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Lemon Kittens were Danielle Dax and Karl Blake - Blake wrote the lyrics, and the two of them created the music to accompany them. The `songs' here are mostly short, and the music pretty obviously exists only to frame the words, which are pretty strange. Both parties vocalize, and contribute an array of instruments: guitars, bass, percussion (of various sorts), saxophones, recorders, tin whistles, squeeze boxes, stick synths, assorted keyboards - all performed with a delightful combination of competence and innocence. The arrangements, as they exist, are pretty loose - somehow I doubt that any of these songs would sound the same if recorded a second time, but that's part of the charm and appeal of this album.
The lyrics themselves range from the scatological to the sublime - and pretty much cover the spectrum in between the two. Blake vents his spleen - artistically, of course - in the direction of a number of worthy targets/subjects (as the case might be): conformity, tradition, religion, psychology, love, violence, and pure observation. He enjoys wordplay, and sometimes engages in it simply for its own sake - and it's still entertaining and interesting. In `(Afraid of) Being bled by leeches', he intones: `Afraid of being bled by leeches, we ran for cover in a pagan church of stone, a mound with wind as walls, whilst the beasts in the village wailed. with forensic science as our knives, we scythed into their faith as they outlawed ours.' He has a definite gift for imagery and tone - it serves his chosen subject matter well. In `Small mercies (Eva's song)', he addresses violence in relationships, its causes, and the way that the victim's own pain and self-image sometimes enable the perpetrator - Danielle Dax sings this one: `My baby, he said he didn't care too much what he did - and if it hurt me, it was just too bad. Left his humanity in the cradle - wanted everything and everything to cause pain to others. He's just a strange type - but I love him, because he tells me to. That's what all of us should do and do, isn't it?'
Karl Blake has worked in various other conglomerates (including Shock Headed Peters, Alternative TV, Sol Invictus, Current 93, In the Nursery, and several of Dax's solo recordings), as well as releasing some solo work of his own. After the Kittens experiment/experience, Daniel Dax released a number of very interesting albums under her own name that were closer to `pop' music, but still very, very twisted. I wouldn't expect either of these artists to show up in a top forty band - I just don't think such an ensemble/concept could contain their artistic vision.
There aren't many melodies here that are the `hummable' type - this is experimental music meeting art song meeting subject matter that many writers don't have the courage to touch with a ten-foot pole. That being said, this is extremely memorable stuff - it's not for the faint of heart (or ear), and it's hard to find. Check it out if you're lucky enough to find it. Imagine the Art Bears without the polish or the commercial appeal...(get it...?)
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Larry L. Looney
QUIRKINESS in extremis...
2004年5月8日にアメリカ合衆国でレビュー済みAmazonで購入
