Customer Reviews

Kiss of Life

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Obviously I'd suggest the "Voodoo Dollies" collection to the newcomer, but this is a pretty good album as well. The title track is good, and "Jealous" is an incredibly catchy song and single. Yes this is kind of genreless, but alt-goth-rock with a splash of hair-metal roughly fits the bill. This being hard to find now, if you see it, don't "Walk Away" from it.

Gene loves jezebel has been consistent in producing catchy tunes in every album they create and this is no exception. compared to their previous 2 albums which was goth/dance oriented, this is a straight ahead sonic gothrock rush(why can't I?,walk away,evening star) with a sprinkling of some goth ballads(two shadows,kiss of life and i die for you). At first,the college radio hits( jealous and tangled up in you) would stand out but once you get to spin the album a few more times, each song would grow into you and give you the idea that GLJ were way ahead of their time with this 1990 album. A definite classic.

When I came across this album I had no preconceptions of Gene Loves Jezebel being anything but the band that wrote the song "Jealous" that was playing all over the AOR at the time. After buying it and playing it a hundred times or so I was convinced that they were the real thing. So I sought out other CDs, which by that time were bargain bin items, and bought anything I could find. "The House of Dolls", "Promise," "Discover" and finally the expensive import "Immigrant"(in that order). I hadn't an inkling of the turmoil between the twins or even that they were twins or that Michael had left before "Kiss of Life" came out. Just the ominous end credit "When worlds collide you will survive...Michael Aston..." I thought it was a dead uncle-brother-father-etc. Then I noticed Michael in the credits of the other albums and just figured he had died. I was pretty morbid and unassuming at the time apparently. Little did I know! I didn't find out about the duo-GLJ fight machine until just a month or so ago. It all caught me by surprise. My point with this rambling spiel is that the album came off flawlessly without the dearly departed, albeit alive, Michael. There was an obvious progression from more obscure sounds to a pop-ish feel that is normal with bands as they mature, seek fame or whatever, but they still sounded fresh and vibrant. This was the case twins or not. This wouldn't always be true in the future for either parties. Anyhow...

Let's get the bad stuff out of the way first. It's minimal but important to point out these things. First off, "Evening Star" is a throw away track. The bad lyrics overshadow any of the musical continuity. For me it was a foreshadowing to "Heavenly Bodies," which I despise. But that's that. Every album usually has one of these songs. There are also brief moments of over-indulgence on this CD, but they are mostly in the tome-like selections "Kiss of Life", "Why Can't I?" and "I Die For You." All three are great songs, but the former could easily have been pared down a minute or two. Nonetheless, I rarely end them early, so it's a minor gripe. "I Die For You" becomes a bit sappy but not to the point of over-sentimentality.

The rest of the album is brilliant. In early interviews they were always harping upon the fact that what set them apart from other bands was the color (colour for non-Americans) factor. They were casting bright rays of light and not the Gothic death-eclipsed blackness which was mistakenly attributed to them and their music. I don't know what the hell they were talking about but it's their music, I'm just the messenger here. But colorful it is. A bit too poppy for some people's liking but I don't think that they get pretentious or sound dated even to this day, older material or this release, unlike say Depeche Mode or Joy Division who sound very 80s.

"Jealous" is the obvious hit that you hear ten million times and love it until you get to the breaking point and it becomes as grating as hearing "Stairway to Heaven" for the 50 millionth time. Then you forsake it for the non-radio songs and come back to it a few years later and realize that it still sparkles. Still not my favorite, but a brilliant rock song all the same. "Tangled Up In You", "Walk Away" and "It'll End In Tears" are upbeat and infectious "pop" songs. I say "pop" but mean alterna-pop, but "pop" compared to their previous efforts. Everpresent great riffs, melodies and the wistfulness that accompanies this album from start to finish sans "Evening Star." Finally, "Two Shadows" is a nice little middle of the road love song that depends on your mood whether you like it or not. More times than not I do.

The music, especially the guitar work is sterling here, and first-rate GLJ, though a departure from the more bassy, moody dirges of the past. It's gritty and grinds and sings. The lyrics are a bit commonplace at times, but so were "Motion of Love" and "Gorgeous." You forgive these things with great bands. Jay's voice is strong and seemingly effortless from his howl to the patented "shoo-shoo". To be honest with you I never even realized that he wasn't always the lead singer until reading more in depth on the band online. Their voices are quite similar obviously, but I couldn't tell the difference from "Kiss of Life" or "Promise" who was singing. Then again I could barely tell the Beatles voices apart. That I'll attribute to being tone deaf. But that doesn't affect my enjoyment of this record one bit.

1. Jealous
2. It'll End in Tears
3. Kiss of Life
4. Why Can't I?
5. Syzygy
6. Walk Away
7. Tangled Up in You
8. Two Shadows
9. Evening Star
10. I Die for You

The cd case was broken when received. The process of the purchase was good.