Search - Lillix :: Inside the Hollow

Not Exactly HOLLOW.......But Not Rock Solid Either!!

Jef Fazekas | Newport Beach, California United States | 04/18/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"O.K., I'll admit it....I was pretty hard on Lillix and their debut album, 2003's FALLING UPHILL. As a life-long connoisseur of all-female bands - 33+ years after their last release, Fanny is still one of my two all-time favorite bands, while the GoGo's, the Bangles and the Runaways are all in my Top 20 - I've been waiting a long time for an all-female group to come along and take up Fanny's mantle as the Queens of Rock & Roll. With FALLING UPHILL, Lillix didn't seem to be that band....they were too cute, too poppy, too......"Let's put a band together after school!" Granted, the album had enough interesting moments that I was curious to see what they would do next, but I wasn't holding my breath! Well, I'm happy to say that the band's sophmore effort, INSIDE THE HOLLOW, is a definite improvement, showing considerable growth (I'd actually give it 3.5 stars if I could!). True, there are still some holes.....for starters, all the vocals sound the same. When you have multi-lead vocalists, you need distinct voices, as was the case with Fanny and the Bangles....you could always tell the Millington sisters apart, both from each other and from Nickey Barclay, or the Peterson sisters from Susanna Hoffs or Michael Steele; only a diehard Lillix fan could distinguish the Evin sisters from each other or bassist Louise Burns. There's also the matter of nuance....the gals still haven't learned it's importance. 90% of the songs here have the same "crash/bam/thank you, Ma'am" chorus, devoid of any subtlety whatsoever. Finally, they're still using male session drummers, so it's not really an all-female band, at least not on record (Michael Urbano, who supplies the drumming on all but one track, is so over the top and lacking in finesse as a musician that he almost overpowers every single track). As for the individual songs, opening tracks "Blackout" and "Little Things" both have some nice moments, with "Blackout" full of snotty garage-band energy, and "Little Things" dripping in sexy, seductive poppiness. Tasha-Ray Evin's "Every Girl" is a universal tale of selling your soul for that first great love. Full of New Wave pogo power and thoughtful lyrics ("Faking a smile, in denial, the damage is done/Crying all night/Every girl's the same with number one/The first guy"), this is one of the tracks that shows the most growth between releases. The same can't be said about the disc's title track, the noisy "Sweet Temptation(Hollow)." There's a dated, hyper feeling to the cut that has your head spinning by song's end. Released as the first single in Canada, the song quickly tanked (a contributing factor, I'm sure, towards the decision not to release INSIDE THE HOLLOW in the States). DEFINITELY one of the album's low points! Much better is Lacey-Lee Evin's "Doughnut." Anchored by a pulsating bassline and a soaring lead vocal, the song totally gels like few others here. By the time we get to the semi-spoken bridge and the very funny "[...]", well, the track's won you over completely! An album high point! The same can be said about the haunting "Wishing Well." Between the intoxicating strings, Lacey-Lee Evin's sparkling keyboards and the Motown-flavored chorus, this track brilliantly spotlights the potential Lillix obviously has (Or is that had? More on that later!). The same could be said about about (most of) "Just Like You"....there's a sensuous groove to the song's verses that's absolutely invigorating. Unfortunately, the chorus is the group's typical "Wail at the top of our lungs" routine...a much more low-key, maybe a cappella, take, with just a little bass and percussion, would have been much more effective. "Got Off Easy" sounds like a bad cover of a bad 80's B-side, full of cheesy synths and silly lyrics ("Creeping around at night/Is it impossible/To be an honest lover?"), while "Turpentine" has a faceless quality to it......this could be anyone, from the Cowboy Junkies to Evanescence to The Like. "Tempo Change" has an easy-going vibe to it, until - you guessed it! - we hit the manic chorus! Things do end on an up note, though, with Burns and Tasha-Ray Evin tossing off some killer bass and guitar riffs! Sadly, things end on a down note, with the weak "Poor Little Girl" and "Stay." "Poor Little Girl" is cliche-ridden and simplistic, a stab at social commentary that just doesn't work (Pink did it much better on the brilliant "Stupid Girls"), while "Stay" is listless; it's going for airy and dreamy, but just comes across as vapid. So what does the future hold for Lillix? Good question....the fact that it's been decided not to release INSIDE THE HOLLOW in the United States is obviously strike one against the band. Losing new drummer Alicia Warrington - an awesome musician who would have added to the group's musical cred! - and bassist Burns has to be strike two. If the band is to continue, they need to work on their material (some strong covers might help!), and get a powerful, more distinct, vocalist into the fold. If that doesn't happen, well, I hear Antigone Rising is looking for a keyboard player...! (As with all my reviews, I'm giving the disc an extra half a star for including the lyrics!)"

