Neon Blonde Album: "Chandeliers in the Savannah" Release Date: Sep 13, 2005 Label: Dim Mak Rock-Rev Value: [8.0/10] Genre: Rock Styles: Experimental Rock, Noise-Rock, Indie Rock, Indie Electronic Buy It

Tracklist:

1 Black Cactus Killers (2:34)
2 Crystal Beaches Never Turned Me On (2:51)
3 Chandeliers and Vines (4:07)
4 Princess Skullface Sings (2:30)
5 New Detroit (2:50)
6 Headlines (3:23)
7 Love Hounds (3:27)
8 Dead Mellotron (2:37)
9 Cherries in Slow Motion (4:02)
10 Future Is a Mesh Stallion (3:47)
11 Wings Made Out of Noise (2:21)

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review by:Allmusic
reviewer: Heather Phares
Album Value: (4.5/5)

Although Neon Blonde's Headlines EP showed that Johnny Whitney and Mark Gajadhar's side project could sound like the Blood Brothers while also sounding very little like them, it still wasn't adequate preparation for the crazed inventiveness of their full-length debut, Chandeliers in the Savannah. A glittering, sharp-edged magpie's nest of fractured glam, hip-hop, electronica, pop, Blood Brothers-style fury and whatever else caught the band's fancy, the album is an example of how to build something beautifully ugly out of trash. While Chandeliers in the Savannah's opening track, "Black Cactus Killers," could belong to the Blood Brothers, it quickly gets weirder and more eclectic from there, spanning the equally melodic and chaotic "Crystal Beaches Never Turned Me On" and the glammy, flamboyant piano ballad "Chandeliers and Vines" with blatant disregard for niceties like logic and continuity. Though tracks like "Princess Skullface Sings" lean towards danceppunk, the sound and approach are far more punk than dance, no matter how many drum machines and keyboards Neon Blonde tortured to make Chandeliers in the Savannah. Actually, the album is a lot less blatantly electronic than Headlines suggested it might be (although "Headlines" itself is still one of the highlights here). "New Detroit" starts out as a bouncy, acoustic singalong to urban decay before turning ferociously electric, while "Cherries in Slow Motion" teeters between a nasty tango and waltz. The little bits of pretty melodies that pop up almost every track on Chandeliers in the Savannah only make the album stranger: "Love Hounds"' chorus is downright lush, and the silky guitars on "The Future Is a Mesh Stallion" are wonderfully out-of-place with the song's hip-hop-inspired drum beats and synths. Likewise, "Wings Made Out of Noise" pairs one of the prettiest melodies with some of the ugliest lyrics: "The note carved in her back said 'I want a baby wrapped in hundred dollar bills.'" Packed full of so much stuff that whizzes by so fast, Neon Blonde's music might be slower and more melodic than the Blood Brothers, but it's still a pretty wild listen. Chandeliers in the Savannah manages to do more than just show off Whitney and Gajadhar's range; while it's got enough perverse power to please Blood Brothers' fans, it's also interesting enough in its own right to win over listeners up for a challenge.

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review by:Pitchfork
reviewer: Cory D. Byrom, October 12, 2005
Album Value: (7.7/10)

Neon Blonde is a Blood Brothers side project comprised of vocalist Johnny Whitney and drummer Mark Gajadahr, and it's worth cutting to the chase in regards to the similarities between the two: If your main beef with Blood Brothers is Whitney's cats-fucking-in-an-alley vocal style, Neon Blonde might not be your thing. His vocals are flamboyant, manic, and completely over-the-top on Chandeliers in the Savannah, Neon Blonde's first full length. The main difference between Blood Brothers and Neon Blonde, however, is that instead of the searing, angst-fueled punk rock, this disc hands over track after track of eclectic electro-trash and danceable noise rock.

The band excels at combining stripped-down electric beats and synths with more organic elements, such as piano, acoustic guitar, and saxophone. Many of the album's stronger tracks feature the piano as the prominent instrument, including "Chandeliers and Vines", an almost tender ballad if not for the 20-second wall-of-noise freak-out in the middle. On the other hand, jagged guitar lines and simple programmed beats assault the listener elsewhere on the disc, with Whitney channeling Brainiac's Timmy Taylor in full-on spazzcore mode. It's that sort of track-to-track variety that keeps Chandeliers in the Savannah interesting.

While "Black Cactus Killers", "Princess Skullface Sings", and "Dead Mellotron" rattle with heart attack inducing rock, "Crystal Beaches Never Turned Me On" and "The Future Is a Mesh Stallion" are as dance as they are punk. The band touches on a bit of everything, from glam to post-punk to lounge, and slams it all together like they're using some sort warped Cronenberg creation made from the spare parts of old Casio keyboards. Chandeliers in the Savannah is dark, mysterious, and challenging, but ultimately rewarding. It never feels contrived, never odd for the sake of being odd. And although there's definitely a sense of improvisation and freewheeling here, the band is precise, tight when it's necessary, and never excessively sloppy.(...)

