years ago, their initial plan for a prog rock album evolving into something leaning more towards strident pop melodies. The title informs many of the album’s themes, and impermanence is also a recurring topic. It emerges in various forms: mortality in Black Sunrise and Dust, as well as saying farewell and leaving a legacy in Cherry Tree and When The Stars Are Gone. The jaunty Slow Burn Love provides light amongst the darkness, with its hope of finding an ever-lasting love rather than one that’s “over before you blink your eyes” - a counterpoint to Marc’s common premise that love inevitably proves to be a disappointment.

AllMusic Review by Thom Jurek
In his personal lexicon, pop chameleon Marc Almond seems to place special meaning on the word "star." Chaos and a Dancing Star marks the fourth time in his career that he's employed it in an album title (alongside 1988's The Stars We Are, 1996's Fantastic Star, and 2007's Stardom Road). The thread that binds these earlier outings to one another and to Chaos and a Dancing Star is that all offer illumination to Almond's ever-evolving, expansive view of pop and all were deliberately aimed at the charts.

Almond resumes his partnership with producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Chris Braide (Sia, Lana Del Ray, Halsey). They worked together on 2015's commercially and critically successful The Velvet Trail. The pair began writing songs for this record in 2017 in Los Angeles with a view toward delivering a prog album. What emerged is different, though one can easily hear the prog influence in the tragically decadent opener "Black Sunrise," with majestic synths, processional drums, and Neal X's (nee Whitmore, ex-Sigue Sigue Sputnik) screaming guitar solo. It's also there in the shattered love story unwinding in "The Stars Are Gone" (there's that word again) and the single "Lord of Misrule," driven by Ian Anderson's flute. (He's returning the favor: Almond appeared with him at Royal Albert Hall when Anderson performed Jethro Tull's Thick as a Brick in 2013.) But the singer's take on prog is just one of several styles here. "Hollywood Forever" is an aching paean to the bright lights, twisted ambitions, and ruined lives of Tinseltown, with a hooky rock outro carried by Neal X's guitar. "Chevrolet Corvette Stingray," another L.A.-penned number, is lyrically perverse yet melodically elegant, juxtaposing early-'60s radio pop with nightmarish modern cabaret. "Slow Burn Love" is anything but; its "whoa-oh-oh-oh" intro backing chorus, phase-shifted electric guitar, and pulsing drumkit all frame Almond's croon, which is both passionate and committed. The weight of his lyrics pairs seamlessly with his forceful delivery. "Fighting a War" juxtaposes Marc Bolan-esque glam with Soft Cell's swinging, big-beat dance grooves. "Chaos," with tick-ticking hi-hat and cascading piano, weds Brill Building-styled pop, early-'80s new wave, and Saravah soul. The glorious narrative poetry in "Cherry Tree" is Bowie-esque with its sweeping melody, rolling drums, layered backing vocals, dynamic strings, and synths. While "Dreaming of the Sea" is a 21st century cabaret pop anthem, the closer "The Crow's Eyes Have Turned Blue" is quintessential dark Marc. Accompanied only by a gently reverbed acoustic piano for half the tune, Almond's protagonist is open, vulnerable, and alone. He sings as if resigned to the notion that love can only turn to ashes in this chaotic, polluted, merciless world. Strings enter and buoy him as he reveals the song to be a suicide note. But before it concludes, a pulsing synth, hypnotic drumkit, and electric guitar cut through the arrangement; the song's protagonist describes his absent beloved from memory as if he's singing from the other side of eternity. The production, sequencing, and performances on Chaos and a Dancing Star reveal Almond at his most sophisticated and ambitious, at the very top of his game; these songs are beautifully written and arranged, and they arrive as deep emanations from the singer's personal well of passion, pleasure, heartbreak, sin, and loss.
Tracklist:
1. Black Sunrise (05:44)
2. Hollywood Forever (04:50)
3. Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (03:53)
4. Dust (04:34)
5. Slow Burn Love (03:42)
6. Fighting a War (03:56)
7. Cherry Tree (04:47)
8. Chaos (03:29)
9. Dreaming of Sea (04:06)
10. When the Stars Are Gone (03:27)
11. Giallo (04:38)
12. Lord of Misrule (05:51)
13. The Crow's Eyes Have Turned Blue (07:21)

Exact Audio Copy V1.3 from 2. September 2016

EAC extraction logfile from 20. February 2020, 10:07

Marc Almond / Chaos And A Dancing Star

Used drive : PLEXTOR PX-891SAF Adapter: 1 ID: 0

Read mode : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache : Yes
Make use of C2 pointers : No

