As I was finishing off PussyRock 2, Emilie Autumn released the amazing Opheliac EP, I decided to wait and review it in the next issue figuring it would be easy enough to review the EP and maybe even the forthcoming album. Now admittedly PussyRock 3 has been delayed but still, in less than 2 years, Emilie Autumn has managed to release --- 3 album length EPs, 2 double albums, 1 compilation album and a reissued album. There are bands who don't do that much in a ten year career. I make no apologies for reviewing them all here as I think that although EA is an amazing artist, some of her work is better than others so I thought maybe this would act as a guide to help people decide which of her releases to seek out especially as I think she's one of those artists that once you hear her stuff you invariably want to track down more of it.
(NOTE: Check under the tag Emilie Autumn for reviews of Enchant, Laced/Unlaced, A Bit O' This & That, Liar/Dead is the New Alive EP and 4 O' Clock)
OPHELIAC --- EMILIE AUTUMN
Emilie Autumn is a classically trained violinist who has worked with the likes of Billy Corgan and Courtney Love. She describes her music as "Victoriandustrial" but even that almost doesn't do her justice. She manages to weave together disparate influences like baroque chamber music and gothic industrial beats to create dazzling songs that manage to sound absolutely unique and otherworldly but still stand up as accessible pop songs. (In that sense, I would compare her to someone like Kate Bush or even Prince).
She originally released Opheliac as an EP, although the term EP doesn't quite do it justice as it still featured extras such as a personal handwritten note and a link to an Internet download/podcast. She then released Opheliac, the album, which is her masterpiece. It is one of those records that takes you into somebody's world, the good and bad, and it was stunning in its scope and excecution. Several of the songs go for a harsher, more rockier feel than those on her previous album, Enchant and she has produced some absolutely storming anthems like Misery Loves Company and Dead is the New Alive. She's managed to reinvent the violin in the same way that Rasputina have pioneered the genre of cello rock. But she always manages to balance the gothic industrial beats with a deftness of touch and there are also more brooding, contemplative numbers like The Art of Suicide and Gothic Lolita. It's an album that washes over you and is something you can truly get lost in, always returning to find a new gem --- if you overlook something, it is only because the album has so much to offer.
The second CD contains a photo gallery of live/studio shots and some video clips - a live performance from US TV and a guide to being a Victorian lady showing EA putting on her makeup and getting dressed before ending up in the bath singing Gloomy Sunday! EA has an incredible image and she's a charismatic performer. Her live performances are more akin to theatrical productions as she usually sings over a backing track with The Bloody Crumpets (a loose ensemble of models/designers/musicians) posing around her and doing everything from tea parties to en pointe ballet dancing. It's the kind of visual feast where every moment brings another taste of eye candy and she's now working on a DVD of her live performances which I'm really looking forward to. The songs on the 2nd CD showcase a more traditional/classical side alongside a couple of instrumentals and some poems set to music. The more traditional sounding songs like Marry Me are modernised with clever lyrics that highlight Emilie's quick wit. One of my personal favourites is Thank God I'm Pretty whose sarcastic black humour is allowed to shine against a sophisticated cabaret-type backing. It reminds me a bit of The Dresden Dolls and in the same way, an alternative band with a unique and theatrical edge like them have been able to break through to the mainstream so I hope Emilie's beautiful music will find a wider audience.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008
NOTE: EA has since released another version of Opheliac with more bonus features.
Showing posts with label review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label review. Show all posts
Thursday, 18 November 2010
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
ARTICLE. REVIEW. SHAMPOO --- WE ARE SHAMPOO (REISSUE)
VIVA LA MEGABABES
Shampoo were once described as the Barbie doll equivalent of the Sleaze Sisters from New York punk movie, Times Square --- a description which goes some way in summing up their appeal as a mixture of glamour and mundanity, spite and sweetness, clever manipulation and dumb naivety, and most of all, the collision between pop and punk. In a sense, Shampoo were in a tradition of bleached-blonde pop-punks like Debbie Harry or Wendy James.
Jacqui Blake and Carrie Askew were two teenage schoolfriends from the South London suburb of Plumstead. They bonded over a love of music and retreated into fandom and glamour as an escape from their mundane surroundings. They became known on the London scene for their peroxide punk babydoll kitsch look (which was later to spawn an army of imitators) and they wrote a fanzine for Manic Street Preachers called Last Exit which blended Sylvia Plath quotes with collaged images of Kylie or Bardot. They had a cameo appearance in the video for Little Baby Nothing and began to get several mentions in the press. Deadline magazine described them as a performance act looking for an outlet and made it clear that they'd designed themselves as a pop group. The girls were always quite clear that they couldn't play instruments or write music but they knew what they wanted and how to get it. In the same Deadline interview, Jacqui was quoted as saying, "If anyone's manufacturing us, it's ourselves. We knew what we wanted and set out to meet the people who could help us create it --- a raw punky glamorous band."
Bob Stanley from St. Etienne signed them to his record label, Icerink, after they sent him a mixtape featuring some of their favourite songs such as The Waitresses' I Know What Boys Like (which they went on to cover themselves). They released 2 singles --- Blisters and Bruises (co-written by Lawrence from Denim) and Bouffant Headbutt (co-written by Con Fitzpatrick who wrote all the music for their songs from then on). The singles got good reviews and Bouffant Headbutt, in particular, had more a punk sound. People forget but when Shampoo first started they were seen as more of an indie band than a mainstream pop act. In their interviews, they raved about 60s pop like Brigitte Bardot and 80s strangeness like Grace Jones or Adam Ant alongside indie bands of the time like Cornershop or the Manics. But like Blondie and Transvision Vamp before them, the music press didn't know how to treat blonde pop babes who loved short skirts as much as the Sex Pistols.
Shampoo signed to Food (a subsidary of EMI) and released 2 albums for them, this one and Shampoo or Nothing (which popularised the phrase Girl Power before the Spice Girls). They released a 3rd album via the internet before splitting up. Although they'd had only moderate success in the UK, they were one of the biggest selling acts in Japan and made more than enough money to retire on. Their later albums concentrated more of the childish pop element of their sound and increasingly their interviews seemed to appeal to a more mainstream audience as they obsessed about their love of East 17 and Take That, Barbie dolls and sweeties.
