the Lorraine Bowen Experience
Oh! What A Star! CD
Siesta. Siesta 142.
by Keith Mclachlan.
December 9, 2001.
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The city of Denver is undergoing big changes. It is
surely a city on the rise but they are still not
immune from the old world problems I experienced in
Detroit. At the moment a large public works project
promises to ruin the lives of most of Denver's fair
citizens and at the same time prove a valuable lesson
in planned obsolescence. Seven years to add one lane
to 19 miles of expressway and a useless commuter train
down the middle. Work has already begun and
apparently the most pressing current task is to
destroy a few of the bridges that span the thruway,
one of these demolitions will likely impact a dear
friend greatly. The Steele St. bridge is lifeline to
her, you may as well sever her carotid as soon as you
would raze this bridge. The emotion in her voice when
discussions of next month's planned wrecking take
place are absolutely harrowing, I might not be
surprised, really, should I wake up that fateful
morning of the scheduled execution and find her
chained to the bridge begging the Governor (who looks
like an overgrown porcelain doll or Malakai from
'Children of the Corn' I am not completely certain
yet) for clemency and to spare such a landmark. It's
beauty of course lies in its efficiency (Kate's commute
is more than halved thanks to this marvel of post-WWII
engineering) and does not lie hidden even in the fact
that this bridge is as hideous as any other bit of
Eisenhower's Interstate system. I imagine in the
coming holiday season Kate will be traumatized even
more greatly knowing her bridge will not live to see
another Christmas, I suppose all I can do is perhaps
aide in her memorializing her lost friend. Or I could
let her listen to Lorraine Bowen's new cd.
Imagine if Tracey Ullman had formed the Would be Goods and lived across the hall from Baby Bird and Kate was then lucky enough to live just down that same magical hall. If such a scenario were possible the tears from the pain of 'progress' might then be replaced by the tears of joy as seriously goofy songs sound poignant and touching, romantic even as a geeky looking 40-something woman bears her quirk (I was going to say soul but if this is her soul it revolves mostly about food) for anyone with a heart that needs mending. It's on Siesta, it would fit in with the oeuvre recogniable by names like Turner, Tillet and Napoleon. It is classy camp, the lyrics are earthy and deliciously odd. The Music is mostly casio-core with a few string arrangements thrown in to show she is actually almost somebody having once played with Billy Bragg. Mostly it's just a splendid respite from the tyranny of the cult of the Civil Engineer.
Bows
Big Wings CD
Too Pure. pure 82cds.
by Keith McLachlan.
May 1, 1999.
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Luke Sutherland returns and what an astonishing re-entry into the
realm of popular music!!! The cover of the record is absolutely
gorgeous and it looks rather expensive so you might be forgiven for
having your anticipation raised, as I did, because you start to
believe that if they are willing to waste such an amount on packaging
then perhaps the contents must really be breathtaking and of course
they are. During this, the Long Fin Killie hiatus, Mr. Luke has not
only been recording his new project but he also found time to write
an award nominated book and also to hobnob with celebrities all over
Europe and yet this has not distracted him from his incredibly focus
in the world of music. A few months back Margaret Laika made a post
on the drone-on list about Luke having bought a sequencer and how he
was, once again, working with Ruth Emond, she of the 'Hollywood Gem'
singing Ruths, and that his new material was really quite stunning and
looking back she might be accused of understating things greatly.
I received the cd in the mail and the packaging is so warm and inviting that I immediately popped it in and first up was the radio edit of 'Big Wings.' I had heard clips of this song and was already in love with it but in full strereophonic sound the atmosphere is absolutely haunting and the singer crescendoes and ebbs right along with the music, sighs abound, and to think this is the weakest track on the record. Next up is 'Speed Marina' and lonely guitar or is it piano??? accompanied by big beats and a whisper, it is not so far removed from a Long Fin Killie record actually in that the dynamics are completely unique in their combination of intensity and beauty.'Speed Marina' is gorgeous but only a warmup for the real treat here which is 'King Deluxe' with affected vocals, digital strings, mystic vibes and absolute amazingness all around, the best Luke song ever I would say. Then comes the album version of 'Big Wings' with it's added accompaniment of brass and added length. The album comes out Monday, I am not sure if I will be able to wait, Priceline.com is psychically calling me and a trip to England for the sole purpose of buying the Bows album 'Blush' does seem completely reasonable at this moment. Luke is my hero.
Bows
Blush CD
Too Pure. 97cds.
by Keith McLachlan.
January 23, 2000.
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(This is a combined review of "Blush" and "Britannica")Bows' full length from 1999 is probably my favourite record from last year and yet the title track was likely my least favourite song on the album. It is a colour by numbers trip-hop track that lacks the majesty of the rest of the record. Luke's vocals are uncharacteristically non-theatrical and the groove somewhat ordinary. On the ep you get a new mix which slightly improves on the original and actually a rather nice throwaway song called 'A Heart and Two Stars' which restores Luke's dramatic flare in lieu of mesmerising musical accompaniment.
