The most obvious change is the addition of vocals by Phyllis Forbes andMolly Schnick, the two founders and leaders of the band. The dualfemale vocals bring a level of pop coalescence to Out Hud's music thatmay have been present on past recordings, but not as immediatelyobvious. Where before, Out Hud tracks seemed to meander through aseries of amorphous transitions, odd instrumental bridges and deathdefying plunges into the dub chamber, "One Life to Leave: A Requiem fora Requiem" retains a tightness and focus from start to finish thatsuggests a evolution of the band's sound. That's not to suggest thatall the bizarre eclecticism is gone, however, as proven by the mutanthybrid of early house music, Bananarama vocals, funk guitar licks andthe barest outline of jagged, PiL-style abrasiveness on "OL2L." Thefirst track on Side A is a longer, alternate mix of the album track,and is entirely informed by the band's usual kitchen-sink maximalism,subjecting the song to layers of complex, hermetic production gimmicksand completely unexpected left turns. There are even a few distortedblasts of speaker-cone destroying industrial percussion that recall thebest track on their first LP, the oddly named "Dad, There's a LittlePhrase Called Too Much Information." And speaking of weird song titlesaddressed to the ubiquitous Out Hud patriarch, Side B is entirely takenup by a massive 10-minute track entitled "Put It Away, Put It Away, PutIt Away Dad." I suppose dear old dad is trying to embarrass hisdaughters again, and Out Hud respond with an infectiously wackylong-form psychedelic odyssey through every retrograde musical gestureof which they are capable. The number of competing styles that areforced to groove in one another's presence is truly stunning; the onlyappropriate comparisons I can think of are Sigue Sigue Sputnik's "LoveMissile F1-11" or Steve Miller's "Macho City." Though Out Hud's musichas spawned the usual bevy of imitators, they are still very much themasters of their own style, and this generous teaser has me positivelysalivating for the upcoming long-player.samples:
- One Life to Leave - A Requiem
- One Life to Leave - A Requiem for a Requiem
- Put It Away, Put It Away, Put It Away Dad
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