Saturday, November 12, 2011

David Lynch - Crazy Clown Time

"These are my friends" rings of the same sad list-making in "Is there anyone home?". Behind the dusty hissing of brushed drumbeats and chorus-bathed guitar Lynch lists the things that comfort him and his friends much in the same way Waters croons that he's got a "spoon on a chain".

"Speed Roadster" tells the story of a maudlin stalker in Lynch's quavering voice. While it's disturbing, Lynch's in-song personality is a lonely one and deserves some pity. He gets you to sympathize a little each verse but shatters it each and every time he repeats, "I guess you could say, I'm stalking you."


The title track carries the same grotesque weight as the rest of the album, maybe even much more. The scene Lynch describes in the lyrics doesn't even seem to be fully possible. There are so many missing pieces to the situation that you never really understand what Crazy Clown Time is. It's more like a drug-fueled nightmare or a hallucination during a heat stroke. This quality is only enhanced by the buzzing insect-like drone of the crescendoing lap steel.


It doesn't have a wide appeal but for listeners who appreciate outsider music like Daniel Johnston or Jandek, it's a nice little treat.

Despite the creepy tone of the album, the music could easily serve as a palliative for the person not having the "Good Day" that Lynch begs for in the album's most talked about single. It's cold comfort but comfort nonetheless.


Grade: B-

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