Search - Cordelia's Dad :: Cordelia's Dad

Desert Island material

P. Vetter | Oakland, CA USA | 06/02/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Cordelia's Dad's first, eponymous album hints at the future direction of the band -- away from the electric, punk-fueled treatment of traditional songs and towards serious, non-ironic, traditional folk music performed sparsely on traditional instruments. And despite how their other albums are hauntingly good, this album captures raw, youthful energy of people discovering their raison d'etre. Here you will find energetic, electric, melodic-punk romps of songs up to hundreds of years old. The result is brilliant. Lounge lizard guitar/bass treatment in "Loch Lomond" the redemption of "Scarborough Fair", the rollicking "Maui", throat-scraping stylings of "My Pretty Little Pink," the "Baby Song" could be a cover of DOA, for crying out loud...The liner notes on all the 'Dad albums are good, but my favorite observation is on this one: "All these songs are about death, except for one, which is about going to Hawaii." Folk music enthusiasts should perhaps pass up this album in favor of the later Cordelia's Dad albums "Comet" and "Spine" which have very traditional folk music and shape note singing. But punk enthusiasts looking for something beyond two minute crashes through sex, drugs, violence, 'n' politics should hear this band, and this is the album for them. Because this is sex, drugs, violence, 'n' politics BEFORE it got all lamed out in the twentieth century. This is a band which can really expand your horizons. Four stars because "How Can I Sleep", their second album, had to have five. Finally, contact the band directly to buy the albums -- they won't be printed again any time soon."