the tiger lillies

[panta rhei]

am listening to the tiger lillies' "the brothel to the cemetery".
their music's an unique mix of falsetto crooning, strange gypsy sound, cabaret from hell, and deranged black comedy.

love it.
"Imagine Kurt Weill conjuring up images of prewar Berlin while a falsetto vocalist screams, squeaks and squawks his way through every number like some rambling madman, and you've got the picture. Their lyrics range from the subtle romanticism of 'Sailors'; to the outright blasphemous 'Banging in the Nails'. While the album deals with Jesus, prostitutes, junkies, deranged children and disillusioned angels, special vitriol is reserved for Slough. Apparently "It's grim up north but it's grimmer than that in Slough, I'll sing you a song if you drop a bomb on Slough ". It's funny, weird, disturbing stuff."

from http://www.tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php
check them out.

(haven't found any music of theirs for free download on the net, but if you're interested, there are samples to listen to at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... ce&s=music)

[mousey1]

I like them too panta. Very strange indeed.

I first heard them in the movie "Plunkett and McLean" I love the song "Going to Hell" I think it's called. Watch the movie it's funny and a bit romantic and the music is good.

[panta rhei]

plunkett and mclean? never heard of that, mousey.
but of course i know (and like!) 'going to hell'.

saw 'shockheaded peter' (junk opera, 1998), though, and loved it!

[panta rhei]

shockheaded peter - a review from amazon.com :


"An Extraordinary Grand Guignol Musical & Theatrical Treat!

I just experienced a fabulous and most original Grand Guignol theatrical treat - the musical production of "Shockheaded Peter." This inventive musical adaptation of Dr. Heinrich Hoffman's grisly tales, (for children, no less?), of the "Struwwelpeter," (in German it means Slovenly Peter ), is grimmer than the Grimm Brothers at their grimmest, with touches of Lemony Snicket, Stephen King, Edward Gorey and Kurt Weill. Hoffman's book, written in the mid 19th-century and adapted for the stage, combines hilarious melodrama, farce, music hall, carnival freak show, and biting satire. Hoffman, who actually ran a lunatic asylum - no kidding (!) - was unhappy with the children's books available when his kids were young, and so he penned his own stories. Hence "Struwwelpeter," ten morality tales dealing with such travesties as thumb-sucking, fidgeting, playing with fire, and cruelty to animals. It is truly remarkable that these simple stories have been turned into an opera, of sorts, by a troupe of very gifted English actors, designers and musicians, the Improbable Theatre group. But everything about this production is remarkable - especially the music. I bought the CD immediately after the show.

The music, performed by the Tiger Lillies, is both macabre and gorgeous. The lyrics are darkly witty and dreadfully wicked. The trio call their songs, "blasphemous ballads, tragic tales and debauched ditties." This band includes, a ghoulish accordionist/falsetto singer and songwriter, Martyn Jacques, a double bass player and a drummer. They narrate the stories of young lives gone horribly wrong, through song and music, and are often accompanied by mimed action from the cast, grotesque puppets, marionettes, and an enormous monster. Dubbed a "junk opera," I take exception. Mr. Jacques' castrato-like crooning is phenomenal, and the bass player and drummer are extremely gifted. This is a class act all the way! Drums beat out unsettling rhythms, strange noises and cries come out of nowhere, and the throb of a stand-up bass keeps time like the heart in an Edgar Allan Poe story, one minute slow and stable, the next frenzied. Then there are the tension-building, heart-stopping pauses. The three musicians are accompanied, on occasion, by the actors playing a flute, bugle and cello. Influences of punk rock, Victorian music hall, gypsy style accordion folk music, cabaret and even Klezmer permeate the indefinable sound. The group has been together for eight years, and have a huge cult-like following in Europe. They have made several CDs.

This CD includes musical numbers: The Struwwelpeter Overture, Augustus and the Soup, The Story of Cruel Frederick, The Dreadful Story About Harriet and the Matches, Snip Snip, Bully Boys, Fidgety Phil, Johnny Head-in-air, Flying Robert and Schockheaded Peter. A wonderful album, one cannot help but dance at times to these bizarre tunes!
JANA"

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... ce&s=music

[mousey1]

I finally found it...

she's a toe tapper

shake it but don't break it...

The Tiger Lillies - Hell
http://www.radioblogclub.com/open/13580 ... 20-%20Hell