Description
Stranger Things, Marc’s first fully-feathered studio outing since 1999’s dark, trippy and deliciously euro-erotic Open All Night, promises much. The cover art – a blond, jewel-encrusted Almond - is a reassuring, yet unforgivable clue, and opening-track ‘Glorious’ hints of more to come: Some stories untold, a hint of ‘revelation’, a little ‘symphony of sound’ , and ‘feelings wider than the sky’, are, according to the gospel of St. Marc, all ‘Glorious’. But don’t listen too hard, nor too soon. Like the face on themore… cover art, you’ll have to lift off the jewellery and wipe the make-up off to reach the flesh underneath.Born To Cry does provide some early promise. Whilst not begrudging Marc’s natural need to move on, it’s clear that some of his preoccupations remain reassuringly intact: Fate (“…You and I were born under a bad sign”), hurt (“…Born to lose”) and wounded (“…Born to bruise”). Born To Cry provides us with these emotions and more: a melancholy victim-fest, that is, whether he likes it or not, pure Marc Almond.Come Out brings concern for the concerted fan: Marc-U-Like lyrics (“An ugly duckling in the peacock’s nest”) and kitch production combine to form a slavish and ropey lyrical emulation. Shut your eyes and you’ll see the closing credits of the ‘Poseidon adventure’ roll upwards; open your eyes and you’ll hear Marc’s voice. Very confusing.Under Your Wing. A vaguely-Bowie guitar intro quietly promises more, but is rapidly absorbed by over-baked production. It’s a confused and slightly drunken Azneavour in NYC. But, somehow, Marc picks his lyrics up to form an unexpected mid-album twist of almost-hope. The lyric’s are Marc’s: and this is what Marc probably does too well, although it’s slightly spoiled by a under-confident production that appears not to trust Marc on these matters.Lights. You do want to worry when Mark sings “Sometimes it feels so good to be alive”. But don’t be too alarmed: real fans know that on every Marc Almond album, there’s always a real dog of a track. Fantastic Star had Child Star, and I think we still forgave him. Not everyone can write a Marc Almond song. Not even Marc Almond sometimes, it appears.Tantalise Me. When CD’s were, er, LP’s, you had a good side, and an even better side. The better artists knew this, so bravely split their good from their bad, allowing the listener to efficiently dispose of the chaff. Tantalise Me kicks this darker and more engaging side into hypnotic movement. Moonbathe Skin. A dark, passionate and kaleidoscopic lyric (“Give me gold that only rusts”) caused me to rack my brain trying to remember what, or who, this reminded me of. Of course, it was Siouxie and the Banshees (“Cities in dust” / “Silver Waterfalls”). Silly me. Euro-Asian mystique, in a folkey sort of way.Dancer. An agitated Shirley Bassey on a Prozac-Opium snowball. Wonderfully indulgent, just the thing when you’ve thrown the Milk Tray in the bin because you know you’re too fat, and Corrie’s cancelled because of the footie.When It’s Your Time. This time the acoustics are allowed to continue. A real continuation of the musical themes established by Open All Night. The post-trip-hop sound is allow to beat organically in the background, and the pre-chilled stories commenced on Open All Night are allowed to warm.End In Tears. Starts well. Again, an apparent lack of production confidence seems threatened by the potential monotony of a heart-straining, complex and engaging ballad. Fortunately, Marc’s delivery eventually punctures the techno-gloss, leaving the listener with a typically warm sense of ‘play it again’ desolation.Love in a Time of Science will probably grow, although, for me, the word ‘science’ simply doesn’t feature in the Marc Almond lyrical lexicon. It’s not ‘Tenderness is a Weakness’, nor is it ‘Orpheus in Red Velvet’. This feeling alone explains the need for Glorious (reprise). An album’s got to have some closure, after all.
| 1 |
Glorious |
| 2 |
Born To Cry |
| 3 |
Come Out |
| 4 |
Under Your Wing |
| 5 |
Lights |
| 6 |
Tantalise Me |
| 7 |
Moonbathe Skin |
| 8 |
Dancer |
| 9 |
When It's Your Time |
| 10 |
End In Tears |
| 11 |
Love In A Time Of Science |
| 12 |
Glorious (Reprise) |
Info:
- Category:
- Music > Albums
- Case Type:
- CD
- Release Type:
- Retail
- Comments:
- 1 read add
Cover Info:
- Title:
- Marc Almond - Stranger Things (2001) Retail CD
- Part:
- Back
- Dimensions:
- 1030 x 800 px
- Size:
- 163 KB
- Downloads:
- 96 (0 today)
- Uploaded:
- 23/04/07 by allcdcovers
- Quality Rating:
-
- Currently /5 Stars.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Cover not yet rated. Click CDs to vote!
Only registered users may vote or report covers.
Please login, or register.
Other Available Parts:
Tracks