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review by: Rockus
reviewer: Steph Edwardes
Album Value: (9/10)

The closing track on the Blood Brothers' 'Crimes' album of last year made reference to "neon black", so utilising Neon Blonde as the descriptor for the alter ego of band members Johnny Whitney and Mark Gajadhar seems fitting. Although there are musical parallels - the underlying murkiness, the lyrical cynicism, Whitney's unmistakably defining voice, which is actually further developed and experimental in this context - Neon Blonde is far more erratic, and harkens to the complexity of '...Burn, Piano Island, Burn!' if you swapped that commanding rhythm section for a drum machine and synths for half the time, oddly shaped guitar/drum arrangements the other, and then injected creativity from every possible angle.

Having said all that, opening track 'Black Cactus Killers' may as well proclaim itself as a Blood Brothers creation, particularly given its off-kilter guitar prowess and vocal approach. But in true Neon Blonde spirit, this isn't something that sets the tone for the rest of the album, because there is no simple message to be told. You have to expect nothing, and yet expect everything. 'Crystal Beaches Never Turned Me On' follows, introducing sinister piano work into the mix. When coupled with Whitney's wild falsetto vocal style (and you either love it or hate it), it's reminiscent of The Paper Chase, even if only for a second, while 'Chandeliers And Vines' is the closest thing Neon Blonde are ever going to come to a ballad... that is, if Whitney and Gajadhar beat the crap out of each other mid song. Here it becomes obvious that while this record certainly ebbs and flows, it also shakes, swings and twists violently. One moment refined, the next untamed, all created by various musical tools of destruction. You'll either find it incredibly innovative or just too damn awkward to listen to.

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review by: Drownedinsound
reviewer: peter white
Album Value: (3/5)

When you spend all summer in the desert listening to the collected works of Elton John, life becomes a bubble of pop culture guilt and fashion contradictions.

But it is also the perfect preparation to help you understand the intricacies of Neon Blonde's debut, Chandeliers In The Savannah, a record so beautifully obscure and obscurely beautiful that it draws from a modern day pool of blood that once drew Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica.

And in vocalist and Blood Brother Johnny Whitney (who is here alongside BB drummer Mark Gajadhar), there is a voice as uniquely piercing and annoyingly recognisable as ol' Reg's.

As far as side projects stretch, this is no Grohl-esque Probot or Oberst-led Desaparecidos, where the (commercially viable) instigators chose to disregard their previous formulas to experiment. Chandeliers In The Savannah is as equally obtrusive as previous Blood Brothers' offerings, particularly during the Second Nature/ThreeOneG days, but it allows them to promote even more noisy nasal grazed punk parlance, with a slight seminal nod to glam pomp and piano pulling Bowie-isms. (...)

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review by: Absolutepunk
reviewer: Garett Press
Album Value: (4.75/5.00)

I'm not proud of this, but I'm going to be honest… I've never really gotten into a Blood Brothers record. I've listened to the band and heard their praises sung over an array of mediums but regrettably I've never taken the time to sit down and submerse myself in any of their albums. However, like almost all great bands these days, the Blood Brothers have spawned an intriguing new side project: Neon Blonde. Neon Blonde features Brothers' vocalist Johnny Whitney and drummer Mark Gajadhar and is promotionally recommended for fans of David Bowie, Brian Eno, and Freddy Mercury…. What!? Glam-pop from the 70's and 80's? Well yes… kind of. Neon Blonde is an openly creative outlet for these spastically sassy rockers. Johnny Whitney has not left his sporadically convulsive coos behind, he remains chirping away with that idiosyncratic frenzy. For the most part, the urgent and frantic nature of Blood Brothers still presides over each track but here we see a rather dancy and glorified art rock vision, complete with synth drum beats, keyboard elements, and dark melodies abound.

For the most part the record is very impressive. Nobody does it like these guys, and this album only solidifies that statement. "Crystal Beach Never Turned Me On," the second song on the album is held up by an old school sounding hip hop beat, until haunting piano scales take over, bringing on a wave of B-Horror movie darkness, before proposing a tango of a chorus. Believe it or not, the following number, "Chandeliers and Vines," actually leaps into a qualified piano ballad. For several instances Whitney actually drops the screechy edge of his vocals and outright croons atop classic piano delivery. The song is very charming, and it is great to hear this eclectic risk tasking which results in the most accessible and endearing tune on the record. Fear not, tracks like "Princess Skullface Sings," and "Love Hounds," reveal those grungy, churning, menacing guitars, that rub you the wrong way, but in all the right ways. And still yet you've got the soaring digital edge of, "Wings Made out of Noise," and a full on dance-club hit under the title of "The Future is a Mesh Stallion." This bountiful tracklisting seems to cover so many designations of the modern rock spectrum yet somehow remains clearly a unified effort, never losing the focus that makes them Neon Blonde.

