May 25 2006
The Deadfly Ensemble – An Entire Wardrobe of Doubt and Uncertainty
The Deadfly Ensemble’s debut, An Entire Wardrobe of Doubt and Uncertainty, is perhaps the most delightfully odd album I’ve heard in quite some time. To my ears it sounds like a funereal waltz through a madhouse. (Which makes sense if you know that The Deadfly Ensemble is a Cinema Strange side-project.) Drawing inspiration from silent film scores and decadent cabaret, the music is composed mostly of heavily-effected acoustic guitar and bass and minimal keyboard and drum intrusions. Through it all, Lucas Lanthier’s spectral voice warbles and trembles like a child lost on a snow drift; his unusual vocal territory lies somewhere between David Tibet, Edward Ka-Spell, and Anna-Varney. The packaging is a particularly attractive matte digipack with two booklets and some very enigmatic art pieces. The album also comes with a commentary disc, similar to the commentary tracks that are usually included as bonus features on DVD movies. However, while the commentary is humorous, I’m not sure it really adds much value to the overall package. Overall, this album does a fine job of being both theatrical and melancholic…a three-penny opera for postmodern times, perhaps?