This reissue of their 1st album represents that moment where they balanced their pop and punk sides (although it is still more pop that it could have been/should have been). The girls squawk and shriek, snarl and pout over catchy pop numbers echoing both the boring mundanity and rampant egotism of teenage life. The songs are as sweet and light as candyfloss but dig a little deeper and you'll detect a sharper edge. There are no love songs on the Shampoo album --- only songs mocking those that buy into the myth of romance, laughing at the too-cool-for-school indie boy scenesters around them and singing the praises of "running wild in the city late at night" and not caring what anyone thinks. Surely lines like --- Everyone hates us/We don't care/Who needs friends anyway? --- wouldn't sound out of place being sneered by Johnny Rotten. And wasn't Dirty Old Love Song merely a simpler version of the ethos behind the Manics' Motown Junk --- "songs of love echo underclass betrayal". And is it just me or does Game Boy have a subversive double meaning?!
While it's true some of the album tracks are fillers, the reissue has added 6 bonus tracks (the B sides to the singles off this album, a couple of which were only available on CD releases) which have the petulant brattiness and kitsch sweetness that made Shampoo such a great band. Although it is a pity they didn't include their 1st two singles and the B sides from them, this album is still a great introduction to a duo described as part Lolita/part Children of the Damned. Shampoo --- a band that so perfectly embodied teenage glamour and pop culture that they could have been an Andy Warhol creation (if their essential Britishness didn't evoke more St. Trinians than Manhattan Factory).
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
SHAMPOO PHOTO FROM ID MAGAZINE
Thursday, 13 May 2010
REVIEW. CRISTINA --- SLEEP IT OFF.
Sleep It Off was Cristina's second and final album and it was produced by Don Was of Was (Not Was) who also co-wrote several of the songs. This reissue also features a couple of tracks from an earlier session with Robert Palmer as well as Cristina's contribution to the Ze Records Christmas compilation, Things Fall Apart. However, despite receiving glowing reviews from the likes of Rolling Stone and The Face, the record was a flop and Cristina retired from the music business.
This has to be one of the biggest injustices of the music business I've heard of. Sleep It Off is one of the most stunning albums I've heard in a long time --- genuinely innovative whilst seemingly deceptively simple. I know disco gets a bad press even with those who love dance music. Personally, my problem with it is that it simply doesn't reflect the eccentricity, decadence and biting wit of those immersed in the nightlife scene. But far out on the wilder shores of disco, you get artists like Klaus Nomi and Grace Jones who are every bit as challenging and experimental as anything indie or rock music could produce. And Cristina can rightly claim her place among those disco mavericks.
There is a strong sense of irony and a biting wit in her lyrics observing the bored rich socialites of New York's nightlife. Her jaded world-weary demeanour, however, is always swathed in glamour and spiced up with a dash of sass so that she harks back to traditional movie stars like Marlene Dietrich or Tallulah Bankhead. Her intelligent boredom and sophisticated despair also reminded me of Louise Brooks. The album showcases a good mixture of styles (from upbeat pop numbers like Ticket To the Tropics to laidback contemplations like Rage and Fascination) and moods (from the defiant, almost punk delivery of Don't Mutilate My Mink to the disjointed bleakness of Things Fall Apart). One of my favourite tracks is He Dines Out On Death, a stripped down acoustic ode to a gentleman who sees his lover's suicide as a social opportunity but really, there are so many gems on this album including a cover version of a Brecht and Weil song, Ballad of Immoral Earnings.
The Dresden Dolls have also cited Brecht as an influence and Cristina's stylish black humour does remind me of a disco version of Amanda Palmer crossed with the deadpan glamour of Grace Jones/Amanda Lear with the suicidal urges of Nico lurking in the background while the downright insanity of Klaus Nomi quietly laughs at us all. It's a rare talent to be able to pull together all these disparate (and sometimes contradictory) elements but Cristina managed it. The album also perfectly evokes that particular scene (the beautiful people of early 80s New York) but still feels timeless. It's an amazing album that has quickly become one of my all time favourites.
Cristina's songwriting partner and producer, Don Was said of her --- "We didn't have girls like her in Detroit. I went to dinner with her and I remember feeling intellectually dwarfed. --- Sleep It Off is an incredibly honest representation of what she was about. Twenty years later, I've learned that's what you want to do when you produce an album --- take a snapshot of somebody. I didn't fully realise it at the time but she achieved a certain artistic ideal."
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
This has to be one of the biggest injustices of the music business I've heard of. Sleep It Off is one of the most stunning albums I've heard in a long time --- genuinely innovative whilst seemingly deceptively simple. I know disco gets a bad press even with those who love dance music. Personally, my problem with it is that it simply doesn't reflect the eccentricity, decadence and biting wit of those immersed in the nightlife scene. But far out on the wilder shores of disco, you get artists like Klaus Nomi and Grace Jones who are every bit as challenging and experimental as anything indie or rock music could produce. And Cristina can rightly claim her place among those disco mavericks.
There is a strong sense of irony and a biting wit in her lyrics observing the bored rich socialites of New York's nightlife. Her jaded world-weary demeanour, however, is always swathed in glamour and spiced up with a dash of sass so that she harks back to traditional movie stars like Marlene Dietrich or Tallulah Bankhead. Her intelligent boredom and sophisticated despair also reminded me of Louise Brooks. The album showcases a good mixture of styles (from upbeat pop numbers like Ticket To the Tropics to laidback contemplations like Rage and Fascination) and moods (from the defiant, almost punk delivery of Don't Mutilate My Mink to the disjointed bleakness of Things Fall Apart). One of my favourite tracks is He Dines Out On Death, a stripped down acoustic ode to a gentleman who sees his lover's suicide as a social opportunity but really, there are so many gems on this album including a cover version of a Brecht and Weil song, Ballad of Immoral Earnings.
The Dresden Dolls have also cited Brecht as an influence and Cristina's stylish black humour does remind me of a disco version of Amanda Palmer crossed with the deadpan glamour of Grace Jones/Amanda Lear with the suicidal urges of Nico lurking in the background while the downright insanity of Klaus Nomi quietly laughs at us all. It's a rare talent to be able to pull together all these disparate (and sometimes contradictory) elements but Cristina managed it. The album also perfectly evokes that particular scene (the beautiful people of early 80s New York) but still feels timeless. It's an amazing album that has quickly become one of my all time favourites.
Cristina's songwriting partner and producer, Don Was said of her --- "We didn't have girls like her in Detroit. I went to dinner with her and I remember feeling intellectually dwarfed. --- Sleep It Off is an incredibly honest representation of what she was about. Twenty years later, I've learned that's what you want to do when you produce an album --- take a snapshot of somebody. I didn't fully realise it at the time but she achieved a certain artistic ideal."
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
Sunday, 2 May 2010
REVIEW. CRISTINA --- DOLL IN THE BOX.