While I am a fan of Whitney's voice and the experimental music on Chandeliers in the Savannah, it's a stylistic sound that one has to be in the mood for, and is far from immediately approachable. This is no easy listening, or vaguely stimulating background music. Neon Blonde is a challenging and free spirited duo of musicians who took the CD and used it as an easel to paint a landscape of guitar textures, vintage electronics, and tearing shouts. If you were previously not a fan of the Blood Brothers, you won't find much to change your mind here. Probably the definition of a love or hate sound, those with already existing passion for the Brothers will most likely revel in this fun and more light hearted branch off; either way I'd recommend at least taking a preliminary listen. Maybe today's the day to insert a jagged contradiction in to your run of the mill playlist, and have your world turned upside down as your toe taps to a new beat. The hectic beat of Neon Blonde.

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review by: Rocknworld
reviewer: Mark Hensch
Album Value: (4/5)

Neon Blonde is a prime example of how a side-project can be every bit as unique and edgy as the real band. The Blood Brothers are undoubtedly (at least in this author's opinion) one of the most exciting bands to emerge in the last decade in the bloated punk/post-punk rock underground. Aggressive, dangerous, and misanthropic to the point of absurdity, the satirical, abstract, and surreal acid trips the Blood Brothers deliver are the stuff of spastic dreams.

Neon Blonde will throw some for a loop; the band is Johnny Whitney singing and guitaring, while drummer Mark Gajadhar shows up out of the blue to beat the skins. This gruesome two-some come across as lighter and generally a bit more focused on hyper, groovy, and angular riffs that fit in with many an art or prog band. The lyrics, however, still maintain that sinister flair for pop-culture skewering that the Blood Brothers have had since day one.

Chandeliers in the Savannah makes such a great album as it takes the best aspects of the Blood Brothers and adds elements not present in that kind of music at all. At a length of just over thirty-four minutes, the disc flys by and presents few if any weak spots. "Black Cactus Killers" sounds like a solid Blood Brothers B-side that just barely missed the cut.

The nonsensical lyrics, grooving acid rock riffs, and an odd moment of cocaine-addled dancing interludes make for a grand opener. "Crystal Beaches Never Turned Me On" starts off a little shakey; the ominous key tones and odd piano progressions are paired with clownish, over-the-top vocals and a swinging chorus that almost comes across as Latin music inspired. The song's grim narrative and Whitney's stark cliffhanger of "Cut, Cut to a Commercial" sounds so much like prime Johnny Rotten it might catch a few folks off guard.

"Chandeliers and Vines" is a misanthropic rant against the news, pop culture, MTV, overpopulation, luxury housing, sitcoms, and pretty much anything else. The song's operatic piano balladry, fantastic ravings, and soaring choruses make this the best track here; it is so far removed from what one considers to be in the cannon of Blood Brothers it is rather jolting, and it seems Neon Blonde would make a marvelous social protest band.

The trippy LSD tangos of "Princess Skullface Sings" should get plenty of people rocking and raving, and the following song, "New Detroit," mixes spacey and psychedelic folk intros with hypnotic walls of sonic assault for an entertaining concoction. "Headlines" is an obscene mix of electronica-inspired drum beats and crystalline, hollow, 80's keys.

"Love Hounds" is another stellar track, as it fuses a cushion of prickly yet ethereal pop with some odd guitar parts and screeching sing-alongs. The messy (in a good way) "Dead Mellotron" maintains a frantic lucidity of barely cohesive musical chaos.

"Cherries in Slow Motion" is a grandiose piece of mocking piano balladry, in which Whitney proudly sneers "The Devil just keeps on playing my song." "The Future is a Mesh Stallion" has an almost hip-hop worthy beat behind it; its an odd and perverse little slice of insanity to be sure. "Wings Made out of Noise" closes the album with a bastard conglomerate of Postal Service beats and detached guitars.

All-in-all, Neon Blonde astonishes by giving the ethos of the Blood Brothers a little more heart. I realize that many people foolishly miss the thought-producing messages within the music of the Blood Brothers simply because it is too frenetic and chaotic for their tastes. Artsy, catchy, but never anywhere near the Hell of conformity, Neon Blonde impress with a fantastic album of post-modernist rants and raves that pretty much anyone could enjoy a song or two on. Bloody fantastic!

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