Good album gets better with each listen

Martin Podjski | johnstown, PA United States | 02/01/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I really liked Lillix's first album, and after listening to this the first time I was gonna rate it just slightly lower, I was used to the first one and really liked it. I've had a few days to listen to this one, and the songs really grew on me. I liked it to begin with but now I'd probably rate it just as good as the first album. Sweet Temptation and Doughnut really stood out for me, I really liked them and will definately be adding them to my playlist everynight. Blackout, Little things, Got Off Easy, and Just Like You also sounded good the first time I listened to them, I think they will be going on the nightly playlist also. Although a tad slow, even Wishing Well sounded listenable and good to me, I liked the occasional violins, not every song is as slow as this one, so it was nice for a change. Turpentine, although not one of my favorites to begin with, really grew on my and I'd say it's one of my favorites from this album, along with the previously mentioned songs. "Tempo Change", I'm still listening to that one. As the name says, it goes from a slower song to a faster one. My personal taste is I really like the fast ones, that one seems like a good one too. It's a little odd but overall sounds listenable.



Lillix has always had a rock sound to them (although some like to call them "Pop", if anything it was pop with a rock sound to it) for the first album. This one, although sounding different, still has that rock sound to it and fast upbeat tempo for most of the songs (as did the first album). I thought for my initial listen that they had moved more to a pop sound, but they haven't, the songs are just different from the first album, they still have the rock sound to them. So after listening to it for a few days I gotta rate it 5 stars because I really like it, it seems like most of the whole album is gonna be listenable , as was the first album. I can see this is gonna be another of my current favorite albums, that I listen to all the time."

AWSOME

Jef Fazekas | 02/26/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This cd does grow on you alot. Its rock and pop. Its so sad the band broke up I can name atleast 6 songs that would make excellent singles!

Too bad sweet temptation is the only 1 that got and will be released.



Blackout- 4/5

I really dont like the chores to this song. The verses are catchy and fun tho!



LITTLE THINGS- 5/5

This is a slower song, but if they were gona have a second single. THIS WOULD BE IT. Its the better, dance version of My Happy Ending.



Everygirl- 4.5/5

Fun, fun, fun, fun. This song would definitly be the 3rd single.



Sweet Temptation, -4.5/5

Its the first single. I think it was a good choice. This song is good but not the best on the album.



DoughNut- 4/5

This song is slower. It's definatly not 1 of those songs you skip, its a really good song. LOL Its hard to explain.



Wishing Well- 3/5 songs

This song is awsome. Its not 1 of the highlights of the cd but it will grow on you.





JUST LIKE YOU. 4/5

This song should have been the 4th single. Enough said.



GoT Off Easy- 3/5 songs

This is 1 of the songs i skip. Its not a bad song, It just dosn't do anything for me.



Turpentine- 2.5/5

This song is ok. It's just not my fav. Some of my friends would die for this song they like it so much, but me I dont care for it too much.



TeMpO chAnGe- 4/5

This song should have been there 5th and last single off this album. It's about a reltionship that didnt work out for 1 of the girls in the band. It would sooooooooooo hit number 1 if it was released.



Poor Little Girl- 3/5

Okay song, nothing special about it. Slower verses and a more rocky chores .



Stay-4/5

This song is a great way to end the cd. Its not 1 slow but not 2 fast, its perfect. This song could mabye even be a single in my eyes.







OVERALL this album is worth buying. It's something you'll find yourself listening 2 alot. And since it's the last album from the girls it's sure to be a collectors item some dai. So go ahead what are you waiting for? PRESS THE ORDER BUTTON!

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