Cristina Monet was a socialite who'd married the heir to the Mothercare fortune, Michael Zilkha, who'd gone on to found Ze Records in the hope of releasing records that mixed punk and disco. Although Cristina was stunningly beautiful and did some modelling for the likes of Louis Vuitton, she was no dumb bimbo (she was a prize-winning graduate from Harvard) as she was to prove with her clever lyrics. She released 2 albums and a couple of singles in the early 1980s but despite good reviews and celebrity fans such as Debbie Harry and Siouxsie Sioux, her career failed to take off. She retired from music and she and Michael divorced in 1990.
Now Ze Records have released both her albums. Each album features bonus tracks and a booklet detailing her career (each album's booklet has different photos in it). I'd only ever heard her version of "Is That All There Is?" so I'd dismissed her as a one-hit wonder albeit a brilliant one. But on the strength of a rave review in Attitude I bought both albums and I'm so glad I did.
This is a re-release of Cristina's first album, now retitled Doll in the Box. It also features bonus tracks of the singles she released at the time, Disco Clone and Is That All There Is? plus a previously unreleased cover version of Drive My Car. The album was produced by August Darnell (better known as Kid Creole of Kid Creole and the Coconuts) and he wrote most of the songs on it. They are all fairly classic disco tracks with a lush theatrical quality to them and odd hints of a tropical/Latin influence. Which would be more than enough to sound completely camp without Cristina cooing her way through the extremely funny and completely over-the-top Disco Clone in response to Kevin Kline's mock deadpan seriousness and songs like Don't Be Greedy (where Cristina tells a lover who wants an open relationship --- "Don't ask me to share you with another mate. I'm not that liberal and you're not that great.")
For the most part, it works extremely well although I'm guessing the songs sound at their best in a nightclub environment. Preferably doing the hustle with Liza and Andy one coke-fuelled night at Studio 54. I thought the light-hearted campness rather spoiled her version of Drive My Car but maybe that's just me. I'd always imagined someone like Lydia Lunch doing a cover of this and making it sound all sleazy and dark and fantastic. Funnily enough, that's exactly what Cristina managed to do on her infamous cover version of Is That All There Is? (the Leiber and Stoller song popularised by Peggy Lee). In fact, the songwriters were so appalled by the deadpan nihilism of her update that they threatened to sue and the record was withdrawn on its first day of release. Her version comes across as a Brechtian parody and was cited as one of the funniest records ever made by Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. Its rarity also made it one of the most requested songs on Radio 1 for a couple of years in the 1980s. It was this song which hinted at the greatness of Cristina's second album.
Tangents, the website that bills itself as the home of unpopular culture, has a two part article about the reissues and the author's experience of meeting Cristina recently.
Part One and Part Two
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
Now Ze Records have released both her albums. Each album features bonus tracks and a booklet detailing her career (each album's booklet has different photos in it). I'd only ever heard her version of "Is That All There Is?" so I'd dismissed her as a one-hit wonder albeit a brilliant one. But on the strength of a rave review in Attitude I bought both albums and I'm so glad I did.
This is a re-release of Cristina's first album, now retitled Doll in the Box. It also features bonus tracks of the singles she released at the time, Disco Clone and Is That All There Is? plus a previously unreleased cover version of Drive My Car. The album was produced by August Darnell (better known as Kid Creole of Kid Creole and the Coconuts) and he wrote most of the songs on it. They are all fairly classic disco tracks with a lush theatrical quality to them and odd hints of a tropical/Latin influence. Which would be more than enough to sound completely camp without Cristina cooing her way through the extremely funny and completely over-the-top Disco Clone in response to Kevin Kline's mock deadpan seriousness and songs like Don't Be Greedy (where Cristina tells a lover who wants an open relationship --- "Don't ask me to share you with another mate. I'm not that liberal and you're not that great.")
For the most part, it works extremely well although I'm guessing the songs sound at their best in a nightclub environment. Preferably doing the hustle with Liza and Andy one coke-fuelled night at Studio 54. I thought the light-hearted campness rather spoiled her version of Drive My Car but maybe that's just me. I'd always imagined someone like Lydia Lunch doing a cover of this and making it sound all sleazy and dark and fantastic. Funnily enough, that's exactly what Cristina managed to do on her infamous cover version of Is That All There Is? (the Leiber and Stoller song popularised by Peggy Lee). In fact, the songwriters were so appalled by the deadpan nihilism of her update that they threatened to sue and the record was withdrawn on its first day of release. Her version comes across as a Brechtian parody and was cited as one of the funniest records ever made by Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. Its rarity also made it one of the most requested songs on Radio 1 for a couple of years in the 1980s. It was this song which hinted at the greatness of Cristina's second album.
Tangents, the website that bills itself as the home of unpopular culture, has a two part article about the reissues and the author's experience of meeting Cristina recently.
Part One and Part Two
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
Wednesday, 28 April 2010
REVIEW. DIANA DORS --- SWINGIN' DORS
Diana Dors is one of my all-time favourite actresses. She was seen as the British answer to Hollywood blonde bombshells like Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield (in fact, her film career predated Jayne's and she began at the same time as Marilyn in 1947). She was known for her peroxide glamour and brazen sex appeal. She was widely held to be a fine actress who was under-utilised by the British film industry at the time and never really found fame in Hollywood. As she grew older and became more matronly, she turned to more character roles and roles in the UK sexploitation movies of the late 70s as well as writing several books. (She also appeared as the Fairy Godmother in the video to Adam Ant's Prince Charming and was featured on the album cover for Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and a Smiths compilation that was released after her death). Sadly she died in the early 80s or I think we would have seen her do more TV work and maybe find success in a TV soap like Barbara Windsor did.
She recorded a couple of songs in the early 1950s before recording her first and only album in 1960 supported by several nightclub appearances around the world. She did release a few more singles over the years on different record labels but this CD is a straightforward reissue of her album and doesn't contain any bonus tracks. The album features a selection of swing/big band/easy listening songs including standards like Let There Be Love (I'm not sure if some of the other songs were recorded by other artists). The music is provided by the Wally Stott Orchestra who provide a competent and classy accompaniment to Diana's smooth vocals. Wally Stott worked with the likes of Shirley Bassey and Scott Walker and went on to win Emmy Awards for composing TV scores.
Diana performs her vocals well, demonstrating a sassy confidence on the swing numbers and purring like a sultry sex kitten on the slower numbers. You can choose to see this album as kitsch or camp if you wish but I don't think it makes it any less marvellous. I think what lifts it above a standard swing album of the era are some fabulously clever lyrics and Diana's assured delivery over music that sparkles and swings in all the right places.