Brittanica on the other hand is one of the best tracks on the album, with the scissoring violin riff and Signe's fantastic vocals, the remix is made for the dancefloor and thus empty of anything that might inspire kind words in these pages. The new track 'TFM' though is another hidden gem that reminds a lot of the Long Fin Killie track 'Valentino'. Wonderful cover artwork abounds as the butterfly motif is continued as a trademark for the Bows sound all of which makes both of these a treasure to own if only for their eye candy appeal.
Bows
Cassidy CD
Beggars Banquet.
by Keith Mclachlan.
May 3, 2001.
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There is a collection of short stories by Ethan Canin
titled 'Emperor of the Air', and it pre-dates this
album by a far margin but for some reason I could be
convinced into believing that Ethan must have had a
nostradamian moment concerning this record. Luke
Sutherland, the shape-shifter, not as in morphing his
figure to his whims but in commanding the air, bravely
manipulating waves of sound and their supplementary
echoes and reverberations by sheer force of the light
of his eminent brilliance. This record is all about
air and the spaces that fade in and out, the vocals
are nearly all exhalations the guitars waver with
loads of tremelo and reverb, the ambience (apparently
the sonic diarama of Spain) crowds in on every track
and makes the atmosphere thick with tension and
extravagant elements of musical elegance. It was
quite the left-turn when the spoken word cd 'Pink
Puppet' Bows released previous to this album, it was
filled with dreadfully pedestrian soundtracks to a
flash story that can't seem to compete with the
rapid-fire short burst intense imagery in these songs.
This album truly has the feel of a landmark album,
not necessarily a technical or musical innovation but
the most sincere peak of the genre. The distillation
completed on the record resulted in a process turning
"trip-hop" for lack of a better name, a severely
flawed genre to be certain, to perfection. 'Cassidy'
is more the band Bows than the first record which had
Luke on his own exploring his newfound freedom to
indulge all of his eclectic nuances and whisperings bt
there are hardly any notes for the band that rotates
on most of the tracks with former members of Curve and
current members of Billie Mahoney and Speaker Bite Me
to play, it is minimal and, to offer that word again,
extravagant at the same time. Each track seethes with
a sultry blend of passion and the drifty aloofness
provided by Luke's choice of female vocalists the
divine Signe blah blah blah from Demark and Ruth Emond
who earlier made splashes as Luke's partner on the
fantastic Long Fin Killie single 'Hollywood Gem'.
Speaking of Long fin Killie, Colin the bass
player (often seen playing his instrument with a drum
stick) is all over this album, and his sulky, bouncing
rhythm measures the entire affair in metronomic
efficiency with the omnipresent bell-like keyboard
lines. Luke, himself, sings four songs and is often
sounding more angelic a far portion more excellent
than his histrionic vocal inflections of the past, I
just must say Goodness!!! This record is atonishing,
it is so clearly the album of the first half of the
year that perhaps it should just be set above
everything else and allow us to consume the rest of
the year under the impression that nothing will even
attempt to match this majesty.
Bows
Pink Puppet CD
Too Pure. pure 102cds.
by Keith Mclachlan.
April 19, 2001.
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What to do, what to do???? To review this as a work
of literature or, less boldly, as a piece of music.
I'd be too intimidated to critique a Whitbred
nominated novelist's (still haven't managed to get
through all of 'Jelly Roll' sorry Luke) attempt at a
sonically captivating short story but then I know next
to zero about music and music theory and it doesn't
stop me from being pseudo-critic on any other day. Ok
then, so the story, it is decent not much of a plot
just the old 'how did i end up here anyway' sort of
tag but there is loads of dramatic reading and piles
of scabrously decadent urban imagery. It is
functionally effective for the matter at hand, most
definitely but the music is not really up to standard.
I wonder what Luke's efforts at soundtracking this
story would have resulted in, perhaps I actually
shouldn't wonder because surely it would have dwarfed
the miniature efforts on display here. That is the
problem with electronic musicians they spend so much
time in their hipness and elitism they forget to save
some time for tunes. Apparently electronic music is
some new great innovation but rhythm seems to be
nothing of lasting import from the alleged future
seeing as how it is already epochs old. The last two
attempts are better than the first two but this is not
really enough to tide me over until my copy of the new
Bows record 'Cassidy' arrives as the music is just a
few blips and bleeps and cut and paste samples sheesh.
Also the cover art is not all that interesting
either, a nice photo of Luke on the cover but the
Jesus and Mary Chain circa 'Honey's Dead' motif is
resolutely uninspiring.
Raymond Brake
"New Wave Dream" 7" vinyl
Simple Machines.
by Gary Miller.
December 31, 1995.
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This Simple Machines seven-incher is the second release (as far as I can
tell) from The Raymond Brake. This young, four-piece band from
Greensboro,
NC has a more traditional "Chapel Hill" sound than most bands actually
living
there. That, however, is not meant to say their brand of noisy-pop is
derivative.
"New Wave Dream" is quintessential T.R.B. material with its on-the-verge-of-being-out-of-tune guitars, jumpy feel, and melodic vocals. The b-side is a more straight-forward poppy number called "Secret."
While it still doesn't move me as much as their live show, this release is tons better than their first 7" (on D-tox). This can be traced to the newer release's better production and higher energy levels. I'm looking forward to the Simple Machines-released full-length due later this fall.