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A little over two years ago, "Love
In Reverse" (Mike Ferentino - vocals, guitar; Andres Karu
- bass, keyboards; Dave Halpern - drums, loops) released their
first LP for Reprise Records, "I Was Here." They were
Feature Artist in the very first issue of ACCESS to the MUSIC
ZONE in November, 1996, and the subject of a segment of ABC's
"Turning Point - So You Want To Be A Rock And Roll Star"
in February, 1997. After many delays, their sophomore effort,
"Words Become Worms," finally released on 7/21/98 and
they're off and running. Already at #3 on the National Music
Critics Association Top Ten as of 8/10/98, this album has received
much critical acclaim. Now it needs to find an audience.
While touring steadily for most of 1997,
with bands such as "Gravity Kills," "Stabbing
Westward," "Republica," "Holy Barbarians"
and others, a lot of the songs for this second album were written.
Says Ferentino, ". . . the road turned out to be a perfect
environment to try out new things. No roots, no responsibilities,
nothing to tie you down, the days and nights just blend into
one another. There was something about that surreal atmosphere
that we wanted to capture on this record." To capture the
essence of the ever-evolving sound, "We knew we wanted to
do it ourselves," explains Ferentino, "and to have
as much control over every element as possible. We didn't want
to buy time at some studio and create by the clock. So it made
sense to build our own studio." Which they did - "from
the ground up," they built a 32-track aural laboratory and
started on the second album in early 1997.
When I first listened to "Words Become
Worms" I wasn't quite sure what to think of it. The CD is
so different from everything else that's out right now, it was
a big wake up call. After years of combinations like "alterna/pop,"
"pop/punk," "light rock" and what USED to
be alternative bands going mainstream, I finally decided just
where this album fits - on the cutting edge of a new kind of
alternative music. With an eclectic mix of sounds, including
acoustic, psychedelic, off-beat melody lines and pace, this album
totally came together for me after a couple of listens. There
was just something about it that wouldn't let me go. A first
listen wasn't enough to catch all the ins and outs and intricate
musicianship on the record, but each subsequent time I noticed
something else. This is definitely album that you need to listen
to if you want to catch all the nuances, but it's also great
in the background. According to Ferentino, "It's very moody,
very psychedelic." Sort of a musical collage with topics
from sex, to dark spirituality, to a big time reality check.
Starting with "Fate," a song
very reminiscent of several songs on their first album, the acoustic
opening moves into a bit of an off beat, with guitars alternating
with the bass and drum line, until the chorus comes up with full
instrumentation. A bridge of strange sounds - like an instrument
breathing - follows, before moving into a full fledged reprise
of the chorus, and ending with odd sounds. The song title pretty
much covers the subject of the dark lyrics.
"Wheels" is a bit more conventional,
at least in the way it's presented, with vocals and instrumentation.
However, the instrumentals have a flavor of 60's psychedelic
brought into the 90's, and the lyrics are harsh compared to the
soft way they're delivered. Part of the song is really dreamy
sounding, followed by crashing instrumentals. A very interesting
song.
"Load Of Motivation," the first
single from the album, starts with some odd sounding guitar picking,
then moves into a minor-key verse. The lyrics are stark and cold,
again in contrast with the music, as the song moves into full
instrumentals with a heavy rock beat on the chorus. Although
this is a really rock out song, and is probably the logical pick
to be released as the first single, I can think of better tracks
to launch this album. The very next song, in fact.
"Rain And The Thunder" is my
favorite tune on this album, and I think I've about worn out
the track by repeating it so many times! This is another song
written in a minor key, but it has totally cool backing instrumentals,
a catchy melody, just right pacing, and awesome lyrics. Mike
Ferentino's vocals are outstanding on this song, and, after talking
to him briefly, I discovered it's one of his favorites too. It's
very difficult to describe what makes this song so great, since
it's a combination of all its elements. Trust me, it's an awesome
song!
A rather somber piece is up next, "When
The Witch Came Home." This is a very dark song, both lyrically
and musically, but it does do what it sets out to achieve. It
has an interesting melody line and harmonies, accompanied by
some very strange sounds. "Malady My Lady" is a real
hard rock, psychedelic song with enough pace, key and sound changes
to make it stand out on an album with a lot of unusual tunes.
An almost bossa nova beat intros "O Mie," with a really
heavy base line added on top of it. Lyrically this one is about
a lover, but it's not a very happy song. Actually this one is
kinda dark too.
LIR isn't afraid to get sexually explicit
on this album, and "Vast Garden (North)" is one of
the two songs using euphemisms to express very sexy lyrics. "Vast
Garden . . ." is one of the more upbeat songs musically
on the album, but there are still a lot of offbeat sounds and
rhythms. More of the "90's psychedelic" they're portraying
on this album. "Vast Garden (South)" follows - how
convenient! It's basically a continuation of (North) with a more
mellowed out sound, but plaintive vocals. Moving on to "Murder,"
which surprisingly is really a love song, it flows along the
airwaves with a very pretty melody line and loving - well as
loving as a song called "Murder" can be - lyrics.
Back to the beat, a nifty base line, and
faster music, is "Filthiest Person Alive." This has
some pretty awesome music and effects, while the lyrics are pretty
surreal. I think it's a social commentary, but I'm not positive.
Going even further into the psychedelic mode is "Mommy Daddy
Baby." Musically it's about an average pace, but the vocals
really set this song off. Also the use of acoustic guitar and
softer percussion lends support to the vocals. The song is a
bit strange, but I found I liked this one a lot after listening
a few times.
The next song kinda blew me away the first
time I heard it. Called "American Cream," the song
opens with a very dark, surreal sound and very blunt lyrics -
until you hear the rest of the song. "Give it away to all
the drag queens/ Give it away to all the heterosexuals/ Give
it away to all the lesbians/ Give it away to all the homosexuals."
This song is actually a commentary on talk shows and their "usual"
subjects - and about how simple life was when we were kids, like
riding Big Wheels and having only 13 channels on the TV. Basically,
why is there such a big fuss about the things on talk shows these
days. It ends with the lyric "Give it away," and segues
immediately into "Clean Song." This one is very dark
and surreal also, but has very interesting music and vocal effects.
Closing the album is "Wasting."
This almost takes you back to a Beatles tune at the very beginning
as far as the sound. It's a very upbeat song musically, and the
lyrics are more upbeat than any others on the album. I really
liked the use of musical and vocal effects in this song. The
timing of various pace changes, sound changes and lyrics is right
on. Oh, and the song is about " . . . feels like wasting
time."
Overall, this album probably isn't for
everyone, but it sure is worth giving it a listen. If you want
something different than all the usual pap on the radio, MTV
and VH1, this is a prize to bring home. It may take a few listens
to get used to it BECAUSE it's so different, but you'll be glad
you gave it the chance!
EDITOR'S NOTE: Lead Singer Mike Ferentino
called me a few weeks before this review was published to let
me know that the band "Love In Reverse" broke up. I
don't have concrete details, so I'm not going to publish the
exact conversation. However, Mike did ask me to let all of the
LIR fans know that the band appreciates your support in the past,
and of this new album. Mike, with some help from Andres, will
be releasing a solo album, on his own label, either late in October
or early in November. I will make it a point to keep you updated
on what's happening with the former members of LIR, and if you
have any questions, please feel free to write to me. |