Sanctuary Records are also to be commended for doing an excellent job with this reissue (although as I said I wish they had included her other singles). They've kept the gatefold sleeve (with a cover shot of Diana looking suitably va-va-voomish) and lipstick red of the original vinyl release and included a booklet giving an overview of her career and featuring some gorgeous photos. Personally, I'm delighted this album has finally been reissued. Hearing how good it is makes me wish Diana had recorded more albums but at least she gave this one perfect moment of blonde pop seduction.
http://www.dianadors.co.uk/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
She recorded a couple of songs in the early 1950s before recording her first and only album in 1960 supported by several nightclub appearances around the world. She did release a few more singles over the years on different record labels but this CD is a straightforward reissue of her album and doesn't contain any bonus tracks. The album features a selection of swing/big band/easy listening songs including standards like Let There Be Love (I'm not sure if some of the other songs were recorded by other artists). The music is provided by the Wally Stott Orchestra who provide a competent and classy accompaniment to Diana's smooth vocals. Wally Stott worked with the likes of Shirley Bassey and Scott Walker and went on to win Emmy Awards for composing TV scores.
Diana performs her vocals well, demonstrating a sassy confidence on the swing numbers and purring like a sultry sex kitten on the slower numbers. You can choose to see this album as kitsch or camp if you wish but I don't think it makes it any less marvellous. I think what lifts it above a standard swing album of the era are some fabulously clever lyrics and Diana's assured delivery over music that sparkles and swings in all the right places.
Sanctuary Records are also to be commended for doing an excellent job with this reissue (although as I said I wish they had included her other singles). They've kept the gatefold sleeve (with a cover shot of Diana looking suitably va-va-voomish) and lipstick red of the original vinyl release and included a booklet giving an overview of her career and featuring some gorgeous photos. Personally, I'm delighted this album has finally been reissued. Hearing how good it is makes me wish Diana had recorded more albums but at least she gave this one perfect moment of blonde pop seduction.
http://www.dianadors.co.uk/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Tuesday, 27 April 2010
REVIEW. THEE MERRY WIDOWS --- 4 TRACK EP.
Thee Merry Widows are an all-girl psychobilly band from San Francisco. I got a copy of their CD at one of their gigs on their last UK tour, a co-headliner with The Priscillas.
The CD has 4 tracks --- Grave Robbers (From Outer Space), Cruel Mistress, The Curse and Girl Assassins --- and it's packaged as a professional CD, not just a basic demo. Psychobilly is a variation of the original rockabilly music which developed in the late 70s as pioneered by bands like The Cramps and The Misfits where bands began to merge their punk influences with a lot of B-movie horror imagery used in a kind of tongue in cheek way. Thee Merry Widows' songs have that authentic twanging guitar sound underlaid with a double bass chugging along nicely underneath with occasional harmonies to create the spine-chilling swampland sound. Their lead singer, Miss Eva Von Slut, has a strong voice that really suits this type of music.
I have to say that they are probably one of those bands that are best appreciated live as they are amazing performers with a very and striking visual image. I loved their gig in Leeds --- in particular, Miss Eva, who is indeed like a punk rock version of Mae West. But the CD acts a good introduction for those who are unable to get to the gigs or would like something to remember them by.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
The CD has 4 tracks --- Grave Robbers (From Outer Space), Cruel Mistress, The Curse and Girl Assassins --- and it's packaged as a professional CD, not just a basic demo. Psychobilly is a variation of the original rockabilly music which developed in the late 70s as pioneered by bands like The Cramps and The Misfits where bands began to merge their punk influences with a lot of B-movie horror imagery used in a kind of tongue in cheek way. Thee Merry Widows' songs have that authentic twanging guitar sound underlaid with a double bass chugging along nicely underneath with occasional harmonies to create the spine-chilling swampland sound. Their lead singer, Miss Eva Von Slut, has a strong voice that really suits this type of music.
I have to say that they are probably one of those bands that are best appreciated live as they are amazing performers with a very and striking visual image. I loved their gig in Leeds --- in particular, Miss Eva, who is indeed like a punk rock version of Mae West. But the CD acts a good introduction for those who are unable to get to the gigs or would like something to remember them by.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
Sunday, 25 April 2010
REVIEW. MARY MAGDALAN --- PITY GIRL
For all that Los Angeles has a reputation for being a bastion of mainstream conformity, it's also always had a darker side. Over the years L.A. has produced groundbreaking alternative bands like Jane's Addiction or X. Mary Magdalan is the latest band to chronicle the seedy underbelly of the city. Mary Magdalan is a female singer backed by co-writer Gzus H. and other musicians and this is their first release (being sold through their My Space page).
Mary is the daughter of 2 heroin addicts and was herself a drug addict for many years before getting clean and finding solace in music. And Pity Girl does undoubtedly reflect that experience with all its attendant anger and fucked-up sadness. I often have trouble marrying up celebrity drug addicts with the music they produce as it simply doesn't seem to be an accurate reflection of their life and feelings. However, Mary and her band have done an excellent job in capturing the intense emotional experience of drug addiction. She has an amazingly strong voice, screaming with raw emotion and raging against her situation. Sometimes her vocal delivery is so fast and accurate that it has more of a rap influence. But she is always backed by some really strong metal --- furious drumming and powerful guitar riffs that create an almost overwhelming wall of sound. They've also managed to produce some really catchy songs in the likes of Rehab and I Should Kill You.
The more I've listened to this CD the more I've come to love it as I've picked up on Mary's clever, heartfelt lyrics and the subtle variations in the playing and vocal performances. The album rages on at 100 miles an hour, screaming in your face before slowing down at the end. It is one of these songs at the end, Debbie (written about Mary's late mother) that proves to be an emotional tour de force as Mary articulates the rage and pain that highlight the true human cost of drug addiction and also showcases a more blues-influenced tinge to her raw emotional singing style. I thought it was a great song.
Mary Magdalan has already built up a worldwide fanbase through their strong internet presence and I'm sure their fans won't be disappointed by this debut CD from the singer who's already been dubbed The Angel of Metal. Admittedly like a lot of other CDs I've reviewed in this issue it probably won't appeal to everyone but I can certainly imagine them building up a devoted cult following and I'll be interested to see how they follow up an album like this.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Mary is the daughter of 2 heroin addicts and was herself a drug addict for many years before getting clean and finding solace in music. And Pity Girl does undoubtedly reflect that experience with all its attendant anger and fucked-up sadness. I often have trouble marrying up celebrity drug addicts with the music they produce as it simply doesn't seem to be an accurate reflection of their life and feelings. However, Mary and her band have done an excellent job in capturing the intense emotional experience of drug addiction. She has an amazingly strong voice, screaming with raw emotion and raging against her situation. Sometimes her vocal delivery is so fast and accurate that it has more of a rap influence. But she is always backed by some really strong metal --- furious drumming and powerful guitar riffs that create an almost overwhelming wall of sound. They've also managed to produce some really catchy songs in the likes of Rehab and I Should Kill You.
