October 26, 2006

• Looking for love…eventually

  

  Bad things do happen to good people-
  our response is what is important

  5 not so great things about me

  1.  Overweight
  2.  Unemployed
  3.   Depression
  4.  Smoker
  5.  ?!

  5 great things about me

  1.  Love to write
  2.  Good sense of humor
  3.  Loving and affectionate
  4.  Creative
  5.  Intelligent

  So that’s that!

  Drum Hugo Largo 1988

  Emerging during the tail end of an era dominated by hair metal
  and New Wave, Hugo Largo was an New York City art band with two basses, one
  violin, an intense female singer named Mimi Goese, and no (or almost no) drums.
  Calling their debut album Drum was yet another ironic move on the part of
  a band with not a single member named Hugo. What Hugo Largo did have was a
  bewitching brew of a sound: minimalist but not pretentious, gorgeous without
  being too pretty, its innate gloom tempered by a sense of comforting melodic
  tradition. The operatically trained Goese sings like a beautiful banshee
  and-with no drums or guitars to get in the way-the basses etch out only the most
  skeletal of structures for her expansive voice to inhabit. Michael Stipe was a
  supporter of the band and produced the album (he also lent some guest vocals),
  and fans of early R.E.M will recognize in Hugo a similarly dreamlike sound.

  “Grow Wild” features an ominous, pick-strummed bass line, with Goese’s
  layered vocals overlapping back on themselves like the onset of an auditory
  hallucination, a midsong entrance of the violin causes spinal shivers. The
  opening of “Eskimo Song” continues the vibe of hushed mystery. Goese sings in a
  low whisper with a gently repeating bass chord urging her on. As the electric
  violin generates force behind her, her voice pierces the heaven with high notes
  like chimes countering the rich, low bass. It’s simple, traditionally melodic,
  yet powerful enough to stop time cold.

  “Second Skin” is the standout in
  a short but filler-free little masterwork. The song is a coiled ball of
  alternating quiet-loud dynamics, with brooding bass chords underscoring Goese’s
  soft singing for the verse. As the music seethes outward into the blistering
  chorus with the sudden last-minute arrival of drums, Goese’s voice expands and
  solidifies into a force of nature: “I’m wearing a / Second skin” goes the song’s
  refrain, encompassing the listener in a sheath of intensity. The emotional
  catharsis this song manages to wreak in just over three minutes is astonishing.
  That this band wasn’t more recognized in its lifetime is a tragedy. “Second
  Skin” alone would have earned itself a coveted spot on every breakup mix tape of
  its era had it reached the bedrooms of the alienated youth that would soon
  discover Mazzy Star. But it’s never too late-Drum is devastating in any
  decade.
  

  	Listen to all sound clips from this CD
  “Eskimo Song” “Scream Tall” “Grow Wild”

  Buy this CD

   

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  Last, but not least!

  

  Have a great day!!

  I love you!!

  
  <EDIT>

  Three birthdays tomorrow!!
  CynaraJane, misunderstood47 and turtle_dove!!
  Go to their sites to wish them a Happy Birthday for Friday!
  

  • 1:47 pm
  • 46 Comments