'Details' in an amazing album and I am eagerly hoping and anticipating a follow-up to this incredible accomplishment!

This receives my Highest recommendation!


It's all in the "Details"   September 12, 2004
E. A Solinas (MD USA)
54 out of 58 found this review helpful

"Frou Frou" apparently means "rustle of silk," a seemingly appropriate name for one of the best trip-hop bands since Portishead. Their debut album "Details" is shimmery, textured music, mixing feathery ballads with funky pop, and all sung in Imogene Heap's sweet vocals.

Catchy trip-hop forms the core of this, especially the solid, fast-paced "Breathe In," which has a slightly fantastical sound. It doesn't get much more fun than the swirling catchy "Must Be Dreaming," bouncy little pop song "Shh," or the delicately pensive "Maddening Shroud." These songs mix pop rhythms with ambient sound, and end up getting the best of both.

There's a softer, less poppy side to Frou Frou as well. "Let Go" is a delicate little song accompanied by piano and little electronic swooshes. So is "The Dumbing Down of Love," a gentle blend of electronica and piano melody, and the minimalist electronica of "Psychobabble," which is mostly Heap's breathy voice against some dark electronic sounds.

Imogene Heap returns in a big way with producer Guy Sigsworth. And this time around, Heap gets all the attention she deserves. A few of the songs aren't quite top-quality, but each one has its own sweet appeal. And most surprisingly, Frou Frou manages to do ballads and trip-hop equally well, giving a haunted air to the former and a bright one to the latter.

It's virtually impossible to blend pop, electronica and ambient music this seamlessly. But somehow Frou Frou does it. The best qualities of each musical style are all captured and blended together, usually in a blend of slow piano, shimmery synth and low-key guitar. If it doesn't make your ears tingle, then you must be deaf.

Heap's voice is a bit like pop newcomer Jem's -- it's sweet and wispy, yet surprisingly strong. And it has the smooth quality of someone who is completely in tune with the music. And she brings a lot of feeling to the wistful songs about emotional turmoil and losing love: "If love is surrender/Then whose war is it anyway?"

Funky, catchy trip-hop and delicate ballads are what Frou Frou is all about. Sweet, shimmery and catchy, this is a must-have for lovers of good pop.


A Downright Sublime Experience   January 7, 2006
Moven (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
13 out of 13 found this review helpful

This is the best female artist album I own. I treasure it more than Madonna's Ray Of Light, Natalie Imbruglia's Left Of The Middle, any of Sarah McLachlan's albums, more than any female artist album I can think of. It's easily one of my all-time favorite albums. I cannot believe it was originally released in 2000. I didn't discover this cd until shortly after hearing Let Go in the film Garden State.

It was love from the beginning. Let Go's appearance at the end of Garden State is a landmark moment in my life of media exposure. It defined a feeling I was looking for, a life-change that I needed. Let Go is one of my favorite songs ever.

I purchased Frou Frou's Details a couple months after watching Garden State. I remember how excited I was just to own an album with Let Go on it. Now I'm excited when I hear any song from Details. Let Go amazed me with its violin samples, beautiful introduction, simple keyboard melody, lullaby resemblance, vocal track, and on and on. The album is the same. Digitized bass, woodwind samples, high hats, warped vocals, beautiful ambience and amazing sound effects... this is electronica perfection. Imogene Heap's voice is simultaneously heart-breaking and hopeful. Samples of her voice slide through the air like sheets of silk slide between bodies, which likely explains why the band chose its name (see Amazon review). Breathe In... I don't know how to explain it. Most of these songs I associate with images and feelings, not concrete descriptions. Just the sound of Heap calling out "Cause I love you..." is enough to make my day. Her whispers haunt me. It's Good To Be In Love is beautiful. "I'm happy you're in love." Must Be Dreaming is an excellent track with a fast tempo that makes the song borderline techno/trance.

"Euphoria, I can't take anymore..."

Then Psychobabble scares the crap out of everyone. Bells and possessed bass lines, violins, chilling vocals and the harsh truth make this song great. Only Got One is so good it actually made me like the cliche "you've only got one life to live."

Then there's this Shh song. The glowing, reverberating bells... the free-flowing vocal harmonies... "Are we having fun yet..." I still can't believe how classic this whole album is. Shh is fantastic. Hear Me Out defies rejection and will forever typify the sentiment of the hopeless lover. When you don't care what anyone thinks about your refusal to let go of someone, this is the song to listen to. This is the song that defines being in that position. It's amazing.

Maddening Shroud is so good it's ridiculous. It's bedtime music. It's wedding music. It's movie music. I mean, I hear this song and life becomes good. It's all ok. Throw away what hurts you. Flicks is another great song. The layers of Heap's voice come together and bliss is what I feel. Song after song I tell you. Love drips from this album. The Dumbing Down Of Love elegantly closes the casket on this masterpiece: cry.

I am truly at a loss for words here. I love this album. I will remember this album for life. This is music for life.


One of the Best Albums in a Long Time   January 8, 2005
BranMan (Miami, FL)
12 out of 12 found this review helpful

This is a truly great album. I highly recommend purchasing this album for anyone who is intrigued by "Let Go" which was featured prominently in "Garden State" and on its soundtrack. After originally "sharing" this track I was interested in hearing more of Frou Frou. As a consequence, I read the other reviews and listened to the sample tracks, and then decided that I would give the album a listen. Since I received it, this album has yet to dissapoint and I cannot see how it will ever do so.

I love to listen to great music and almost all of the tracks are impressive according to any criteria I know of. I recommend buying this album and using a great set of 2-channel (stereo) speakers to drive it. I use a pair of Maggie MMGs and they make this album sound even better than my computer speakers, iPod, or Bose car system. A good set of 2-channel speakers will richly reward your ears; there are shades of texture and impressive soundstaging that were only evident on the Magnepans.

Further, there is not a bad track on the album. How often can that be said about any album?

Moreover, and more importantly than the spontaneous listening experience, the lyrics are appropriately contextualized by the audible experience and in most cases it provides an almost perfect texture (admittedly the texture is far richer when well soundstaged, but the tracks are beautiful even when powered by less discerning speakers).

"details" is a truly beautiful album by any measure I am aware of. So surrender to the beauty of the breakdown and experience the entire album. "Hello. Goodbye. And we're taking calls; now what was the question?" (Track 02-Breathe In-02:39)

If anyone knows of similar works, pls advise. Thanks for reading; hope this helps.


Pop Art of the Year!   August 13, 2002
Dogville (Sunny Island)
13 out of 14 found this review helpful

Nothing could go wrong with the perfect combination of Imogen Heap and Guy Sigsworth. Heap with her hauntingly ethereal vocals is reminiscent of Sarah McLachlan (and even Sinead O Connor) and Sigsworth's production is as impeccable as ever. Plus you can count one of the world's bigest superstar, Madonna, as a fan.

On their debut album, Frou Frou cooks up a delicious fare of pop with a touch of minimalistic electronica, thanks to Sigsworth....

The album is a gem from start to finish. Excellent tracks include Breathe In, It's Good To Be In Love, Only Got One, Hear Me Out, Ssh, and the remake of Acacia's 97 Maddening Shroud that brings a new touch to the song. The closing track, The Dumbing Down Of Love, is a gorgeously haunting ballad that's can't be ignore.

This is by far the one of the best album I have heard this year. Nice songs, nice vocals and nice production! ABSOLUTELY FAB! Too bad, USA is gonna give it a miss, but I am glad it would be released there anyway.