Beacon

Beacon is the first Silver Apples album in nearly 30 years. Eight of the tracks are new songs that former exile and Silver Apples leader Simeon had composed with recent additions Xian Hawkins and Michael Lerner. The remaining three tunes are remakes from the Silver Apples' past. A reworking of "I Have Known Love" opens the record, and its lyrics are the most striking aspect, as they take on new meaning in relation to Simeon's reappearance: "I never heard the warning voice/I never knew I had a choice/Though I never wanted to return." "You and I" is given an appropriate chaotic reading; a wall of cacophonous keyboards forms in the instrumental breaks, like the video game Stargate on tilt. Of the originals, the vocal-less "Cosmic String" is the standout, developing a Trans Am groove (albeit looser), with sounds recalling the moment the beloved Pac-Man is caught by his nemesis, Speedy. Beacon is full of the influence of '80s video games, no doubt incorporated by the twentysomething Hawkins. ~ Bart Bealmear|