c'est la mort/hearts lust in limbo review

[woj@remus.rutgers.edu (woj)]

[this post that i'm replying to originally appeared in ecto, but i'm
crossposting it to gaffa since suspect that there will be some people
who might find this interesting]

vickie sez:
>Woj, do you know of a C'est La Mort mailing list? It's not in the Musical
>List of Lists, but I know they're not _all_ listed in there.

well, there isn't one, but i regularly bring up c'est la mort stuff
over on the 4ad mailing list. i don't think that there is enough 
people who know about the label for it to really support a list,
but i'd be happy to blab about interesting clm stuff here as well.

speaking of which...

>Have you heard Grace Darling yet? If so, describe them to this group.
>I love them and I haven't the faintest idea how to describe them.

listening to their track on the latest doctor death's compilation right
now, in fact. they also have an eponymous album out as well, but i've
not been able to locate it yet.

anyways...how do they sound? well, from this one song, i would describe
them as sparse and minimalist musically. the particular song on the
compilation ("i bury my dead") is basically a bass drone underneath a
repeated keyboard motif that has severe organ-ish qualities. and above
it all is the wailing of vocalist val martino, providing a dirge-like
banshee wail - her voice is not particularly striking, but what she
does with it is incredible. 

heck, while i'm here, i might as well do a quick track by track run
through of this compilation, since i think some people might find it
worthwhile...

this is volume 5 of the doctor death's compilation series and is entitled
_hearts lust in limbo_. catalog clm-032 from c'est la mort. address is

	po box 91
	baker, la
	70714 usa

write them for a free catalog...and if you do order anything from them,
tell them that woj sent you... :)

1. eleven shadows "o mio babbino caro" - it sounds like an italian opera,
but just as you start getting into it, the track disintigrates into a
morass of machinery...i *love* this track and it's a perfect opening
piece.

2. mumbles "lullabye blue" - mumbles is what used to be the drowning pool
(they just changed their name - no change in personel). however, for this
track they add the vocals of one kelly ray. initially, i didn't care much
for it, but it's grown on me - especially after finally getting a copy of 
the drowning pool's _satori_ album which was the last album they did before
canning their old vocalist and going all instrumental. theres guys in their
many combinations are probably one of my favorite bands - at times remini-
scent of early dead can dance and at other times just being wonderfully
noisy.

3. orange "fallen buildings" - cocteau twin worship. pure unadulterated
cocteau twin worship. with that said, i still like the track a lot as it
is kinda what you might expect if the twins didn't go down the path that
they took and continued to sound like they did on _garlands_. sonya waters
though has no hope of ever being liz frazier of ten years ago. she gets
about halfway there and that is the extent of her ability. still a fine
track...

4. m-1 alternative "market" - one of the weaker tracks here, i think. they
get billed as "industrial pop," but i think that is kinda a misnomer.
keyboards layered all over the place and that eclectic pop sound. slightly
pretentious. i did like their album on clm though, _aviary_.

5. grace darling "i bury my dead" - see above...

6. c-cat trance "shake the mind" - british trance masters finally get a 
break in the states. up until now, they've only had a small cult following.
maybe this will make a difference. a *wonderful* track by any means. if
you don't get all mesmerized by this song, you are *inhuman*. :)

7. johanna's house of glamour "up five flights" - softly psychedelic and
acoustic in nature. delicate and beautiful, but earthy as well. they have
a release called _farewell street_ on clm which is in this trend as well.
syd barrett meets the american folk scene.

8. the peddlers "look like skippy" - one of my fave tracks on the compi-
lation. a side project of area/moon seven times guitarist henry frayne.
an absolutely goofy ode to that lovable geek on family ties, inspired
by the fact that frayne's partner in crime does, indeed, look like skippy.
i've got a copy of the latest peddler's casetter and it is quite silly
as well: they do a cover of "fox on the run," the theme song from the 
_lovedolls_ soundtrack.

9. ruby blue "so unlike me" - scottish band that has a previous release
called _glances askance_ (which i have not been able to find either). as
a starting point, think what a female greg lake might sound like in an
acoustic setting. that approximates the voice and music of rebecca pigeon.
very pretty...very spacey as well.

10. tel basta "sacred bells" - where do these american bands come from?!?
trancey stuff as well, but based on tones instead of repetition like c-cat
trance. more blissrock...also quite nice.

11. talisker tale "atomic fashion" - a couple of guys from amsterdam who,
in addition to running a performance space there (i think), make some 
pretty cool synthesizer-based tunes as well. this track reminds me a bit
of somebody whose name i can't think of right now!

12. big hat "you lied" - i know that these folks have been mentioned on
gaffa before. i thin kthat they have been compared to the twins, but i 
think that a better starting point is hugo largo, perhaps. or maybe even
area (now there's a oddity, normally area is called derivative!). this
track is slow, deep and mixes a middle eastern feel with a simple melody.
production is abit muddled, but it's still decent. no idea if they have 
any releases out, but i think that they do. they are from chicago as
well...vickie?

13. fear of blue "fool's gold" - introspective synthesizer stuff. a nice
track, but it lacks in comparison to others here. hard to describe...

14. east ash "green chevy" - another playful track from an unexpected source.
east ash is a band from missouri whose first album got comparisons to (of
all people) u2. i've heard their second album already and it's nothing
like u2 at all - which is good (although the voice similarity is still 
there to a degree). this tune is a funky rap rock tune and is a heck of
a lot of fun. a sign of their versatility as well - these guys are 
excellent musicians.

15. the moon seven times "miranda" - this is the band area, renamed and
sans steve jones...so, that damn casiotone is gone! yeah! :) and as an
added bonus, they have a real drummer now and that alone adds so much
to their sound. imagine is area picked up  where they left off after 
releasing _the perfect dream_ and then developed for a few years. lynn
canfield's voice is as wonderful as before and the music is fuller and 
better. my second fave track. (incidentially, they have an album pretty
much in the can and are just waiting for a distribution deal - i've
gotten to hear the music on it and it is *wonderful* - i can't say
enough good things about them, so i'll stop now and hope that the thing
gets released someday).

16. leigh gregory "see you falling/spiral" - begins with an acoustic intro
that leads into a punkish floyd-like guitar rock and wail. and slowly spirals
into nothingness. catchy...

17. handfull of snowdrops "second by second" - written specifically for
this compilation by this montreal synthdance band. slow, menacing and 
dark. hos has often been called the xymox of clm. i would stand by that 
comparison. a very good ending piece for the compilation. however, their
second album follows the same trend as xymox and isn't too wonderful. if
you like these guys, get their first one, _land of the damned_.

well, maybe not so quick of a run through....

woj@remus.rutgers.edu - smou/dj-for-hire - ignore the sexy interface