The more I've listened to this CD the more I've come to love it as I've picked up on Mary's clever, heartfelt lyrics and the subtle variations in the playing and vocal performances. The album rages on at 100 miles an hour, screaming in your face before slowing down at the end. It is one of these songs at the end, Debbie (written about Mary's late mother) that proves to be an emotional tour de force as Mary articulates the rage and pain that highlight the true human cost of drug addiction and also showcases a more blues-influenced tinge to her raw emotional singing style. I thought it was a great song.
Mary Magdalan has already built up a worldwide fanbase through their strong internet presence and I'm sure their fans won't be disappointed by this debut CD from the singer who's already been dubbed The Angel of Metal. Admittedly like a lot of other CDs I've reviewed in this issue it probably won't appeal to everyone but I can certainly imagine them building up a devoted cult following and I'll be interested to see how they follow up an album like this.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. THE NEW YORK LOOSE (NY LOOSE) --- BORN TO LOOSE
The New York Loose (or NY Loose as they became more commonly known) came out of the New York rock scene of the 90s alongside bands like D-Generation. New York seems to pride itself on producing a particular strain of rock and roll --- street smart heartbreakers, black leather clad and effortlessly cool from Velvet Underground and The Ramones to Blondie and The Strokes. NY Loose were a band that seemed to have it all --- their lead singer, Brijitte West, combined a cocksure swagger with a certain sweetness backed by a band of able musicians who'd cut their teeth with the likes of The Throbs and Stiv Bators, and they had killer songs --- they sounded like a dream band, as if Debbie Harry was fronting The Ramones or New York Dolls. They released one album, Year of the Rat (which was brilliant), had a split single with Hole off The Crow soundtrack, garnered rave reviews and many fans, moved to L.A. then split up, which was nothing more or less than a musical tragedy.
Now Brijitte has reformed NY Loose with some new musicians and released this compilation album (available exclusively from Fading Ways music store online). It's a collection of B-sides, rarities and live tracks --- only a couple of tracks appear on their debut album. There are some great songs on here that swagger and snarl like Bitch and the country/punk hybrid of Lord Won't You Send Me A Devil. There's enough variety within the songs to keep them from sounding too simplistic but they still have the effortlessly cool riffs that make great rock and roll songs. And for every straightforward party song like Monolith Kids, there's a song with a darker edge like their biggest hit, Pretty Suicide or Fade (a heartbreaking ode to a friend with anorexia). This is a great album --- I hadn't heard most of the songs on it before as they were so hard to get hold of --- it's easily the equal of Year of the Rat (which in itself I regard as one of the greatest "lost" albums of all time) and proves NY Loose/Brijitte West still have a lot more to give.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Now Brijitte has reformed NY Loose with some new musicians and released this compilation album (available exclusively from Fading Ways music store online). It's a collection of B-sides, rarities and live tracks --- only a couple of tracks appear on their debut album. There are some great songs on here that swagger and snarl like Bitch and the country/punk hybrid of Lord Won't You Send Me A Devil. There's enough variety within the songs to keep them from sounding too simplistic but they still have the effortlessly cool riffs that make great rock and roll songs. And for every straightforward party song like Monolith Kids, there's a song with a darker edge like their biggest hit, Pretty Suicide or Fade (a heartbreaking ode to a friend with anorexia). This is a great album --- I hadn't heard most of the songs on it before as they were so hard to get hold of --- it's easily the equal of Year of the Rat (which in itself I regard as one of the greatest "lost" albums of all time) and proves NY Loose/Brijitte West still have a lot more to give.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Saturday, 24 April 2010
REVIEW. YEAR OF THE WHORE --- VULGARAS.
Vulgaras are a New York based band who blend elements of disturbing performance art and burlesque with metal/Goth/blues influenced music. Their second album showcases the formidable vocal talents of lead singer, Velocity Chyaldd whose vocal range and raw emotion bring to mind performers like Diamanda Galas. Musicially, the band do tend to stick within the metal/grindcore genre presenting songs that are brutal slabs of powerful guitar riffs and ferocious drumming. Bands that fall under the "shock rock" label often tend to focus too much on the shock element and not enough on the rock front but Vulgaras manage to deliver on both fronts and come across as genuinely interested in exploring transgressive ideas and pushing boundaries --- not for some kind of cheap thrill but to reach a deeper emotional truth. Velocity (who has worked as a sex worker for a number of years in NYC) has said in interviews that she wanted to explore the darker side of life, forcing people to confront ideas of sexuality and overcome the shame society places on the genuine expression of sexuality, both male and female.
I would have liked to have had a lyric booklet with the CD especially as they're hard to make out in some of the songs due to the overpowering music or Velocity's vocal style. I wouldn't have it any other way though as I wouldn't want them to water down the the viscereal impact of such amazing music. The last 2 songs (Hooker Barbie and an unnamed bonus track) do offer a change of pace as they go in for disturbing spoken word pieces set to slightly less heavy music that's reminiscent of some of Lydia Lunch's work. Since this album was recorded, Vulgaras have had another change of personnel and are currently working on a 3rd album.
Vulgaras strike me as an intense and intelligent band who are driven to provide an emotionally powerful experience, both in their recorded music and performances, to inspire people with a truth that can be as frightening as it is beautiful, as poetic as it is scary.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
I would have liked to have had a lyric booklet with the CD especially as they're hard to make out in some of the songs due to the overpowering music or Velocity's vocal style. I wouldn't have it any other way though as I wouldn't want them to water down the the viscereal impact of such amazing music. The last 2 songs (Hooker Barbie and an unnamed bonus track) do offer a change of pace as they go in for disturbing spoken word pieces set to slightly less heavy music that's reminiscent of some of Lydia Lunch's work. Since this album was recorded, Vulgaras have had another change of personnel and are currently working on a 3rd album.
Vulgaras strike me as an intense and intelligent band who are driven to provide an emotionally powerful experience, both in their recorded music and performances, to inspire people with a truth that can be as frightening as it is beautiful, as poetic as it is scary.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Friday, 23 April 2010
REVIEW. MOTHBURNER --- THE LOUD SONGS/THE QUIET SONGS
Shirin from Mothburner kindly sent me 2 demo CDs, divided into loud and quiet songs. She and her partner Finn have been working as Mothburner for about a decade now.
I found it quite difficult to categorise their music but that could be becase I don't listen to enough bands that sound like Mothburner. If indeed there are any other bands that sound like Mothburner because I do think they have an uncommon sound. Shirin has an amazingly beautiful voice, it is very pure and high with a vibrato effect (which I liked but might not be to everyone's taste) which does remind me of choral or classical music. But then Finn's musical backing echoes the lighter end of Goth like All About Eve or The Cocteau Twins and the occasionally strong drumbeats remind me a bit of Celtic folk like Clannad. The music acts as the perfect setting for Shirin's voice, allowing it to take centre stage without over-dominating the songs. The loud songs weren't that much different to the quiet songs in terms of tempo, they just had slightly heavier beats and more prominent drums which worked well on songs like Polly The One or My Little Girl Come HOme and shows some variety in their styles.
