Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi!
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- This article is about the Enigma album. For the history of the phrase, see The King is dead. Long live the King!
| Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi! | |||||
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| Studio album by Enigma | |||||
| Released | November 25, 1996 | ||||
| Recorded | A.R.T. Studios, Ibiza | ||||
| Genre | New Age, Ambient | ||||
| Length | 45:40 | ||||
| Label | Virgin Charisma (US) |
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| Producer | Michael Cretu | ||||
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| Enigma chronology | |||||
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Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi! (French for "The King is Dead, Long Live the King!") is a 1996 album created by the music project Enigma.
Released on November 25, 1996, the album reached to the top spot in Norway's top 40 charts and third in the whole of Europe. Two singles from the album - "Beyond the Invisible" and "T.N.T. for the Brain" were also released at around the same time of its parent album. A planned third single, "The Roundabout" was scrapped at the last minute for unclear reasons, even though a remix had already been created by DJ Quicksilver. [1]
This album continued Enigma's trend, giving it a slightly more modern, futuristic sound by combining the elements of Enigma's first album, MCMXC a.D. and their second album, The Cross of Changes. Michael Cretu, producer of the project, considered Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi to be the child of the previous two albums, with the first being the father and the second being the mother, as indicated by the 19-second track, "Third of its Kind".
There are two editions of the packaging; one with standard paper artwork, and another with translucent tray and booklet artwork printed on a heavier plastic.
Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi! was nominated in the 1998 Grammy Awards for Best New Age Album and Johann Zambryski's album art design earned him a nomination for Best Recording Package. [2]
The intro track begins with a sample of mission control contacting the Discovery from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. The intro, including the famed "Enigma horn", is played in reverse for the closing track, "Odyssey of the Mind".
Contents |
[edit] Track listing
- "Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi!" (Michael Cretu) – 1:57
- "Morphing thru Time" (Cretu) – 5:47
- "Third of Its Kind" (Cretu) – 0:19
- "Beyond the Invisible" (Cretu, David Fairstein) – 5:00
- "Why! ..." (Cretu) – 4:59
- "Shadows in Silence" (Cretu) – 4:21
- "The Child in Us" (Cretu) – 5:06
- "T.N.T. for the Brain" (Cretu) – 4:26
- "Almost Full Moon" (Cretu) – 3:26
- "The Roundabout" (Cretu, Fairstein) – 3:38
- "Prism of Life" (Cretu, Fairstein) – 4:55
- "Odyssey of the Mind" (Cretu) – 1:40
[edit] Singles
- 1996 – "Beyond the Invisible"
- 1997 – "T.N.T. for the Brain"
- 1998 – "The Roundabout" (unreleased)
[edit] Personnel
- Peter Cornelius – guitar
- Michael Cretu – record producer, sound engineer, instruments
- Sandra Cretu – voices
- Louisa Stanley – voices
- Volker Sträter – illustrations
- Johann Zambryski – art direction, design
[edit] Certifications
| Country | Peak | Certification | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | ? | Platinum | 100,000 |
| France | 8 | ? | ? |
| Germany | 3 | Gold | 250,000 |
| UK | 12 | Platinum | 300,000 |
| USA | 25 | Platinum | 1,000,000 |
| Worldwide | 7,000,000 |
