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$15.99 CD
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JACKIE-O MOTHERFUCKER
Valley of Fire
(Textile)
"Sing Your Own Song"
Although I am not the most politically savvy American on the block, I admit that I have recently noticed a little slice of the upcoming Presidential election's lingo sticking in my mind; and while the experimental collective Jackie-O Motherfucker is far from aligning itself with any specific political stance on their first studio album in two years, Valley of Fire can certainly be appreciated as a collection of cautionary tales with a strong undercurrent of hope for change.
The first track, "Sing Your Own Song," meanders through a lush, psychedelic soundscape to discover, as though in a long-lost archive, a spoken word piece in which Eva Salens threateningly screams the call-to-arms of street poet Uriah J. Fields ("The angels are waiting for you to sing your song!"). Her inventive reading and repetition of words creates the illusion that the Southern-accented Salens is generating a sort of hands-free remix of JOMF's own "I Have a Dream" speech; the result is an infectious appeal for individuality and action. The tension breaks over the course of "Valley of Fire," a gorgeous, minimal, relaxed piece of storytelling that pulls from generations of understated American folksingers before, even as surrounded by thick electronic flutters.
While your defenses are down, Jackie-O Motherfucker segue into "The Tree" -- although uncharacteristically short, it stands out as one of the band's most haunting and affecting pieces. This sparse re-working of the Beach Boys' dark narrative "A Day in the Life of a Tree" -- referred to as one of the highlights of that band's "forgotten decade" -- features Brian Wilson's lyrics as crooned by former JOMF guitarist and the album's producer, Adam Forkner (White Rainbow, Dirty Projectors, Devendra Banhart). The poignancy of such a simple, pro-environmental ballad and the pure ache of Forkner's reserved voice, so reminiscent of fellow collaborator Little Wings and the golden folk era of K Records, boils together to warrant this track endless repeat listens. For vinyl buyers, "The Tree" is the quintessential end to Side A; on the flip side, JOMF launch into "We Are/Channel Zero," a multi-layered, freeform psych-out recorded live in London, in which a few words from Public Enemy's "She Watch Channel
Zero?!" are chopped up and interjected again and again as though in a child's nightmare. The four solid, distinct pieces comprising Valley of Fire come together as an even stronger whole, bold not only because of its relevant messages and tone, but for its skillful implementation. [KS] |
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