Luscious Jackson Take New Tack On Electric Honey
For first time, songwriters Gabby Glaser
and Jill Cunniff worked apart to compose LP.
Contributing Editor Teri vanHorn reports:
A "crack-hotel kind of place" might not be most
musicians' ideal spot for writing songs, but Luscious
Jackson guitarist Gabby Glaser said that was just
what she needed before returning home to New York
to record the band's third full-length album, Electric
Honey.
After a year and a half on the road for its predecessor,
Fever In Fever Out (1996), Glaser said she needed
time to clear her head, so she packed up her
equipment and retreated to the Miami digs.
"Everyone who lived there was out of their minds, but
once I got into my room I was fine," she said from New
York on Monday. "They were harmless, but it was a
little out of control."
Electric Honey marks the first time Glaser and
singer/bassist Jill Cunniff have written a full album
independently of each other.
"Before we made the record, Jill said, 'This is the
way I'd like to do this: I'll write some songs and
you write some songs,' whereas earlier we'd
collaborated," Glaser said. "Now I think she's a
lot happier writing by herself."
And Glaser said she's pleased with the results.
The new album, which opens with the infectious
"Nervous Breakthrough" (RealAudio excerpt),
accentuates Luscious Jackson's pop leanings while
continuing to pull in threads of rock, hip-hop, jazz, soul
and funk.
If the album sounds lighter than past Luscious
Jackson discs, Glaser said it's "a result of being
happy while we were making the record." During a
recent SonicNet chat, Cunniff also hinted that her
recent marriage played a role, citing the love song
"Devotion."
While Cunniff holds the sole writing credit for most
tracks, including the single "Ladyfingers" (RealAudio
excerpt), Glaser penned a third of the songs, each of
which showcases her foxy R&B vocals. Her
contributions include "Friends," a sing-along ode to
friendship, and the soulful "Summer Daze"
(RealAudio excerpt).
"['Summer Daze'] was actually originally about a
hermaphrodite named Mangina," Glaser said. "It was a
joke song. I would have loved to put it out as 'Mangina'
but the girls thought that it was a little too out of
control. It's like a salute to hermaphrodites. It wasn't
like putting them down; it was like hermaphrodite
pride" (RealAudio excerpt of interview).
The band 霠Glaser, Cunniff and drummer Kate
Schellenbach 霠began recording the album in New
York last summer, a few months after keyboardist
Vivian Trimble left the group to pursue her own
projects. The newly established threesome worked
with a mix of producers, including Tony Visconti (who
has produced glam-rockers David Bowie and T. Rex),
Tony Mangurian and Mickey Petralia.
Ironically, according to Glaser, all those hands on the
mixing console helped the band maintain control of the
album's sound from track to track. "Doing it like this,
with different producers, takes the pressure off having
all the burden on his shoulders," she said (RealAudio
excerpt of interview).
The band also brought in a couple of notable guest
vocalists. Blondie singer Deborah Harry can be heard
on "Fantastic Fabulous" (RealAudio excerpt), and
country songstress Emmylou Harris croons on
"Ladyfingers." Harris sang harmonies on several tracks
of Fever In Fever Out, as well.
Glaser said she sees Electric Honey as the logical
next step after Fever In Fever Out, which featured the
top-40 single "Naked Eye." But one longtime fan had
some harsh criticism about the new album, saying it
lacks the streetwise vitality of Luscious Jackson's first
two recordings, the EP In Search of Manny (1992) and
Natural Ingredients (1994).
"I really wish they would get back to their roots,"
18-year-old Shyna Gill, who runs the Luscious
Jackson fansite "LJ: Life of Leisure," wrote in an
e-mail. "It's just a bit too pop for my tastes ... I love the
old songs of theirs, I loved the whole vibe they had
back then. When I listened to [In Search of Manny and
Natural Ingredients], I felt like I was in New York City.
Now I listen to Electric Honey and it just seems like
any other pop-rock band that has come out in the past
five years. I loved their originality, but it seems to be
lacking now."
Nonetheless, Gill declared Electric Honey "a cool
album."
Cunniff, Schellenbach and Glaser met in the early '80s
while frequenting shows at downtown New York haunts
such as CBGB and Max's Kansas City. Around that
time, Cunniff and Glaser each began plunking around
on guitars, while Schellenbach was the drummer in the
original hardcore punk incarnation of the Beastie Boys.
A decade later, in 1991, Glaser and Cunniff made the
first Luscious Jackson demo, taking their name from
'60s basketball player Luscious Jackson. They played
their first show later that year, opening for rappers the
Beastie Boys and Cypress Hill. Their first recording, In
Search of Manny, was released on the Beasties'
Grand Royal label and featured thee songs from the
original demo and four new tracks.
Having returned from a short European jaunt early this
month, Luscious Jackson will play a few live dates
over the next week, including a free show Sunday in
New York's Central Park with the Jon Spencer Blues
Explosion and Mix Master Mike. On July 8, the trio will
begin touring on the first leg of the female-centric Lilith
Fair in Vancouver, British Columbia. Then they're
scheduled to team up with fellow New Yorkers Cibo
Matto for a three-week outing beginning July 23.
[ Thurs., July 1, 1999 3:01 AM EDT ]
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