Search - No-Man :: Housewives Hooked on Heroin

A great song, but a somewhat lacking single.

Michael Stack | North Chelmsford, MA USA | 06/12/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"The leadoff single to Wild Opera, "Housewives Hooked on Heroin" presents the title track in two mixes along with three B-sides. At the time of release, the piece got mixed reviews-- while No-Man had started moving away from their pop roots on Flowermouth, "Housewives Hooked on Heroin" was something quite different. A downtempo, bleak portrait, with a dull pulse that gives way to a morbid groove and eventually a slather of industrial guitar soloing, it is a complete reinvention of the band. And just when you think things couldn't get more bizarre on the piece, Tim Bowness' vocal gets doubled with a high harmony that somehow drags the piece even further along in its black mood. The remix by Scanner (the sublimely titled "Housewives Hooked on Methadone") I could probably live without-- Scanner turns the piece into a drum-n-bass number, I find the explosiveness of the beats detract from the mood of the song-- it's not bad, but when compared to the original, it's not grabbing me.



The B-sides are kind of a mixed bag-- it's pretty clear the band was reaching for new sounds. "Hit the Ceiling" is built on drum-n-bass rhythms a milky bassline and a vaguely panicked vocal from Bowness. "Urban Disco" is truly bizarre, mixing disco-styled samples with industrial guitars and an unusual sense of urgency, it's quite undefinable and I still haven't made up my mind whether I think it was successful (I do love giving it a spin, however). "Where I'm Calling From", with guest performances from trumpeter Ian Carr and guitarist Robert Fripp (with his ambient hat on) is perhaps the most telling for the band's future, its' the sort of ballad piece that would dominate Together We're Stranger, but lacks some of the power of that later music.



It's an interesting single, but by and large "Housewives Hooked on Heroin" doesn't have a ton of essential material."