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June 07, 2006
give a girl a wedding ruby, put some emeralds in her pocket
Colossal Yes - Just Like A Mademoiselle
Utrillo from Comets on Fire has perfectly captured the mood of gorgeous, sweeping, early 70's prom rock- the kind of songs that provide just the right kind of slow nocturnal dazzle and soft momentum that make for a perfect late-spring dance (see especially King Harvest's "Dancing in the Moonlight", or pretty much anything by the Bee Gees). "Acapulco Roughs" has quickly become one of my favorite albums of this year- the songs seem so effortless, and Utrillo's vocal melodies are irresistible, warm, and suprising (his voice is particularly captivating, sort of a dimmed falsetto). The lyrics also have some heavy phonetic appeal, check out this line from the second verse, for example: "witchery in chastity, scorched but cavalier/diamond's roost and crystals cast, the lighted chandelier", I like that ending rhyme, the light alliteration (the hard 'c' and 'ch' repetition) and the way each phrase releases tension with the longer, softer sounds in the last few words.
Incidentally, I first heard of Colossal Yes from Ethan Miller's (Utrillo's bandmate in Comets on Fire) Arthur Magzine comp., "Bread, Beard, Bear's Prayers" (which is amazing- sold out right now, but apparently Bastet's re-pressing it in jewel case form later on this year). Anyway, you can find "Acapulco Roughs" on Ba Da Bing Records' catalog page, two spots down from the much-beloved Beirut ("Acapulco Roughs" is a much better record than "Gulag Orkestar", by the way- the latter just hasn't stuck with me at all for some reason).
Posted by Kevin at June 7, 2006 09:54 AM