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Christine Fellows
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Paper Anniversary
Six Shooter Records
Release: 11/14/2006
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Rated:
Review by:
Gisele Grignon
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No one will accuse Christine Fellows of playing by the rules.
There's a better than good chance that, judging by Paper
Anniversary, she's overwhelmingly unaware of the very
existence of rules, in life, in love, in music creation - not to
mention grammar. Her words, music, voice, orchestration are so
totally unlike today's musical stars' stuff that you shouldn't listen
to her immediately after listening to, well, just about anything
else.
Paper Anniversary requires the equivalent of musical
sorbet to cleanse the palate before embarking on a taste test
(more on the menu about that taste test later) like you've never
before experienced. Quirky? Odd? Anti-establishment? Unique?
All of the above and then some.
The lyrics of "Face Down, Feet First" pretty much say it all about
Fellows and her take on life: "Remember the day you graduated
to unusual from strange?" asks Fellows. Which isn't to say this
isn't musical or worth a serious listen. It's just that Paper
Anniversary is something you should enjoy (and perhaps
only) once you've flushed your brain and memory banks of the
so-called usual musical offerings - unless of course, your
"usual" includes the unusually-gifted Bjork. Fellows doesn't quite
match (yet?) the Icelandic queen's acrobatic vocal inclinations, or
slightly skewed word pictures, but she's close.
When, for instance, was the last time you heard lyrics include
references to the bonding experience of getting your stomach
pumped? How about absent warnings nailed to hydro poles, or
boys lined up like beer cans on a fence, pissing away the blurry
afternoon? Not even a whiff of bubblegum in this Canadian's
repertoire.
And Fellows' playing skills? She lists the glockenspiel and
wineglasses in her musical credits for heaven's sake. No mention
of whether or not those wineglasses started out (or perhaps
more telling, ended up) full. Fellows shares just a teasing
sampling of such "traditional" song writing and performance,
which is fine if you're on a diet or on the groggy side of a
multi-course meal. But it can leave you kinda cranky if you
happen to be hungry.
Again, that's not a slam against Fellows or her undisputed talent.
It's just that, despite the impressive number of tracks on
Paper Anniversary (14), you're left with the feeling
that either the songs were too brief, or not beefy enough - at
least not enough to satiate my admittedly lumberjack-like
appetite for songs that I can savor during and after a hearty
listen-to. And that's the sad part because Fellows has a perfectly
charming, almost hypnotic voice, like that of a child, albeit a
precocious one.
Call me greedy, but I enjoy being on the receiving end of what
other people do so well. That's is...the only quibble with an
otherwise engaging, positively addictive piece of art. In the
words of young Master Twist: "Please, sir (ma'am) more." And
here's hoping that Fellows is around to serve up her specialties
for a Golden Anniversary. |
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