Read offset correction : 6
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No
Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes
Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations : Yes
Used interface : Native Win32 interface for Win NT & 2000
Gap handling : Appended to previous track

Used output format : User Defined Encoder
Selected bitrate : 1024 kBit/s
Quality : High
Add ID3 tag : No
Command line compressor : C:\Program Files (x86)\Exact Audio Copy\Flac\flac.exe
Additional command line options : -8 -V -T "ARTIST=%artist%" -T "TITLE=%title%" -T "ALBUM=%albumtitle%" -T "DATE=%year%" -T "TRACKNUMBER=%tracknr%" -T "GENRE=%genre%" -T "PERFORMER=%albuminterpret%" -T "COMPOSER=%composer%" %haslyrics%–tag-from-file=LYRICS="%lyricsfile%"%haslyrics% -T "ALBUMARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "DISCNUMBER=%cdnumber%" -T "TOTALDISCS=%totalcds%" -T "TOTALTRACKS=%numtracks%" -T "COMMENT=%comment%" %source% -o %dest%


TOC of the extracted CD

Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-
1 | 0:00.00 | 5:44.62 | 0 | 25861
2 | 5:44.62 | 4:50.22 | 25862 | 47633
3 | 10:35.09 | 3:53.42 | 47634 | 65150
4 | 14:28.51 | 4:34.42 | 65151 | 85742
5 | 19:03.18 | 3:42.16 | 85743 | 102408
6 | 22:45.34 | 3:56.54 | 102409 | 120162
7 | 26:42.13 | 4:47.17 | 120163 | 141704
8 | 31:29.30 | 3:29.66 | 141705 | 157445
9 | 34:59.21 | 4:06.15 | 157446 | 175910
10 | 39:05.36 | 3:27.68 | 175911 | 191503
11 | 42:33.29 | 4:38.44 | 191504 | 212397
12 | 47:11.73 | 5:51.02 | 212398 | 238724
13 | 53:03.00 | 7:21.68 | 238725 | 271867


Track 1

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\01. Marc Almond - Black Sunrise.wav

Pre-gap length 0:00:02.00

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.4 X
Track quality 100.0 %
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
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Track 2

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\02. Marc Almond - Hollywood Forever.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
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Track 3

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\03. Marc Almond - Chevrolet Corvette Stingray.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.3 X
Track quality 100.0 %
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
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Track 4

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\04. Marc Almond - Dust.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.8 X
Track quality 99.9 %
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
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Track 5

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\05. Marc Almond - Slow Burn Love.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 3A13F83A
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
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Track 6

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\06. Marc Almond - Fighting A War.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.2 X
Track quality 99.9 %
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 7

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\07. Marc Almond - Cherry Tree.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC A6EB5282
Copy CRC A6EB5282
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 8

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\08. Marc Almond - Chaos.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 160E52AF
Copy CRC 160E52AF
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 9

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\09. Marc Almond - Dreaming Of Sea.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.4 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 00C9505A
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 10

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\10. Marc Almond - When The Stars Are Gone.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.5 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 93AFA677
Copy CRC 93AFA677
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 11

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\11. Marc Almond - Giallo.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 9.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 4F121E7E
Copy CRC 4F121E7E
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 12

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\12. Marc Almond - Lord Of Misrule.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 9.7 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 811EE995
Copy CRC 811EE995
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 13

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\13. Marc Almond - The Crow's Eyes Have Turned Blue.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 9.1 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC F13B1913
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK


None of the tracks are present in the AccurateRip database

No errors occurred

End of status report

–– CUETools DB Plugin V2.1.6

[CTDB TOCID: SkAn0S_DHVb0i5sVfXdCfQLiVrE-] found
Submit result: SkAn0S_DHVb0i5sVfXdCfQLiVrE- has been confirmed
Track | CTDB Status
1 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
2 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
3 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
4 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
5 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
6 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
7 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
8 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
9 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
10 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
11 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
12 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
13 | (13/13) Accurately ripped


==== Log checksum 1744F30150668052E8366B4449F737E4EE3550F4EDC1714C7DBA64BD9425B4DF ====

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Exact Audio Copy V1.3 from 2. September 2016

EAC extraction logfile from 20. February 2020, 10:07

Marc Almond / Chaos And A Dancing Star

Used drive : PLEXTOR PX-891SAF Adapter: 1 ID: 0

Read mode : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache : Yes
Make use of C2 pointers : No

