Electro-caberet meets dreampop
Craig L. Gidney | Washington, DC USA | 05/09/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This classic album was released in 1991. It features the stunning vocals of Val Martino, who bridges the gap between opera and avant-garde--imagine a cross between Dawn Upshaw and Lene Lovich, and you get only a glimpse of her reference. Composer Gregory Simpson writes music that goes from electropop, to delicate piano ballads to full out gothic-catheral pieces like "I Bury My Love." The album ends with a wonderful, silly song called "The Open Air Cafe", which is sung in a faux French accent. The lyrics are sardonic and imaginitive. Too bad Grace Darling made only one CD. Check out the sound samples of Simpson's oeuvre at his personal website, http://www.ultrasomething.com, and you will hear what a loss the ethereal crowd suffered when he went on sabbatical."