black tape for a blue girl: Mesmerized by the sirens (2023 stereo mix) (LP/2CD)

Reviews

1. 

   Reviews Editor – August 27, 2025

   From Guts of Darkness
   
   If a band had to allude to sirens, it’s Black Tape for a Blue Girl… This hypnotic, seductive but slightly sinister disorder, only these strange Americans were able to evoke it because in my opinion it required a sort of almost clumsy spontaneity to give it its true value… And this album gives off something clumsy precisely, like the cadence of a rocking horse in slow motion, starting with the first track with its wobbly title with its angelic, mischievous voice, suddenly stifling a laugh before suddenly dying out on a bed of pads and acoustic guitar chords. However, it is on the second track with its half-celestial, half-marine atmospheres that all the disorder is expressed, a semi-drowning filmed up close in super 8…
   
   An ethereal joust will begin between melody and pads, as if the latter were trying to dilute the former in their arms of saline silk. There’s something of a proud ballad in ‘A teardrop left behind’, whose accents are lost in the waves three minutes from the end. From then on, the album will evolve between these two poles: atmospheric layers and strange diluted dark wave, acoustic accents and synths. At times, one wonders if the record was thought out or if it is a collection of half-improvised pieces, but the worst is that it works. This false clumsiness gives a very human charm to a magical, somewhat opaque music. To sum up, we have the impression of alternating between songs (with rhythms, structures, the always masterful singing of Oscar Herrera) and purely atmospheric experiments as Sam Rosenthal loves in a vein not so far from This Mortel Coil but with a less ‘clean’, elusive rendering, a unique asset of this particular and irresistible record, sometimes dark (‘Scream, my shallow’), sometimes luminous (‘Seireenien Lumoama’). A destabilizing opus that will make you want to tie yourself up rather than block your ears with wax… 4.5/6 -Shelleyan

2. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From Speed of Sound 8 Vol1 #9
   
   Sam Rosenthal’s Black Tape For A Blue Girl grabs you by the neck with a hand so delicate it’s hard to believe the strength contained within. Mesmerized By The Sirens works on the listener’s imagination by probing desires, fears, and sensibilities. Rosenthal plays electronics, and uses several other vocalists and musicians to assist him in fleshing out his compositions. In “A Teardrop Left Behind,” Oscar Herrera’s powerful voice fills the enormous space of the music animating Rosenthal’s poetic stream-of-consciousness lyric. The piece evolves into an Instrumental with the quiet ebb and flow of water, as intakes of breath appear and blend In the flow with gentle chords. Water is a common theme throughout, and is seen as a restorative force for the characters, and likely, for Rosenthal himself. The music is so subtle, at times more like hints of sound. “Lie Broken, Bleeding” features a strangely loose drum performance by Allan Kraut, so quiet and spatial, but carrying a scent of jazz. Some pieces have a threatening temperament, like the umbratic pump of “The Sawdust Scatter” that drives a harrowing line to the bone. The album is concluded by the mind massage of “Seireenien Lumoama,” more like an extended hypnagogic state than a result of electronics and tape. —Gary Talpas

3. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From Rock Express
   
   The ethereal, evocative and somewhat existential Sam Rosenthal and his friends spin a euphoric tapestry of melody and mood on this, their second release. Lush vocal harmonies and landscapes of synthesizers and subtly enriched acoustics flow gently from track to track like an unfolding story. Gone are the dark and sinister edges prevalent on the first release, The Rope (Rock Express #115). Instead, Rosenthal focuses in on sounds that are much more alluring.

4. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From Non-Stop Banter • #15 Mach/April/May 1988
   
   Those who are quick to categorize would throw this into the “New Age” classification and be done with it, but they would be doing it a disservice if they did. While there’s a tendency to place anything atmospheric and instrumentally-oriented into that pile, there are some things that really do belong elsewhere. The first thing that comes to mind upon hearing Mesmerized By The Sirens is that there ought to be a movie to go along with the music — it’s so moving and atmospheric that it seems as if somewhere out there lurks an appropriate visual accompaniment. There’s a strong gothic feel here, which is reinforced by echo-like choruses and opera-inclusive vocals and delicate electronic patterns in the music. It’s kind of reminiscent of the work that Popol Vuh has done for some of Werner Herzog’s movies; where the music is strong enough to stand on as own, evoking plenty of visuals in the mind, while still being effective as a part of a visual project as well. —Carol

5. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From Slitz (Sweden) #3
   
   I spread roses over the american Sam Rosenthal one year ago. And his new LP is if possible even more beautiful. New Age music with its roots in rock instead of the wallet; synth mixed with acoustic guitar, drum machine and warm passionate voices. Text similar to short novels. Mesmerized is like a best friend, it gives you both kicks and relaxation. For $10, the record is yours. —Mats Lundgren

6. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From Underground • January 1988
   