Some music can only come from a certain place (I would say Cristina's album reviewed elsewhere in this issue was very much a product of 1980s New York) and so Mothburner perfectly evoke the isolated beauty of their surrounding Cornish coastline. This mood of fragile perfection is further epitomised by an absolutely stunning cover version of Acker Bilk's Stranger on the Shore (an old jazz standard).
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
NOTE: Mothburner have now split up. They do still have a My Space but it hasn't been updated in ages.
I found it quite difficult to categorise their music but that could be becase I don't listen to enough bands that sound like Mothburner. If indeed there are any other bands that sound like Mothburner because I do think they have an uncommon sound. Shirin has an amazingly beautiful voice, it is very pure and high with a vibrato effect (which I liked but might not be to everyone's taste) which does remind me of choral or classical music. But then Finn's musical backing echoes the lighter end of Goth like All About Eve or The Cocteau Twins and the occasionally strong drumbeats remind me a bit of Celtic folk like Clannad. The music acts as the perfect setting for Shirin's voice, allowing it to take centre stage without over-dominating the songs. The loud songs weren't that much different to the quiet songs in terms of tempo, they just had slightly heavier beats and more prominent drums which worked well on songs like Polly The One or My Little Girl Come HOme and shows some variety in their styles.
Some music can only come from a certain place (I would say Cristina's album reviewed elsewhere in this issue was very much a product of 1980s New York) and so Mothburner perfectly evoke the isolated beauty of their surrounding Cornish coastline. This mood of fragile perfection is further epitomised by an absolutely stunning cover version of Acker Bilk's Stranger on the Shore (an old jazz standard).
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
NOTE: Mothburner have now split up. They do still have a My Space but it hasn't been updated in ages.
Thursday, 22 April 2010
REVIEW. GENE SERENE --- I CAN DO ANYTHING/SOUND OF THE CROWD EP
I was involved in organising Ladyfest Newcastle which took place in September 2006 and one of things which gave me the most satisfaction was discovering new female performers and giving them a platform. I can't remember when I first heard of Gene Serene but I do know that as soon as I saw/heard her, I had to have her for our festival. The self-proclaimed Dada Goddess was inspired by the resurgence in electro music and now splits her time between the art scenes and nightlife of London and Berlin.
Although she has collaborated with other artists including Human League and S'Express, I believe this EP is her first solo release. It's a breathtaking slice of confident, catch electronic pop/dance music influenced by the driving beats of 80s music like early Human League. (Indeed, it includes a cover version of Sound of the Crowd). Songs like I Can Do Anything use simple lyrics to reinforce the repetitive beats that would make these songs great dancefloor fillers whilst other songs like The Hours go for a change in tempo to highlight more emotional lyrics. I think my favourite song has to be Black Rose which starts deceptively gently before coming to a bittersweet crescendo that is incredibly infectious.
When I saw Gene Serene perform live, she was solo onstage basically talking/singing into a mike over a backing track with mainly abstract/random images projected behind her. She still had the charisma and glamour to engage with the crowd in a way that reminded me of Grace Jones or Siouxsie Sioux. In a way it was a shame we put her on during the day as I could imagine she'd go down really well with a trendy club crowd and feed off their energy. If this CD has a drawback, it's that it doesn't quite do justice to the impact of her live performances or sheer presence but it still acts as a promise/threat of dark beauties to come. Gene (aka Louise De Fraine) now has her own record label, Dada Discs and is releasing more of her music on iTunes.
(One of my favourite songs of hers, 7 Dials is only up on her My Space not on this EP which is such a shame as it uses the riff from Manic Monday to create an insanely catchy electro-pop song).
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Although she has collaborated with other artists including Human League and S'Express, I believe this EP is her first solo release. It's a breathtaking slice of confident, catch electronic pop/dance music influenced by the driving beats of 80s music like early Human League. (Indeed, it includes a cover version of Sound of the Crowd). Songs like I Can Do Anything use simple lyrics to reinforce the repetitive beats that would make these songs great dancefloor fillers whilst other songs like The Hours go for a change in tempo to highlight more emotional lyrics. I think my favourite song has to be Black Rose which starts deceptively gently before coming to a bittersweet crescendo that is incredibly infectious.
When I saw Gene Serene perform live, she was solo onstage basically talking/singing into a mike over a backing track with mainly abstract/random images projected behind her. She still had the charisma and glamour to engage with the crowd in a way that reminded me of Grace Jones or Siouxsie Sioux. In a way it was a shame we put her on during the day as I could imagine she'd go down really well with a trendy club crowd and feed off their energy. If this CD has a drawback, it's that it doesn't quite do justice to the impact of her live performances or sheer presence but it still acts as a promise/threat of dark beauties to come. Gene (aka Louise De Fraine) now has her own record label, Dada Discs and is releasing more of her music on iTunes.
(One of my favourite songs of hers, 7 Dials is only up on her My Space not on this EP which is such a shame as it uses the riff from Manic Monday to create an insanely catchy electro-pop song).
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. EMILIE AUTUMN --- LIAR/DEAD IS THE NEW ALIVE EP
I've never been particularly keen on remix albums/E.P.s. I don't think I've ever heard a remix that has genuinely improved on a song --- yes, some of them are interesting but to me, it just seems like cleverness for its own sake. Emilie Autumn released this album length EP as a follow-up to Opheliac and I think it proves my argument as well as verging on overkill. You get the album versions of Liar and Dead is the New Alive off the Opheliac album (both good songs and live favourites) --- you then get 4 remixes of Liar and 2 of Dead is the New Alive done by various stars of the Gothic music scene such as Angelspit and Dope Stars Inc. that involve varying degrees of shouting and clattering about and really only succeed in killing off any residual affection I ever had for these particular tracks.
However if you're an EA fan it's still worth looking out for this CD as it includes 4 new tracks, the best of which is Mad Girl which has more of a classical/folk influence. Best Safety Lies In Fear starts off promisingly but peters out without making the impact it could have done. There's also an instrumental track off Laced/Unlaced and a brilliant cover version of Thank God I'm Pretty by Spiritual Front where the sardonic male vocals and world-weary piano accompaniment bring out the sarcastic black humour in the lyrics and really add a new dimension to the song.
