The Debutante Hour – The Birth And Death Of Meaning (Independent)
By the third track I had enjoyed a journey down a 1940s Parisian boulevard (despite it’s reference to LA, but thanks to the full throttle accordion), a 1930’s Chicago speakeasy, and turn-of-the-century New York Bowery district. And for me track four could have fit snugly onto the ‘Oh Brother…’ soundtrack, whilst the ghostly saw that permeates the tale of the next track, “Sunday In The Trailer”, has the imagination exploring every nook and cranny of said trailer - and we are not even half way through these 14 tracks! Just supposing they get Stephin Merritt on board for a future project… now, there is a thought!

The three women who make up the band, Susan, Mia and Maria, have been working together now since 2008, and there is a surprising depth to some of the songs once you get past the costume frills and the Vaudevillian posing. The highlights are “4th Dimension”, and “Sometimes I Wonder About The Creator Of The Universe”, the latter not even pretending to be taken lightly, although the breezy tune continues the deception admirably. However, the last verse gives us a much better idea about their collective psyche, their take on all things encompassing: “I don’t know what it means… all this suffering collectively… We could all be machines… set to love defectively… There ain’t no good answer; that’s just how it works… Sometimes I wonder about the creator of the universe.”

Their blurb states American Gothic meets the Andrews Sisters, but I never heard those girls sing about anything that was deeper than the snow surrounding Santa’s sleigh. So, go out and buy it (okay, go online and buy it), and you make of it what you will. If you struggle, as I have, to fathom its complexities, at least you will have enjoyed the effort.
www.myspace.com/debutantehour
Kev A.

THE DEBUTANTE HOUR – CROAK, HISS AND SPLUTTER

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