Although they've been quietly plying their trade since the mid-'90s, NYC-based, two guys/ one girl trio BLONDE REDHEAD are still relatively unknown quantities this side of the pond, preferring to quietly build up their reputation mostly by word of mouth and via several strategic previous album releases such as 2000's immortally-titled "Melody Of Certain Damaged Lemons."
And, if you didn't know better, the facts we do already know about this enigmatic trio could easily lead us to jump to woefully incorrect conclusions. Indeed, when I tell you "Misery Is A Butterfly" was produced by Fugazi's Guy Picciotto and that BR previously recorded for both the Smells Like and Touch & Go labels, you'll probably be formulating visions of them as a tough, post riot-grrl/boy bunch.
On this evidence, though, nothing could be further from the truth. For starters, while the band - Italian-born Amadeo Pace (vox, words, guitars), Simone Pace (drums, keyboards, machines) and Japanese-born Kazu Makino (vox, clavinet, guitar) - may be based in New York, they're a million miles from the angular, no-wave moves the city's famous for and while Picciotto produces with confidence and clarity, the only thing you'd reach for in comparison with Fugazi's taut, wired sound is the tight, powerful drumming.
So there's no doubt the only agenda Blonde Redhead have in mind is their own. And, where their enigmatic, engaging music is concerned, that's more than a good thing. Indeed, while their earlier output on Smells Like was renowned for its' abrasive qualities, BR circa 2004 have taken a quantum leap forward, with Amadeo and Kazu's vocals speaking in secret, seductive tongues every bit as mysterious as Liz Frazer in her prime.
The album does itself no harm by leading off with arguably its' strongest track in "Elephant Woman" . An insistent, chromatic slice of drama with built-in tension, it's positively drenched in atmosphere, shivering strings and the sorta staccato clavinet that would have Greg Dulli doing cartwheels.
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Most of what follows is at least diverting and in several cases they again approach excellence head on: not least with "Doll Is Mine" - where a weird, almost Eastern European melancholy is aided and abetted by wheezing keyboards and droning cellos - "Anticipation" (slower, with mournful, ritual drums and descriptive baritone guitar) and the gripping "Maddening Cloud", which takes things at a faster clip, but is underpinned by Simone's heroic, spinning drums and really gets under your skin.
In terms of gripes, your reviewer's not too troubled. Certainly, despite the inventive arrangements, maybe a few too many tracks are mid-paced and (deliberately or not) seem to echo the early 1980s. "Melody", for instance, apparently nicks the drumbeat from The Cure's "The Drowning Man" as its' framework, while the title track works a similar trick, except that Joy Division's "Twenty Four Hours" is the culprit this time. Still, this is nitpicking and surely won't bother you if you ain't of my vintage.
Besides, just to confound me, Blonde Redhead then decide to sign off with "Equus", which - after a sparse, rocksteady opening - whips itself into the album's most straightforward rocker with an irresistible chorus that leaves you desperately wanting more, so they've clearly got plenty more tricks up their sleeve.
Ultimately then, "Misery Is A Butterfly" is a deceptively beautiful, rarely-seen species that flourishes in gloriously mysterious fashion when it bursts from its' cocoon. Let's hope its' lifespan exceeds the usual expectations.
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