CURSE

Just like its predecessor Brighter Now, Curse is a cassette release that´s been slightly expanded in order to fill out an LP. The opening song (Love Puppets) is the archetypal LPD song, the blueprint for dozens of songs that Edward Ka-Spel would fill both LPD albums and solo releases with over the next 25 years. It's difficult to describe unless you've heard one of these songs (Black Zone, Casting the Runes, I Love You In Your Tragic Beauty or Damien, just to name a few). There's always a chord or two that sound just a little bit out of place, creating a certain tension and adding a sinister dimension to an otherwise rather conventional arrangement. There's also the dramatic, almost over-serious delivery - sometimes mistaken as arrogance - that is such a big part of the band's charm. Love Puppets is built just around a synthesizer arpreggio with the occasional guitar chord, the dymanics consisting only of Edward raising his voice and - at one point - opening one of the filters of his synth to great effect. Or perhaps it was the Silverman's synth? Anyway, the album has its ups and downs. Wall Purger's Night sounds like a throwaway track from an earlier cassette (which - if my memory serves - it was) but from there's it's...all over the place! Some tracks treads Syd Barrett/early T-Rex territory (Waving at the Areoplanes, Lisa's Party, Doll's House), and does so very well. Arzhklahh Olgevezh! is a bizarre disco number in Ka- Spel's very own tongue, which does sound a bit too self-conciousy excentric to be really fun. The high point of Curse is the closing Stoned Obituary with it's chanted finale with churchbells and its repeated unfinished sentence, Die with your eyes on.... Stayed in my head for days the first time I heard it. All in all, Curse is very good album, my only remark being the primitive production and the lack of a proper rhythm section (which some tracks here really call for). Like most early LPD material, it propably appeals more to psych fans than to progheads, and with this album it becomes evident that the band's songs were becoming stronger than its instrumental muscle. Still, Curse is not the best introduction to this many-facetted band, but it's nowhere near a diehards-only release.

Not jilted but poisoned

This, the Legendary Pink Dot's second album of 1983, was arguably their first proper release. Up until this point, albums had appeared as very limited run copy-cassettes, seeming like little more than bootlegs (with the resultant sound quality issues). "Curse" was also initially restricted in its production run to 2,500 copies, but it did a least appear in the (then) conventional LP format.

By now, the line up was starting to settle down, at least as much as it ever would, with Edward Ka-Spel and Phil Knight assuming the roles of D'Archangel and The Silver man respectively.

This album finds the band rapidly maturing, with electronic effects coming to the fore. The opening "Love Puppets" feels like a cross between Kraftwerk and Japan, the heavily accented vocals reminding us of the British origins of the band. Those vocals are often reminiscent of Syd Barrett and his brief time with Pink Floyd, the music being similarly psychedelic.

"Wall purges night" continues in a similar vein although here the synths are less evident and the overall mood more troubled. "Lisa's party" could have made a decent single release with its lighter and more accessible melody. The accompanying light keyboard sounds and the (deliberately) juvenile lyrics actually remind me of the similar but largely forgotten "Jilted John". Here though the party guests are not merely jilted, but poisoned!

"Arzhklahh Olgevezh!" sounds like it is being sung in Dutch (or not), the Krautrock type vocals being contrasted by angelic female vocalising. The brief "Pruumptje Kurss" simply serves as an interlude piece leading to the early Floydian "Waving At The Aeroplanes". "Hiding" is another brief link track, this time featuring spoken word against a reflective backdrop.

The album concludes with a trio of longer tracks. The first of these, "Doll's house", has a bit of a Madness feel vocally at times, the arrangement being understated but ambitious. The music has a children's feel to it, with nursery rhyme type lyrics. "The palace of love" is the most commercial track on the album, with a distinct beat and repeated chorus. Even here though, there are intrusions and diversions along the way. The album closes with "Stoned Obituary", the title reflecting the fragmented nature of the sounds.

"Curse" sees The Legendary Pink Dots taking giant steps towards maturity. There is still a lack of direction to the music, and a certain degree of deficiency in the quality control department. Things are however beginning to look brighter for the band.