Search - Danielle Dax :: Comatose Non Reaction

Warning: this album will leave you comatose. Haha J.K.

Daniel J. Hamlow | Narita, Japan | 12/22/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Fuzzy drone guitar, sitar, weird feedback sounds like Sgt Peppers except weirder... that's the world of the lamentedly underrated Danielle Dax, the force behind the Lemon Kittens, later a solo act in her own right, whose pop career was thwarted, as the title of this double CD compilation so accurately states. Considering how she got her start in the 1980's, this stuff was REALLY way ahead of its time! Part of this review might be considered a review of the 1988 compilation Dark Adapted Eye or 1987's Inky Bloaters, from where the bulk of the songs come from, so..."Bad Miss 'M'" is the closest to a country song that Dax came to. I don't know who they're singing about, but I got a kick out of the perverse lyrics: "We're all gonna have a party when you are gone/Desecrate your grave and sing this song." All that's missing is the lust-crazed "Yee-haw!"The first verse of "Big Hollow Man" seems to talk about the evangelists, while the third verse imparts the ongoing conflict in the Middle East encouraged by some mad mullah or cleric. Religion, or the misuse of religion is the key theme here. Dax's vocals is eerily high-pitched in the "Hey Yeh!" parts."When I Was Young" is a nice, introspective, mellow, wistfully poetic song, replete with carnival sounds, and weird sounds. The opening verse: "Everything shone in the happiest sunlight forever/and tunnels of leaves made specially for me/led to a magic place where I could hide for a while." I wish I had a place like that."White Knuckle Ride" is another jamming song with lyrics about "Crazy Little Charlie" and "Crazy Little Suzy", must be about Mr. Manson and Ms. Atkins of the Sharon Tate massacre with these words as a chorus: "Dance, dance, dance, little victim/Carnivore, carnivore."The thumping "Cat-House" is my favorite Dax song, and it is downright erotically hot, using car-sex analogies. She has an eerie little-girl voice in the verses: "Baby, baby, got my pistons pumping/Got my engine throbbin' and my sockets jumpin'/He's the one with the magic key/Knows my road from A to Z/And he'll stay 'n' give me such good lovin'" and "Gonna polish up your chrome and shine your treasure/Silken bellies and downy thighs/A little trick with a big surprise." No mystery as to what that refers to. The guitar is pretty hot too.Of the previously unreleased stuff, "Defiled" is a maddening industrial-metal number, a precursor to NIN or Manson, with Dax's vocals distorted like some mechanical monster. The lyrics to "Blight" are very perverse and gory: "You defecate in the face of reason/Eviscerate the truth/P.ss contempt on the badge of honour" and "Raw brain and bloody bone/In a stinking bladder soup/Sanity's-Season (buggered and bleeding)" Pretty hardcore stuff. "Mongatron" is nearly five minutes of psychedelic, industrial noise, with a metal striking metal noise.I already have Dark Adapted Eye and Blast The Human Flower, but one day, some label will have the sense to reissue Dax's catalog with bonus songs. For now, this collection will have to do."

Great Collection... Great Title!

SandmanVI | Glen Allen, VA United States | 01/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"At the height of late 80's post-punk, when alternative was on the rise, one of the artists that never found a home with a wider audience was Danielle Dax. Another brilliant band similarly overlooked was The Bolshoi (and perhaps Xymox), but that's another story for another day. While cranking out highly intelligent, creative songs that had catchy pop sensibilities, she struggled in total obscurity. Weird, because everyone who was familiar with her loved her. The word of mouth press was fantastic but it never got beyond that. Outside of the Goth hour of any decent college radio station (and no, she's not really Goth) I never heard Dax on the radio. Not once. I'll never understand that.



Dax' style incorporated elements from a diverse array of genres including punk, folk/acoustic, Middle-Eastern, dance, metal, yes Goth and even country. Her vocals fluctuated from smooth & beautiful to shrill & manic without skipping a beat... Stylistically you might say she was a precursor to Bjork though they don't really sound too much alike. Her lyrics were extermely intelligent and often in your face... she never shied from confrontation.



This hits collection is comprised mostly of tracks already released on 'Dark Adapted Eye', itself a compilation of even earlier hard-to-find releases. If you own that I don't see this as essential other than the heavy-hitting "Defiled" and a couple of remixes. One thing that annoys me is that this doesn't give you the original versions of a couple of great songs instead providing remixes only; Always a bad move even if the mixes are good. If you don't own DAE and are wondering where to start your Dax collection this could be a good starter. However, my recommendation is to buy 'Dark Adapted Eye' and, if you like it, then get 'Blast the Human Flower'. The reason is that DAE includes "Brimstone in a Barren Land" and this collection does not; It's just too good not to have."

Thwarted is right...

Michael S. Bloss | Eugene, OR USA | 07/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Danielle Dax, is in the words of a close friend, "the best musician you've never heard of". As stated before, Ms. Dax has a hard to describe style, indeed she's known for "Daxifying" different musical styles. This is a great collection of her earlier works, 1989's "Blast the Human Flower" album is not represented on this collection. Blast was suppossed to be her crossover mainstream effort, but it was mismanaged. If you like something different, this collection is for you, and if you can find it, get Blast the Human Flower to see a different side of her musical talents.
Update: In spite of the fan outcry, Ms. Dax has given up her musical career to become a garden designer. Oh to live in the parallel universe where BtHF was a hit..."