   … Once, when I was young, I got a really bad cold, well flu actually, and after partaking in multi-vits, Sanatogen tonic wine and liberal doses of Night Nurse, I drifted into a stupor while John Peel was playing some ambient partnership between Eno and Cluster. Momentarily waking, dreaming of falling down huge chasms and then floating over my school, there was a kind of affectionate safety in the sounds. The dream seemed to last forever and became indefinable from reality. Similarly, this album induces the same set of emotions, and I’m sure I stayed awake throughout. BTFABG play seedy sexual fantasies and background music for films that get explicit on Channel 4, it floats … and clears the mind. — Dave ‘I wear my loons with pride’ Henderson

7. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From The Bob #32

   Mea Culpa. Seems that Black Tape For a Blue Girl is the name of the “group” and The Rope (Bob #29) was their debut album. Hmm. Anyway, Mesmerized By The Sirens is more of the same elegantly pained stuff, an assemblage of entrancing, blackly Romantic sound paintings.

   Sam Rosenthal’s vision is bleak to be sure, packed with repeated Images of physical and emotional torture, loneliness and imprisonment. Romantic love is paralleled to the Sirens of Greek mythology. Those drawn to either end up “broken,” “scattered,” “drowned.” It does get to be a bit much and one begins to long for at least the illusion of comfort provided by the soft voice of Rosenthal’s sometime collaborator Sue-Kenny Smith, heard prominently, unfortunately, only on the first and final tracks.

   But if you can take it Mesmerized By The Sirens is not without rewards. Its bitter, hurt lyrics are soothed somewhat by the more gently pained, softly drifting music. And though Mesmerized isn’t exactly a good time it is an involving one. — Bruce McClelland

8. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From Option
   
   It’s great to hear Sam Rosenthal’s Black Tape For a Blue Girl expand and progress. This is by far the most subtle and pretty release from the Projekt label. A mix of vocals, acoustic and electric instruments, and electronic treatments works perfectly. establishing a natural balance. Sue Kenny-Smith’s otherworldly voice (reminiscent at times of Virginia Astley) complements the sad, bittersweet tone of the songs. The lyrics/words (not all lyrics on the lyric sheet are performed) are riveting. The introspective nature of this record makes it unsuitable for every occasion, but perfect for reflection. —Steve Jones

9. 

   Reviews Editor – September 25, 2024

   From All Music

   On Black Tape’s second album, Sam Rosenthal and his rotating pool of collaborators create another fine release, much more textured and atmospheric than The Rope and more in line with the future of the band’s career. While there are again a couple of songs that have a much more conventional rock air (unsurprisingly, these are the ones again featuring drummer Allan Kraut), many now embrace unconventional verse structures and eschew immediate hooks — it’s a quietly bold move that works wonders. The mix of singers (about eight all told) and instrumentation again creates a striking variety through Mesmerized, even while still maintaining an overall unity in presentation. Rosenthal’s own musical voice is his work on keyboards, soft, minimal swells, sweeping orchestrations, and more all coming to the fore, especially on such solo cuts as “Dark Skinned and Inviting” and “With a Million Tears.” As before, Oscar Herrera is the evocative voice at the center of key songs, most notably “A Teardrop Left Behind,” a majestic, obsessive portrayal of love further fleshed out by Walter Holland’s subtle acoustic guitar and Rosenthal’s own strong synth arrangements. It’s perhaps one of the band’s most self-consciously goth efforts, but of a very Romantic (with a capital “r”) bent, made all the more intriguing by its distinct two-part structure, with wordless singing matched with spoken word in the calmer conclusion. Another standout with Herrera is “Beneath the Planks,” with Rosenthal’s harpsichord-sounding keys and Richard Watson’s clarinet providing the bed for the singer’s bravura performance. The contrast between Herrera and Holland, who sings on “Lie Broken, Bleeding” is pretty clear, the latter’s somewhat strained vocals not quite fitting with the album’s overall flow. An amusing moment happens at the start with “Jamais Pars,” where singer Sue Kenny-Smith audibly fluffs a line and laughs. It’s a nice, human touch to leave in. -Ned Raggett

10. 

    Reviews Editor – July 22, 2024

    From Big Takeover #93

    When this first appeared in 1987, I was a young darkwaver teen, mesmerized by these sirens — falling between Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil with a little Dead Can Dance twist and a slight leaning toward some more ambient electronic midnight shine. But now, it’s almost a brand-new album. The mood and shadows I remember, but this is completely remixed and remastered after 36 years by main-man Sam Rosenthal. The minimalistic beauty and aching glow of these dark waves is raised up and into a more lush soundscape, but the somber melodics still shine through. The songs are still infused with those original ’80 goth rock soundscapes, sometimes carried by Oscar Herrera’s heartfelt vocals, and often times lifted by the voice of Sue-Kenny Smith. Nostalgic and new. -Marcel Feldmar