I think it would have been better to have had remixes of a wider variety of tracks or release a shorter CD at a lower price. I think Trisol really missed an opportunity to create an EP that would have acted as a taster for the album drawing in new fans whilst still offering something extra for old fans. (EA gives such visually stunning theatrical live performances that some live concert clips would have been a definite advantage).
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
However if you're an EA fan it's still worth looking out for this CD as it includes 4 new tracks, the best of which is Mad Girl which has more of a classical/folk influence. Best Safety Lies In Fear starts off promisingly but peters out without making the impact it could have done. There's also an instrumental track off Laced/Unlaced and a brilliant cover version of Thank God I'm Pretty by Spiritual Front where the sardonic male vocals and world-weary piano accompaniment bring out the sarcastic black humour in the lyrics and really add a new dimension to the song.
I think it would have been better to have had remixes of a wider variety of tracks or release a shorter CD at a lower price. I think Trisol really missed an opportunity to create an EP that would have acted as a taster for the album drawing in new fans whilst still offering something extra for old fans. (EA gives such visually stunning theatrical live performances that some live concert clips would have been a definite advantage).
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. ROSIN COVEN --- MENAGERIE
Rosin Coven are a San Francisco based collective of male and female artists/performers who describe their band as "the world's premiere pagan lounge ensemble." And indeed, there is something alchemical at work with their beautiful music. There is a strong jazz influence which is blended with classical, cabaret, and world music influences to create something that is at once stunning and strange. It produces a pleasant but vaguely unsettling effect like a strange dream, that you stumble into a private club in a foreign city to be confronted by a troupe of gypsies and witches playing medieval cabaret music. The strangeness is all the more effective for being so subtle. The vocals swoop and soar in an exquisitely stunning fashion like a beautiful bird of paradise, all the while complimented by the able musicianship (in fact, several of the band members also play in orchestras). Although they have more a jazz sound than the likes of Rasputina or The Dresden Dolls, they do share their love of theatrical performances and colourful stage costumes and a blending of old and new traditions. As well as playing at the post-apocalyptic festival, The Burning Man in Nevada, Rosin Coven also founded The Edwardian Ball --- a grand costume ball/festival held yearly in San Francisco in honour of eccentric illustrator Edward Gorey and now in its eighth year. You can be sure if this fabulous band did have a menagerie you would probably find all manner of weird and wonderful beasts in there creating an eclectic collage of noise with their calls, cries, growls and howls. The end result is a bewitching and beguiling album that could be the lost soundtrack to some bewildering fairytale movie.
http://www.rosincoven.com/
http://www.edwardianball.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
http://www.rosincoven.com/
http://www.edwardianball.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Wednesday, 21 April 2010
REVIEW. EMILIE AUTUMN --- 4 O' CLOCK
I think this latest release from Emilie Autumn acts as a much better taster than the Liar EP. It acts as an introduction to her forthcoming book/project, The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls and continues to explore the theme of women and madness that she expressed so successfully on Opheliac. The title track and it's B side, My Fairweather Friend, are haunting and delicate but still maintaining their bittersweet impact. The tracks from Opheliac, Gothic Lolita and 2 remixes of Swallow, seem to stand out more on this EP than the original album and I'm glad they've finally been given the chance to shine as it's made me appreciate how beautiful and unique they are. Swallow, in particular, deserves to be a huge hit and Gothic Lolita has an exquisitely dark beauty that more than lives up to its title. The EP also includes the more industrial influenced instrumental, Organ Grinder from the Saw 3 soundtrack before ending with several excerpts from The Asylum (some of them are spoken word, one is another song). They are dark and brooding, creating a beguiling but disturbing atmosphere balancing delicate poetry/music with nightmarish imagery to create an evocative tribute to the theme of female madness.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. EMILIE AUTUMN --- A BIT O' THIS & THAT.
At the same time as the Enchant re-release, Trisol also released this compilation album of rarities/previously unreleased tracks (some of which were live). It was also a limited edition and included a small hardcover book that featured reproductions of EA's handwritten notes. It featured a couple of remixes of tracks from Enchant plsu early songs that are no longer available and several instrumentals and an assortment of cover versions. The cover versions include tracks by The Smiths and The Beatles as well as songs from Cabaret and Upstairs, Downstairs --- sadly, her version of Always Look on the Bright Side of Life (from the Monty Python film Life of Brian) is an instrumental only track. It ends with Miss Lucy Had Some Leeches, a strange and unnerving original composition about the treatment of women who were considered mad in Victorian times. (There were actually a couple of bonus hidden tracks after that but I won't spoil the surprise by saying what they were). Although it is an eclectic selection of songs, personally I would have liked a couple of songs in the Gothic/Industrial style of Opheliac to truly demonstrate the range EA is capable of (or some video clips of her recent live performances). The songs on the album showcase a more melodic style influenced more by cabaret/theatre and classical music that highlights EA's delicious sense of humour and talent for the extraordinary. As it is, this album is like a cabinet of curiousities containing many oddities of varying degrees of beauty and strangeness.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. EMILIE AUTUMN --- LACED/UNLACED.
Trisol also released a double album of EA's violin solos called Laced/Unlaced (it was released in 2 slightly different formats --- one as a standard CD and the other including a small hardcover book that featured some gorgeous photos of Emilie and extracts of violin scores). The Laced CD features Emilie playing classical compositions by the likes of Bach as well as her original songs that are more traditional in feel. It's actually a re-release of her debut classical album, On A Day (now out of print) but does include an extra 40 minutes of live performances from her classical period. The Unlaced CD features more original compositions by EA that showcase more of her Gothic/Industrial influences. To be honest, although I'm not that much of a fan of instrumentals or classical music I preferred the Laced disc to the Unlaced one. On Unlaced she goes in for the frantic shredding and intense playing usually associated with guitar players like Yngwie Malmsteen. It's interesting to hear that technique used on violin music. It would probably sound really good as a solo as part of a song on an album/as a live performance but when it's sustained across a whole album, it starts to feel a bit repetitive and strained.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. EMILIE AUTUMN --- ENCHANT (REISSUE)
Emilie Autumn's new record label Trisol also re-released her 2003 album Enchant (which I originally reviewed in PussyRock 2) as a limited edition with different packaging. It's undoubtedly a beautiful album, a stunning blend of Celtic/folk/classical influences that was somewhat softer and more melodic than the Victoriandustrial sound she pioneered on Opheliac. It was evocatively christened fairytale rock and the album really deserved a wider audience. However, the reissue is somewhat flawed. It still has the same track listing as the original yet was being sold for a far higher price than the normal price for single CD (around £20 in the UK). The different packaging basically amounts to a small hardcover book featuring a facsimile of her original notes/lyrics for Enchant (sadly mostly illegible) and a fairytale she wrote herself. Personally I think better value for money would have been a fold-out poster or bonus tracks/video footage on the CD.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
REVIEW. EMILIE AUTUMN --- ENCHANT (ORIGINAL VERSION)
Emilie Autumn is a classically trained violinist who has worked with Courtney Love and Billy Corgan among others. As well as her music career, she also markets her own line of beauty products and has her own fashion label, the WillowTech House selling clothes and accessories like fairy wings. Indeed her personal style could best be described as "punk fairy" as she combines bright pink hair with corsets and big boots to produce a visually stunning image. Her music which she describes as fantasy rock is every bit as stunning too.
