Zombies Enlist Aid of Brian Wilson Collaborator Darian Sahanaja
By DJ M on March 10th, 2008
In Miscellaneous Music
FINANCIAL TIMES "The harmonies, aided by Darian Sahanaja, who helped Brian Wilson bring 'Smile' to life, sounded as pristine as could be..."
GUARDIAN UK "The Zombies' 1968 album 'Odessey and Oracle' is one of rock history's great what-ifs. It was an achievement to rival anything the summer of love produced, but recorded by a band whose moment had passed, and whose singer celebrated its release by becoming an insurance clerk. It never stood a chance. You could describe it as the 'Pet Sounds' the Beach Boys might have made had Brian Wilson hailed from Hertfordshire rather than Hawthorne, California. This impression was reinforced by the presence on stage tonight of Wilson's 'musical secretary' Darian Sahanaja, who seems to have played a similar role in bringing about a live performance of Odessey and Oracle as he did for Wilson's masterpiece. It certainly shares both 'Pet Sounds' ornate harmonies and sense of ingenuousness; as free love was blossoming, here were the Zombies singing the unrepentantly suburban Friends of Mine, cheerily listing the happy marriages of their various pals."
TIMES ONLINE "Emotions ran high as the four surviving members of the Zombies were reunited at the weekend for an anniversary waltz with the past. It is 40 years since the group from St Albans released their second album, Odessey and Oracle, a sobering thought for anyone who was around at the time but also, it seems, a curiously poignant landmark for many who were not."
THE SCOTSMAN "Throughout, the joyous group harmonies coalesced so naturally that you could hardly credit that it had taken 40 years to reach this seminal moment, which deserves to be ranked beside Brian Wilson's remarkable comeback for its impeccable artistry and uplifting power."