Bill Mallonee

Item: Perfumed Letter
Author: Steve White

Perfumed Letter

(2003)

Reviewed by Steve White

Discogs Bandcamp

Label Paste RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2003

americana britpop pop rock

Is there life on other planets outside the alt-country solar system? Bill Mallonee tries his hand as a lone Vigilante.

For more than a decade, the Vigilantes of Love have been making some of the best unheard music around. Dancing around the worlds of Americana and alt-country, Bill Mallonee and his ever-changing line-up have brought jangly guitars, harmonicas, and pedal steels into clubs, bars, festivals, and homes on both sides of the Atlantic.

All that touring in the UK must have made an impact on Mallonee. He's left the band name behind, now recording as a solo artist with a decidedly Brit-pop feel. These songs are dripping with organs and distorted guitars. As Mallonee pursues a new sound, it only makes sense to leave the Vigilantes name behind. After bouncing from label to label, the band developed a strong following, complete with plenty of critical success. But as often seems to be the case, record sales were never part of that equation. At this point Vigilantes of Love carries a certain amount of baggage. The VoL sound was pigeon-holed to a certain genre. Plus, the name carries the weight of all those years of record label politics, not necessarily such a good thing. Who can blame Bill Mallonee for giving it all his heart with a fresh start? A new name and new sound could cure some ills, but certainly not all.

Does the new sound work on his first national solo release Perfumed Letter? Not as well as it did on VoL's last album Summershine, but it still makes for a fun and insightful listen.

The opener, "She's So Liquid" showcases the Bill Mallonee sound. Dreamy, distorted guitars and warm organ sounds encase Mallonee's earnest vocals.

Mallonee had shown signs of pursuing a college radio friendly sound, with songs like "It's Not Bothering Me" on his band's last album. But there are no percussive anthems here. Mallonee is clearly recalling his childhood favorites from the British invasion.

"Extraordinary Girl" is a beautiful two-and-a-half minute pop song, ranking with "Extreme North of the Compass" and "Tempest" in that aspect in Mallonee's catalog.

"Two Become One" seems to be an overplayed lyrical thought, although the line "you'll believe in magic with these higher mathematics" is appreciated.

The opening lines of "Wintergreen" showcase Mallonee's playful and poetic lyrics.

she pops a stick of wintergreen
outside the cash machine
it's lonely being lovely all the time
yeah when the rules all changed
the strange terrain of love's modern games
the ones that you play in your mind

The song also features some interesting word play, as Mallonee asks, "are you chasing or being chased?" which, he admits, could also be "are you chasing or being chaste?"

Mallonee invites us "to live inside this skin again" as he's done so many times before, on the song "After All You've Done for Me".

The album concludes with the sparse and meandering "Shirts and Skins" before the real finale, "Your Bright Future" (the best song of the Electromeo EP), resurfaces as a bonus track. "Future" is driven, purposeful even. Mallonee speaks of building a bridge in an effort to redeem a relationship on the brink. Sin and redemption have always burned under Mallonee's skin, and this album is no different. The sound may have evolved, but this is still the Vigilante we've known for so many years.

The biggest complaint many diehard VoL fans will have: They've heard most of these songs already. Many were featured on Mallonee's first true solo album Fetal Position. Now, Paste Magazine has started its own label, and they've culled songs from Fetal Position along with several new tracks to create an album far more cohesive than either of the two solo CDs Mallonee released in the last year.

It's no secret Paste, the magazine, on-line store, and label has long supported Bill and the Vigilantes of Love, so it only makes sense to launch a label with Mallonee as the flagship artist.

3.5 tocks