Search - Bogus Blimp :: CORDS. WIRES

Like that wonka full-meal gum, except for music

Kevin Sapp | Pittsburgh, PA | 08/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a CD guaranteed to go somewhere you normally don't go in music. And that's a good thing.



BOGUS BLIMP is a group from Norway, a self-exaggerated Spectacular Rock Orchestra, on Garm who-the-hell-ever's Jester Records. Anyone familiar with this label will understand the implications, but for the unenlightened, they seamlessly blend synths and electronic sounds with quirky, self-made samples and atypical vocals, plus a plethora of other sounds and instruments. This album, though there is an unusually wide variety of songs, is incredibly cohesive and forms its own concept album by varying not just the chords and vocals and whatnot to open chapters to new parts of the story, but rather venturing into a new sound entirely during some parts of the album. And no matter what sounds they recall or build on, they do it well. I have seen comparisons to the Residents; they are probably the closest match, but BB is less experimental, a tad more listenable, not to mention much more satirical.



My favorite thing about this band is that they understand that, when one writes a concept album (I'm pretty sure it is), one must not just take one musical sound and inject the story into the lyrics; rather, one must take the story and inject the music into each part of it. Every song isindicative of its own mood, and regardless of the shifts in sound, it flows, just like a good story. Plus, the emotion is as sincere as it gets, and not necessarily stylized into the lyrics. The vocalist isn't constrained by singing cleanly (which he never really does), and manages during each song (or part of a song) he fits the music (esp. "End of the World", where he coughs, sniffles, grates, and howls over a dissonant guitar chord and forboding industrial sounds).



I've written enough, and you get the idea that I love this album, so I'll wrap it up. I hope everyone sees that this album is truly brilliant and beautiful and buys it immediately.



P.S. Look for the website for this album, there's a longer version there of a song called "Marching to Rome", wherein hijinx ensue."