On paper, the 34-year old Kelli Dayton has fairly enviable track record. Lead vocalist with the deliciously sneaky and trippy Sneaker Pimps (remember ‘Post Modern Sleaze’?), collaborated with self-styled satanic-twonk, Marilyn Manson, fetish-twonk, Marc Almond and funk’s all-time twonk, Bootsy Collins. In fact had the Pimps heralded from Bristol and not Hartleppol they’d probably still be mentioned in the same breath as Massive and Portishead. This time, however, she’d doing it solo. And has been for several years if truth be told. First there was ‘Tigermouth’ in 2003, ‘Psychic Cat’ the following year and last year’s ‘Sweet Oblivion’ with DropZ. And what are we to expect this time around? Well it’s nothing if not consistent, and after the initial shock and astonishment of the gaily naïve ‘Dancing Bears’ has worn off it finds a snug little place in your affections – somewhere between memories of your first Christmas and your subsequent discovery of chocolate. Not even the beleaguered folkish rustic excesses of ‘The Savages’ even succeeds in offending, the song’s tenderly skipping tempos and tooting oboes, vaguely reminiscent of Paul Giovanni’s queerly erotic soundtrack to crusty old pagan Brit-flick, The Wicker Man. And tracks like ‘Heavens Door’ and ‘Water Under The Bridge’ are positively beautiful (in a kooky and bookish post-Amos kind of way, naturally),
No beats, just a few oboes, some flutes, a piano, lashings of lush, fondling strings and Dayton’s loony, butterfly vocals.
Lovely.
ROCKING HORSE – RELEASED 24/11/08