Description
An Evening At the Feelies is an album by the American alternative rock band Bumblepuppy, released on Bulletproof Music in 1998, a division of Gray Dot, distributed by Diamante Music Group.
It’s a shame about the name because I have a feeling it’s going to keep this band’s mood masterpiece in the underground. I only heard the album by accident, having ignored it the few times I’d seen it (I thought it was children’s music). Turns out the name comes from a novel the band members are all fond of (Brave New World), but that doesn’t help much.
Anyway, the music is superbly moody modern rock, approaching brilliance at times as it shines a light down the same dark pathways as Radiohead, the Verve, Bloomsday, even the Choir. Listening to this on headphones, I often felt as though I had entered another universe. A place of lush melody and emotion, warm guitars, quietly throbbing bass, and an atmosphere that’s alive! There is much variety in the vocals – way back in the mix, “normal,” distorted, soft-spoken, upbeat…you get it.
Interesting song titles («Nancy Meets Nostradamus», «The Insane Protagonist», «My Supercountry») and lyrics reflect the band’s interest in literature and take some effort to interpret (but they still sound cool even to people like me who can’t figure them out). Here’s an easy excerpt, though:
As free form as she always wasn’t
She took this as defeat
But in her mind’s eye she saw him hanging
Suspended by his feet
Broken and bloodied by the tireless room
Water flowed from his side
She lurched and she shook under his steady gaze
Her heart washed in the tide
(from «Dead Room»)(I apologize to the band for probably ruining the meaning by taking them out of the song’s context)
The last track, «Time Must Have a Stop», is from the viewpoint of a man dying in a hospital bed. It’s a heartbreaker. Melancholy vocals, sad piano background, heartbeat and moniter sounds, and a breathing machine work together to produce one of the most moving songs I’ve heard. Tears, man.
Don’t let the name Bumblepuppy scare you away because this is powerful stuff. [Josh Spencer, The Phantom Tollbooth, 1998]
> iTunes
CD tracklist:
01. Earth Summit – 6:22
02. Nancy Meets Nostradamus – 6:15
03. Flicker Flash – 6:17
04. Dead Room – 5:21
05. Self-Effacing Deity – 3:39
06. Silver Blue – 6:10
07. The Insane Protagonist – 5:52
08. My Supercounty – 3:40
09. The Brink – 5:16
10. Time Must Have a Stop – 6:46
[youtube_sc url=”ezUML42IYOs” playlist=”_V47oSNznis,wjKnUZV_8hs,m7maP1z-4hg,eWZQTF4LQbA,ZboW5Pkwxqk,GbqxvXGpxLA,bk3b2gXulpU,hHqiTP-0XLQ,azxwMCiwjaw” title=”Bumblepuppy, An Evening At the Feelies – Earth Summit + Nancy Meets Nostradamus + Flicker Flash + Dead Room + Self-Effacing Deity + Silver Blue + The Insane Protagonist + My Supercounty + The Brink + Time Must Have a Stop” autohide=”1″ rel=”0″]
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.