CUBE E: LIVE IN HOLLAND

This was where I started to lose interest in The Residents. I actually saw them on this tour, and while the visuals were beautiful, the music was quite the opposite.

The premise of the show is that it is a history of American music in three acts. The first act covers the western half of country and western, the second features gospel and jazz, and the third is about rock and roll, well, particularly Elvis Presley.

Now, I used to enjoy The Residents' deconstruction of all sorts of music. "George And James" and "Stars And Hank Forever" were both brilliant cover albums. Even "Third Reich And Roll" for all of it's abrasiveness. has much to love about it. But on this album (and in the live show it came from), it's hard to picture that The Residents are doing anything but sneering at the music they are covering.

I understand that by touring with a live show, they have to choose which instruments to bring with them, but the synthesizer patches they use seem to have a sameness from song to song. And the vocals are all belched out in a "growl" that makes death metal vocals sound good. It essentially renders this album almost unlistenable.

The few bright spots on the album are: Voodoo Queen, where the band actually simulates some high energy jazz for a short time. Ober, the overture to the Elvis segment, thankfully instrumental, where the band throws in licks from many earlier Residents' classics. Hound Dog which almost rocks, and ends with the act's protagonist, an aging Elvis impersonator, getting murdered by British pop music.

Listening to this album for this review was the first time I played the CD since getting it (as a promo) two decades ago. It will probably remain unplayed for another few decades.