71 minutes is an ambitious length particularly given the intensity of the music and the message and the extent of the experimentation, nowhere more obvious than on ‘The Mental Minstrels’ which didn’t do a lot for me I’m afraid. Best to think of ‘Nine Lives’ as a good old fashioned double LP to be listened to a bit at a time and the impact will become obvious. I personally would start with the superb and moving Jones/Pipkin instrumental ballad ‘Now I Know’ (I’m sure I’ve heard this with lyrics before!) leading through to what I consider the best track on the album ‘My God It’s Full of Stars’ via an intriguing ‘Sunshine of Your Love’ type guitar riff entitled ‘The Glodblug’. The sounds of cello, bells, wolf howling in the background, sax and guitar echo produce a haunting atmosphere, space music without the rock perhaps. ‘Loose Translation’ with its interweaving of ‘soundbytes’ is also very effective and, as always with C of H music, big questions are asked. The spoof ‘Sensible People’ is a good example of the Monty Pythonish approach to music. Overall though I would say the most obvious reference point in such eclectic and experimental music leads back to what Frank Zappa was trying to achieve with his Mothers of Invention. The album concludes with the powerful ‘Freedom Fighter’ where the band display their rock credentials. Working back songs like ‘Brain Drain’ are up there with the strongest of a line of distinguished songs by Body Full of Stars, The Rabbit’s Hat and laterally Census of Hallucinations (nine albums already!)
Music like this cannot be ignored and Census of Hallucinations has once again produced a challenging and thought provoking album to take us out of 2004. The maelstrom of ideas on ‘Nine Lives’ can be perplexing but, with repeated listening, much will be revealed.
Reviewed By Phil Jackson, Zeitgeist