Cocteau Twins – Treasure (1984)

Country: Scotland

Tracklist

1. Ivo 03:53
2. Lorelei 03:42
3. Beatrix 03:11
4. Persephone 04:24
5. Pandora (For Cindy) 05:31
6. Amelia 03:29
7. Aloysius 03:26
8. Cicely 03:27
9. Otterley 03:59
10. Donimo 06:11

"Treasure is to this day cited as the favorite album by many Cocteau Twins fans, 

who sometimes see it as the band's peak record.

It marks a trend in Cocteau Twins music to blur the edges more, 

and further detach the music from any sort of definite structure. 

The songs themselves rely heavily on effects, and often the sounds one hears are reminiscent of the baroque 

or more modern gothic/synthetic music, accompanied by layers of delayed or fuzzed-out guitars, 

and the occasional acoustic-style strumming rhythm (as on "Ivo" and "Cicely").
Simon Raymonde's and Robin Guthrie's lustrous style of bass-playing create a flowing underlay, working well with the much louder and more powerful drums, which sound much less synthetic on Treasure than they had previously. 

Treasure disconnects the listener from reality on many levels, 

creating distinct and non-corporeal atmospheres conducive to free-association.
Elizabeth Fraser's lyrics are the most obscured of the early releases up to the end of 1984. 

There are real words here, even whole phrases, intermixed with old Scottish words or words of unknown origin. 

Elizabeth's voice is also more delicate than ever before, and more subtle.

The album opens with the bright, warm and absorbing melodies of "Ivo", bleeds into the thumping chimes of "Lorelei",

and flows quite naturally from there to the end, where the dark, 

whispered tones of "Otterley" precede the explosive finale of "Donimo".
Treasure will most likely continue to be considered by most fans and enthusiasts as exactly what its name implies, 

as well as continue to stand as a milestone in independent music history."

Memory