One Object I Desire (Nine Objects Of Desire - Suzanne Vega)

Member Name: delawney

Product:	Nine Objects Of Desire - Suzanne Vega
Date:	10/10/02 (193 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It's Suzanne Vega!

Disadvantages: None I can think of..., ... unless you don't like Suzanne Vega

THE QUICK REVIEW (For those in a hurry)

"Nine Objects of Desire", released in 1996, is the fifth studio album from the delightful Ms Vega. I would say it's a smashing return to form, but let's face it, her form never left her.

Combining a number of musical influences from folk to jazz to rock, icing them with a delicious coating of layered vocals and filling with a gooey centre of tasty, insightful lyrics, she creates a totally yumcious musical meal.

There are no big hit singles here. No "Luka", no "Tom's Diner". I guess Suzanne Vega's just not singles material in the charts these days. But there are some cracking tracks. My personal faves are the smooth and jazzy "Caramel" and the upbeat "No Cheap Thrill"


THE FULL OP

Yep, delawney returns to form and writes yet another music op on a girly singer. Well you knew it was only a matter of time!

Think of Suzanne Vega and you probably think of the big hits from her first two albums. Her eponymous debut spawned "Marlene on the Wall" and it's follow-up "Solitude Standing" produced the brilliant "Luka"and "Tom's Diner". On both these albums Suzanne relied on a very simple vocal and guitar accompaniment formulation. Later on, she began to experiment more with a much fuller sound, most obvious on 1992's "99.9F" album.

So what of "99.9F"s follow-up? Here it seems Suzanne has returned a little to the simplicity of her earlier albums, whilst still maintaining the luxurious layering effect. I think her experimentation with musical styles is also more prevalant on this album. Still, she manages to do this without ever losing the Suzanne Vega feel.

As always, Suzanne treats us to a delightful mix of delicious sounds and thoughtful, intelligent, beautiful lyrics.


"Birth-day (love ma

de real)" opens the proceedings.

"One thing I know
This pain will go"

A gentle drumbeat and a sexy little bass riff kicks off the opening number. The lyrics are moderately simple and have a wonderful syncopation to them - really accentuating the underlying beat. This is a foot-tapper that starts slowly and builds into a stamper! The keyboards have a real hammond-organ feel too them, giving just a taste of sixties style, although that is not the feel of the song as a whole.


After an excellent start we drift into "Headshots". This is not a bad track, but it's not one of my favourites on the album. It does feature a sexy bass once more (seems to be a feature with this album) and a rather eerie whistle sample. As I listen to the track I worry it does seem to plod a bit, but there is still something rather yummy about the chorus. There is a slight sixties feel about the bridge on this track.


Oooh, then we move onto one of my faves, "Caramel".

"It won't do
to dream of caramel
to think of cinammon
and long for you"

Like the title suggests, this track is good enough to eat! It has a slight jazzy edge to it, and once again the really sexy bass. This is a gentle-paced track, but not a ballad, where the lyrics suggest to me she is tempted to do something naughty with a man that she knows she shouldn't - I'm guessing he's the caramel!


Suzanne stays a little naughty as we move into "Stockings".

"Do you know where friendship ends and passion does begin?
It's between the binding of her stockings and her skin."

As seems to be the theme with a lot of this album, the music is fairly minimalist, forcing us to focus on Suzanne's layered vocals and the clever, witty lyrics. The string arrangement here is fab - very indian-sounding.


"Casual Match"

comes next.

"I only turned to see
What hand had set this inner flame alight"

Another cracking number here. This track opens with a funky bass rif and a gentle drum beat. The guitar here is minimal, rather than providing the main body of the music, it simply accents it. The real focus here is Suzanne's voice over the simple, repetitive bassline, and it's fab!


"Thin Man"

Another one with a distinct jazzy edge. I'm beginning to think my recent jazz thing has been influenced by Ms Vega. This track is OK, but it's not one of her best. It has a nice feel to it, and it's full of promise, but somehow for me it just does not deliver.


"No Cheap Thrill"

"Lamebrain Pete wants to Spit in the Sea.
He's got a cool hand but it isn't for me.
Butcher Boy thinks he'll be splitting the pot.
But I've seen what he's got and it isn't a lot."

Now this is a song about gambling. Really, it is, I can see no innuendo. Not like all those years when I really thought ZZ Top's "I Got The Six" was about cards. I really think this one can be taken literally.

Now admittedly, I don't think a song about cards sounds very appealing, but this is a storming number. The lyrics are clever but lighthearted and fun. It's an upbeat track that always has me singing along.


"World Before Columbus" follows.

"If your love were taken from me
Every colour would be black and white
It would be as flat as the world before Columbus
That's the day that I lose half my sight"

This is a ballad, pure and simple, and it's gorgeous. It's got some of the most romantic lyrics I've ever heard. This is probably the song on the album that is most like Suzanne's earlier style - simple guitar and vocals. A cracker.


&qu
ot;Lo
lita"

Another track that is really vocal heavy. It has a jazzy feel with a slight tad of latin thrown in for good measure. Now, I quite like this track, but I'm not altogether sure it really goes anywhere. It's still pleasant filler though.


"Honeymoon Suite"

One of the few tracks on this album where Suzanne actually picks up her guitar. This is one of those songs that tells a story - in true folk music tradition. This song took me a while to get into, again it didn't really seem to go anywhere. But sticking with that folk music analogy, there's a lot more emphasis on the story, on the poetry of the words, and this works here.


"Tombstone"

"I like a tombstone cause it weathers well
and if it stands or if it crumbles only time will tell"

Sounds a bit morbid doesn't it? It's actually quite an upbeat number, jazzy once more, but with a nice funky edge.


"My Favourite Plum"

"See how the flesh presses the skin,
It must be bursting with secrets within"

A strange way to end the album - a very quirky song indeed. Strange, eerie string arrangements, and those sixties sounding keyboards are back. It reminds me of soundtracks to horror films where you hear little girls repeating nursery rhymes with spooky music. I like it, then!


I hate to say it because it sound so patronising, but you feel like Suzanne has grown up a bit on this album. No, I take that back, she's grown into herself. She doesn't bother trying to be commercial. You get the feeling she has produced an album that will please her, that she has enjoyed experimenting with these different musical styles. At times her lyrics are poignant and moving, at others, she's just having a bit of fun and even indulges in a little cheekiness. No harm in that after all!

All in all, this is a to
p notch al
bum. I'd like to give it four and a half stars, as I feel it only erally loses out on the five by one or two only slightly weaker tracks, but as dooyoo don't do half stars it will have to be four. But I hearily recommend this album to anyone (like myself) who is rather fond of talented girly singer-songwriter types.

This album was purchased for me as a present, but I have checked Amazon where it is currently retailing for £12.99. I'm sure you'll find it cheaper if you shop about.



DETAILS:

SUZANNE VEGA - NINE OBJECTS OF DESIRE - A&M RECORDS - 540 583 2
All songs and lyrics by Suzanne Vega except "Headshots", "Casual Match" and "Lolita"; music by Suzanne Vega and Mitchell Froon.
Produced by Mitchell Froom
1996

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