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Darling Kandie, "People Next Door"

Underground, Inc.
Once upon a time, the late '80s to be precise, My Life With The ThrillKill Kult fabricated some killer singles, EPs and albums for theseminal Chicago based label, Wax Trax! Records. Then began the downwardslide into major label "success", self parody and just plain bad ideasand music. Remember the god awful "Sex On Wheelz" song and video forthe "Cool World" movie? Yikes. I gave up on them after that and everytime I tried a new album I was disappointed. Fast forward to today andthis project finally sees the light of day. Recorded 1998-99, DarlingKandie paired TKK frontman Groovie Mann with venerable one man band,the late William Tucker, to whom it's dedicated. As the liner notesexplain this is some of Tucker's last work (demos in fact, though itsounds complete), his career having included recording and/or touringwith most of industrial rock's inner circles: Ministry, the RevoltingCocks, Pigface, Chris Connelly, Foetus, Thanatos, Chainsuck, etc., notto mention TKK's 'Sexplosion' tours as "Amber Guitarstar". I think it'ssafe to say that most if not all of the music here is Tucker's doing ashis unique guitar and programming imprint are instantly recognizableand Groovie's primary role in TKK is lyrics and vocals. Together theyrevisit the tongue-in-cheek evil of classic Kult, with a Tucker twist.His slinky grooves are solid backdrops for tons of silly samples andGroovie Mann's campy tales of naughty young girls, drugs, sex andsuicide. Horn-y hijinks ala Foetus spice up "Cobra Kiss" and "ClearfireFor The Fallen". "Secret Ceremony" conveys Tucker's sense of pop melodywhile "Randy Road" does the same for his skill at glam-hip hop rhythmamalgamation. And the title track and "Untitled End" best replicate thecreepy dark side of the Kult's back catalog. Frankie Nardiello's (akaGroovie Mann) insert photos of "Ultramodels" helps complete the mood.'People Next Door' is the best thing Thrill Kill Kult haven't done in adecade and a testament to the talent of the much missed E. WilliamTucker.

 

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