Search - Doleful Lions :: Song Cyclops 1

I am the Artist

Jonathan Scott | Wheaton, IL United States | 12/05/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These recordings were done over the period of about 3 months, originally conceived as demos for a proper single LP, the band and myself thought these "demos" were great the way they were. The rest of the band contributed various instruments and voices. We feel very good about the finished product, and I enjoy listening to it from time to time. The record is a conceptual "song cycle" orginally a 44 song two CD set. The other half "Song Cyclops Volume Two" might be released someday. We are currently working on material for a studio LP called "Out Like A Lamb". Reserve preconceptions, shake off your conscience and enjoy "Song Cyclops". Jonathan Scott Doleful Lions"

Another interesting departure

Esther Rabinowitz | Boston, MA United States | 10/24/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Chapel Hill, North Carolina's Doleful Lions are quickly becoming one of the most stylistically inconsistent bands around, and their third album, SONG CYCLOPS VOLUME ONE, is as different from its lushly pretty predecessor, THE RATS ARE COMING! THE WEREWOLVES ARE HERE!, as that album had been from the standard-issue indiepop of their debut, MOTEL SWIM. Recorded in singer/songwriter Jonathan Scott's living room, these 22 songs are all built around Scott's rough-edged solo voice and guitar performances, to which the other Lions later added minimal backing (vocal harmonies, tinny synths, tape effects, occasional drums, etc.). The murky results are somewhere beyond both lo-fi and Elephant 6-style homemade psychedelia, sounding like Guided By Voices after prolonged exposure to Neutral Milk Hotel. The one thread tying SONG CYCLOPS to the Doleful Lions' previous records is Scott's increasingly bizarre lyrics, populated with pop-culture fringe characters like Liberace, psychic Edgar Cayce and `50s serial killer Charles Starkweather. Scott's lyrics are front and center throughout; indeed, the record's only flaw is that there aren't quite enough cool sonic touches like the keyboards-and-tape-hiss arrangement of "Gimghoul Numerologist" and the delicate overdubbed harmonies and chiming 12-string acoustic guitars of "Breather Bulls." 22 songs is rather a lot, especially considering the limited sonic palette, but SONG CYCLOPS is a strange and often fascinating document."

Are you illuminated?

hee-hawman | Ill somewhere in IL | 12/24/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"OK. Many of you might not have heard of this band and it's a shame. The Doleful Lions have put out three consistently good albums over the past 4 years and this one's the best. Granted, I am the brother of the band's leader and I even used to rock out with him, but it's still excellent. I especially love the "enhanced" version of "We 3 Kings of Orient Are." If you don't know what I mean by enhanced then I guess you ain't illuminated. Seriously, I would love this album even if I didn't have to because he's my bro. Fans of GBV or Unrest or Thomas Paine would really dig this. Intelligent, catchy, and funny (with a little creepiness thrown in for openers). Best cuts: "A Walk in the Sun" "Sparks Fly For Magnemite!" "Gimghoul Numerologist" Bad Cuts: "Red-Top Lounge Flesheaters" (Sorry, brohemia)."