Momus - Ping Pong

Title: Ping Pong Artist: Momus Release Date: 1997 Re-Released On: 3/29/2004 Label: Le Grand Magistery, Setanta, Cherry Red Album Type(s): lyrics/libretto UPCs: 5013929115828, 616656000426, 017533090521, 724384517823 Genre: Rock Styles: Synth Pop, Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Indie Rock, Alternative Dance, Chamber Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Punk/New Wave, Twee Pop, Indie Pop, Shibuya-Kei Moods: Eccentric, Literate, Provocative, Campy, Irreverent, Quirky, Witty, Confident, Cynical/Sarcastic, Sophisticated, Stylish, Wry, Cerebral, Ironic, Poignant, Sexual, Silly, Sleazy, Acerbic, Rousing Total Copies: 0 Members Wishing: 5 Number of Discs/SwapaCD Credits: 1

1. Ping Pong With Hong Kong King Kong (A Sing Song)
2. His Majesty the Baby
3. My Pervert Doppelganger
4. I Want You, But I Don't Need You
5. Professor Shaftenberg
6. Shoesize of the Angel
7. The Age of Information
8. The Sensation of Orgasm
9. Anthem of Shibuya
10. Lolitapop Dollhouse
11. Tamagotchi Press Officer
12. Space Jews
13. My Kindly Friend the Censor
14. The Animal That Desires
15. How to Get - And Stay - Famous
16. 2PM

Year Type Label Catalog # 2004 CD Cherry Red 158 2002 CD Setanta 1 1999 CD Le Grand Magistery 60004

No other editions were found for this album.

The second Momus album issued in America by Le Grand Magistery, Ping Pong marks the flowering of the so-called "analog baroque" style that would be further developed on The Little Red Songbook (although there had been hints of it even in the early synth-pop days). The themes and obsessions are typical of latter-day Momus -- misanthropic wit, sexual mischief, intellectual esoterica, Japanese culture -- and are scattered around the album in an occasionally cohesive fashion. As usual, Momus' stylistic range is impressive: baroque chamber pop, of course, but also waltzes, disco, delicate ballads, Shibuya-kei pop, mock Russian dances, Serge Gainsbourg/Jacques Brel-style French pop, bossa nova, and extended rambling narratives, to cover the majority of it. Although the album is somewhat uneven, highlights are plentiful: the snarky loathing of "His Majesty the Baby," the angel/devil dichotomy in "My Pervert Doppelganger" (a recurring theme in Momus' work), the cleverly constructed wordplay of "I Want You, But I Don't Need You" and "My Kindly Friend the Censor," and Momus' own version of "Lolitapop Dollhouse," the young-feminist anthem he penned for Kahimi Karie. Unfortunately, there are times when Ping Pong bogs down in unfocused, overly long songs that stall the momentum built up by the best material. With some more editing, Ping Pong might have been one of Momus' best efforts; as it is, it's simply a fine album, uneven but featuring too much top-notch material for most fans to pass up. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Name Credits Momus Cover Design, Producer, Sleeve Art Riho Aihara Photography