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Cohen, Danny: We're All Gunna Die

This album is designed to capture Danny Cohen's commentary on "worldwide, local and personal tragedies" from his college years to the present - which presumably covers a lot of history as he's been active in the music industry for over 40 years.

The philosophical messages on the cheerfully-named We're All Gunna Die are delivered through a pitchy, mid-range voice, thinly layered instrumentation and poetic lyrics. There are 16 songs in 58 minutes, for an average of just 3.5 minutes each, and no two songs are alike. Most are led by vocals and acoustic guitar, putting a strong focus on the lyrics. Think of it as artsy-folk music enriched by the inclusion of 9 guest artists and a variety of instruments including Hammond, Omnichord, lap steel, harmonica, Chinese double bass, accordion, Mellotron , horns, toy piano, slide whistle, violin and French horn. There are occasional instrumental passages, like the closing section at the end of the eclectic "Tanna Leaf Orgies (of the Living Dead)", but don't expect any heavily textured walls of sound. This is folk, not progressive music, and each instrument is given plenty of room to breathe and is pushed sufficiently far back in the mix to grant primary focus to Cohen's love-em or hate-em vocals with the its "moo"-like vocal effect in "Cows" and the overtly cynical tone in most songs.

In a biographical note - Danny Cohen has been making music since 1961, and a low (or high?) point of his early career was - according to "All Music guide" his being banned from performing the L.A. club circuit after his cult following purportedly smeared feces all over one venue's bathrooms, inspired by Cohen's chocolate pudding stage antics during a number called "Disco Diarrhea"

It is possible that We're All Gunna Die will have more appeal to fans of 1960s philosophy and poetry that to the garden-variety music fan. The subjects addressed in the songs range from a near death experience, the death of the '60s. death by voodoo, and there's a child abduction / murder parody. There's isn't a positive or upbeat song on the CD, although there are moments of wryly humorous parody.

Is Cohen the visionary, musician, painter, writer, traveler and philosopher, he's portrayed to be?

Or is he just a pretentious and over-the-top, remnant of the '60s?

You will have to be the judge. Either way, it's an interesting and somewhat unusual CD.

 

Track Listing:
1. As I Looked Down
2. Among The Cows
3. Pamela Rodgers
4. Caffeine & Sunlight
5. Film Noir
6. (Tongue-tied in) Quicksand
7. Magritte
8. Cousin Guy
9. Funeral In New Orleans
10.Ghost Country Safari
11.World of Holograms
12.Serene
13.Tanna Leaf Orgies (of the Living Dead)
14.Coffee Is Evil
15.Mystery Man
16.We're All Gunna Die
 

Added: June 4th 2005
Reviewer: Duncan Glenday
Score:
Related Link: The Record Label's Web Site
Hits: 2480
Language: english

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