This album showcases a variety of styles that include a wide range of influences from classical chamber music to Celtic folk to danceable pop and indie rock. It's a tribute to Emilie's talent that she manages to blend all these diverse elements together to create a dazzling tapestry of beautiful songs. The fairytale/fantasy element works well without ever seeming whimsical or silly. I know Emilie has said on her Live Journal that she disliked her music being described as ethereal and whilst I respect her wishes, I think it's an apt adjective. I think ethereal in the original sense of fairies as queens and warriors, something so otherworldly as to be breathtaking. Emilie's music is tremendously catchy and rewards repeated listening with finding new parts to love. In some ways, she reminds me of Kate Bush (or even Tori Amos), female artists who were able to produce perfect pop songs whilst remaining innovative and combining a wide range of influences.
Unfortunately classical music does still tend to get a bad press but Emilie has managed to use these influences without compromising them or sounding anything less than modern. This mix of modern and timeless fairytale is echoed with the CD itself. You can download the entire album in full from Emilie's website but then artwork is a visual puzzle to be solved to win a prize of fairy goodies. I really recommend you check out Emilie. I think she has a great future ahead of her. Enchant came out in 2003 on her own label, Traitor Records and Emilie is currently working on the follow up, Opheliac, which I can't wait to hear. Apparently it will be somewhat darker in them with songs like Gothic Lolita and The Art of Suicide.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
NOTE: This review refers to the original edition of Enchant. It has since been reissued.
This album showcases a variety of styles that include a wide range of influences from classical chamber music to Celtic folk to danceable pop and indie rock. It's a tribute to Emilie's talent that she manages to blend all these diverse elements together to create a dazzling tapestry of beautiful songs. The fairytale/fantasy element works well without ever seeming whimsical or silly. I know Emilie has said on her Live Journal that she disliked her music being described as ethereal and whilst I respect her wishes, I think it's an apt adjective. I think ethereal in the original sense of fairies as queens and warriors, something so otherworldly as to be breathtaking. Emilie's music is tremendously catchy and rewards repeated listening with finding new parts to love. In some ways, she reminds me of Kate Bush (or even Tori Amos), female artists who were able to produce perfect pop songs whilst remaining innovative and combining a wide range of influences.
Unfortunately classical music does still tend to get a bad press but Emilie has managed to use these influences without compromising them or sounding anything less than modern. This mix of modern and timeless fairytale is echoed with the CD itself. You can download the entire album in full from Emilie's website but then artwork is a visual puzzle to be solved to win a prize of fairy goodies. I really recommend you check out Emilie. I think she has a great future ahead of her. Enchant came out in 2003 on her own label, Traitor Records and Emilie is currently working on the follow up, Opheliac, which I can't wait to hear. Apparently it will be somewhat darker in them with songs like Gothic Lolita and The Art of Suicide.
http://www.emilieautumn.com/
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
NOTE: This review refers to the original edition of Enchant. It has since been reissued.
REVIEW. HAZARD COUNTY GIRLS --- DIVINE ARMOR
Hazard County Girls are a trio from New Orleans who create heavy, doom-laden rock anthems with a melodic edge. Their music features sludge-y deep guitars and a driving drum beat that echoes stoner rock and bands like Black Sabbath. They manage to keep it from being too overwhelming and one-dimensional by blending tunes and gloom to create music as beautiful and powerful as a stormy ocean. Lead singer, Christy Kane, also has a softer, more beguiling voice than you normally get with this type of music and it makes her cryptic but emotional lyrics all the more evocative and beguiling. It's a testament to their musical skills that 3 of them can create such strong music that surrounds you and cocoons you and spirits you away to a strange, dark but oddly safe place. They bring gothic influences in, in a unexpected way with touches of traditional folk/blues rather like Rasputina or Nick Cave (only a lot heavier and more towards traditional guitar rock) --- their cover version of Knoxville Boy (the traditional ballad, Knoxville Girl, slightly rewritten) is a haunting ode and there are many other fine songs on this album. (My personal favourites are Fine Lines and Wise Blood). Divine Armour is the sound of a band of heartbroken female pirates laying waste to a desolate world.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
REVIEW. RAZORBLADE KISSES --- 4 TRACK E.P.
Razorblade Kisses are rapidly gaining a cult following as the UK's first (if not only) Gothic Lolita band. (Gothic Lolita is a fashion movement originating in Japan --- you can see examples of it in the Fruits books of Japanese street style). The band comprise 2 classically trained sisters from Iran on vocals and their husbands on guitar/bass and a drummer with 2 violinists recently added to the mix.
The songs on this EP are all very accomplished mixing classical influences with the lighter end of Goth to produce some very catchy songs. There is also a more ambient/trip hop influence on the slower songs. The girls also use their Persian heritage to great effect on songs like The Ballerina which is based on a traditional poem. The different elements work well together without seeming overdone. Layla and Azadeh's vocals are particularly appropiate sounding childlike yet melancholy or even bitter and adding just the right amount of edge to the beautiful music.
Although it could be argued this band won't appeal to everyone I think it would be a shame if a band who were so musically (and visually) creative did not reach a wider audience or were dismissed as a novelty. Razorblade Kisses are based in Southampton so tend to play live in either London or Winchester --- look out for them.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
NOTE: This EP is no longer available but the band have released their debut album Twinkle Twinkle Little Scar.
The songs on this EP are all very accomplished mixing classical influences with the lighter end of Goth to produce some very catchy songs. There is also a more ambient/trip hop influence on the slower songs. The girls also use their Persian heritage to great effect on songs like The Ballerina which is based on a traditional poem. The different elements work well together without seeming overdone. Layla and Azadeh's vocals are particularly appropiate sounding childlike yet melancholy or even bitter and adding just the right amount of edge to the beautiful music.
Although it could be argued this band won't appeal to everyone I think it would be a shame if a band who were so musically (and visually) creative did not reach a wider audience or were dismissed as a novelty. Razorblade Kisses are based in Southampton so tend to play live in either London or Winchester --- look out for them.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.
NOTE: This EP is no longer available but the band have released their debut album Twinkle Twinkle Little Scar.
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