Read offset correction : 6
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No
Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes
Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations : Yes
Used interface : Native Win32 interface for Win NT & 2000
Gap handling : Appended to previous track

Used output format : User Defined Encoder
Selected bitrate : 1024 kBit/s
Quality : High
Add ID3 tag : No
Command line compressor : C:\Program Files (x86)\Exact Audio Copy\Flac\flac.exe
Additional command line options : -8 -V -T "ARTIST=%artist%" -T "TITLE=%title%" -T "ALBUM=%albumtitle%" -T "DATE=%year%" -T "TRACKNUMBER=%tracknr%" -T "GENRE=%genre%" -T "PERFORMER=%albuminterpret%" -T "COMPOSER=%composer%" %haslyrics%–tag-from-file=LYRICS="%lyricsfile%"%haslyrics% -T "ALBUMARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "DISCNUMBER=%cdnumber%" -T "TOTALDISCS=%totalcds%" -T "TOTALTRACKS=%numtracks%" -T "COMMENT=%comment%" %source% -o %dest%


TOC of the extracted CD

Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-
1 | 0:00.00 | 5:44.62 | 0 | 25861
2 | 5:44.62 | 4:50.22 | 25862 | 47633
3 | 10:35.09 | 3:53.42 | 47634 | 65150
4 | 14:28.51 | 4:34.42 | 65151 | 85742
5 | 19:03.18 | 3:42.16 | 85743 | 102408
6 | 22:45.34 | 3:56.54 | 102409 | 120162
7 | 26:42.13 | 4:47.17 | 120163 | 141704
8 | 31:29.30 | 3:29.66 | 141705 | 157445
9 | 34:59.21 | 4:06.15 | 157446 | 175910
10 | 39:05.36 | 3:27.68 | 175911 | 191503
11 | 42:33.29 | 4:38.44 | 191504 | 212397
12 | 47:11.73 | 5:51.02 | 212398 | 238724
13 | 53:03.00 | 7:21.68 | 238725 | 271867


Track 1

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\01. Marc Almond - Black Sunrise.wav

Pre-gap length 0:00:02.00

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.4 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC E12C9F55
Copy CRC E12C9F55
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 2

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\02. Marc Almond - Hollywood Forever.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 88DD50F5
Copy CRC 88DD50F5
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 3

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\03. Marc Almond - Chevrolet Corvette Stingray.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.3 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC AE98D291
Copy CRC AE98D291
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 4

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\04. Marc Almond - Dust.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.8 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 1DDBB03B
Copy CRC 1DDBB03B
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 5

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\05. Marc Almond - Slow Burn Love.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 3A13F83A
Copy CRC 3A13F83A
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 6

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\06. Marc Almond - Fighting A War.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.2 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC B6DB020B
Copy CRC B6DB020B
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 7

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\07. Marc Almond - Cherry Tree.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC A6EB5282
Copy CRC A6EB5282
Track not present in AccurateRip database
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Track 8

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\08. Marc Almond - Chaos.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 160E52AF
Copy CRC 160E52AF
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 9

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\09. Marc Almond - Dreaming Of Sea.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.4 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 00C9505A
Copy CRC 00C9505A
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 10

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\10. Marc Almond - When The Stars Are Gone.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.5 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 93AFA677
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 11

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\11. Marc Almond - Giallo.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 9.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 4F121E7E
Copy CRC 4F121E7E
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 12

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\12. Marc Almond - Lord Of Misrule.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 9.7 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 811EE995
Copy CRC 811EE995
Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK

Track 13

Filename D:\#cdr\#wav+flac\Marc Almond - Chaos And A Dancing Star\13. Marc Almond - The Crow's Eyes Have Turned Blue.wav

Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 9.1 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC F13B1913
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Track not present in AccurateRip database
Copy OK


None of the tracks are present in the AccurateRip database

No errors occurred

End of status report

–– CUETools DB Plugin V2.1.6

[CTDB TOCID: SkAn0S_DHVb0i5sVfXdCfQLiVrE-] found
Submit result: SkAn0S_DHVb0i5sVfXdCfQLiVrE- has been confirmed
Track | CTDB Status
1 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
2 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
3 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
4 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
5 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
6 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
7 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
8 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
9 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
10 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
11 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
12 | (13/13) Accurately ripped
13 | (13/13) Accurately ripped


==== Log checksum 1744F30150668052E8366B4449F737E4EE3550F4EDC1714C7DBA64BD9425B4DF ====

Thanks to the Original ripper !