Jarboe "Anhedoniac" 1998 (64:36)
Anhedoniac (3:46)
The Cage (4:54)
Sinner (7:09)
Forever (3:02)
Rage (1:34)
Not Noah's Ark (4:12)
Sacred Disciple Wannabe (3:09)
Mississippi (1:44)
Burnt (1:17)
Anhedoniac Bottle (5:32)
Under Will (4:33)
Circles in Red Dirt (4:23)
Panasonic in Red Dirt (6:30)
Honey (5:24)
I'm a Killer (7:27)
Jarboe (voices, keyboards, bass, percussion, tapes, atmospheres), soundscape contributors: Mark Spybey, Ignis Fatuus, Jerry Blue, guitar: Joe Budenholzer, Brian Phrenzy, Larry Seven, bass: Brian Phrenzy, Larry Seven, Bill Bronson, drums: Michael Evans, Bill Bronson.
Overall impression: excellent. Jarboe, perhaps best known for her ~10 year contribution to SWANS, is now on her own. SWANS was permanently put to rest after 15 years in 1997, and this album is the second post-SWANS release so for (the first being "Number One of Three" by Michael Gira's Body Lovers). "Anhedoniac" is Jarboe's 3rd solo album, the first since 1995's "Sacrificial Cake" and like that album, this one is quite varied musically. There's a little bit of everything within: quiet acoustic guitar, sound atmospheres (Panasonic mixed "Panasonic in Red Dirt" and I believe Mark Spybey's work graces "Forever"), bell-like tones, manic samples, slow grinding guitars, etc. Some tracks are quiet and sparse, some are harsh somewhat like early 80's SWANS, and some switch within the song between mellow and hard. I was actually surprised at how melodic, sparse and quiet many of the songs are. The music seems more similar to "Sacrificial Cake" than SWANS, but this album has more of a raw sound/feel. Jarboe's voices, or rather the voices of the angels/demons that she appears to be channeling, are just as varied as the music. All of Jarboe's range is used throughout: shrill squeals, child-like voices, beautiful melodic whispers and 'aaaaahhhhs', breathy spoken bits, dark storytelling, screams, etc. If you didn't know better, you might think there were several different vocalists on the album. I won't speculate on the underlying themes of the lyrics, but I'm fairly certain that they represent the intimate emotions of Jarboe's past with Michael Gira/SWANS, the present, and the somewhat unknown future. "Anhedoniac" is a solid piece of work from start to finish, the many varying parts mesh together as a whole very nicely. Jarboe has at last proven that she is a formidable songwriter and producer in her own (not that that needed to be proven mind you!) I get the overwhelming impression that this is 100% honest art, which I'm sure foreshadows future projects. The packaging for the cd is equally impressive, a cd sized slipcase with a nicely done booklet with lyrics and rather provocative photography (you must be 18 to order) of Jarboe by Richard Kern. This cd is a limited edition of 1500 that can only be obtained through Jarboe via the website below, so get on it ...