While the press materials tout
Smoke in the Shadows as
Lydia Lunch's "return" to her classic
Queen of Siam persona, that assertion is basically erroneous. The truth is,
Lydia Lunch has upped the musical ante once more. Much of the material here comes right out of the nocturnal brand of West Coast cinema
jazz that accompanied the
soundtracks to
Farewell My Lovely,
The Big Sleep,
They Live By Night, and
In a Lonely Place as well as countless noir B movies.
Lunch employs a stellar band this time out that includes guitarists
Nels Cline and
Tommy Grenas, drummer
Alex Cline, saxophonists
Vinny Golia and
Niels Van Hoorn (from
the Legendary Pink Dots), keyboardist
Len del Rio,
Terry Edwards, and backing vocalists
Adele Bertei (
Contortions) and
Carla Bozulich (
Geraldine Fibbers). That said, the
jazz here is far more deliberate and intimate; the
big-band cuts like
"Hangover Hotel," "Johnny Behind the Deuce," and
"I Love You Now" feature
Lunch offering a spoken/sung narrative that moves into the music accompanying her and never rises above it. The focus is on the entire proceeding, not on her with instrumental backing. Elsewhere, on
"Blame," a shimmering minimal
hip-hop rhythm track is ornamented with reverbed saxophones and what sounds like a Wurlitzer.
Lunch offers a paean to broken love that is alternately tender, empathetic, stylish, and taut emotional drama, like a length of cord beginning to fray. The swirling piano line and out sax fills that kick off
"Touch My Evil" become a
rap track with layered loops and drum lines. It's gritty, funky, and in the pocket. When a brief vibes solo breaks into the horn-drenched chorus and an
Afro-Cuban rhumba, the lid comes off. It's the most adventurous cut on the set and its groove is faultless for all of its chameleon shape-shifting. It is followed by a revamped funky
hip-hop joint called
"Lost World," which keeps its fangs bared throughout.
Smoke in the Shadows is compelling from start to finish. The musical and textural landscapes bleed into and feed off of one another, and
Lunch -- as poet, narrator, and singer -- is at the top of her darkly lyrical game. If any comparison can be made to
Queen of Siam at all, it is simply that this outing is her finest musical moment since that time. Highly recommended. ~ Thom Jurek
