Doleful Lions - The Rats Are Coming! The Werewolves Are Here!

Artist: Doleful Lions Title: The Rats Are Coming! The Werewolves Are Here! Catalog#: Parasol-CD-051 Price: $12.00	Tracks on this CD:
	I Miss The Kings
	Ocean Stars
	In The Early Morning Aviaries Of Marathon
	Sweet Driller Killer
	The Rats Are Coming! The Werewolves Are Here!
	Airline Histories
	The Contrarian
	Destroy All Monsters
	Driller Killer
	Hoshizaki Cubestar Soldier

other releases by the Doleful Lions

Doleful Lions

Jonathan Scott-Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards
Dave Jackson-Drums
Amy Palazzolo-Bass

Doleful Lions leader Jonathan Scott says it all started as a joke. Whether you buy that or not is part of the charm and mystery of Doleful Lions, who've gone from the oh-so-twee 80s-fixated techno-pop of Jon's first demos, to twin-guitar southern-harmony rock a la Let's Active, the dBs and (duh) R.E.M. as evident on their Parasol debut Motel Swim… and now to an entirely different lineup and a decidedly heavier (like, heavy thinking, not heavy like Blue Cheer or anything) streak on album number two, The Rats are Coming! The Werewolves are Here! Oh, sure, there were hints of it on Motel Swim - the spooky death-waltz of "Respirator" and the Bob Pollard-in-a-bad-mood majesty of "Advanced Japanese Candlestick Man" suggested there was more inside Jon's brain than smiles, vibes and harmony. But never like this.

Check this subject matter: serial killers, UFOs, the legendary Aztec pilots, famous monsters of filmland, Greek mythology, the feudal system… and, of course, falling in love at the end of the world.

Don't freak! There's still plenty of the Doleful Lions pop formula you know (if you know it) and love (if you love it) - pogo-pop anthems ("I Miss the Kings"), bouncy AM sounds that Ray Davies would've killed for ("Ocean Stars"), a song that could be both by and about Alex Chilton ("The Contrarian") and, um, oh-so-twee 80s-fixated techno-pop ("Airline Histories"). There's just a broader palette of sounds, that's all, thanks to the band's self-production along with the meticulous ear of engineer (and now an official Doleful Lion himself) Kurt Mueller - textures that are by turns disturbing, distracting and disorienting on some songs, while others get the Abbey Road-on-ashoestring orch-pop treatment, so that by the time the album's closer, "Hoshizaki Cubestar Soldier", oscillates into noisy oblivion, you may well have heard it all.

The studio tans are beginning to fade, Jon's written something like 40 new songs, a film for "Ocean Stars" begins shooting soon, and a musical stage production (we hesitate to use words like "rock opera", but…) incorporating songs from Motel Swim and Rats are Coming… is underway (really!). The current DLs lineup performed at this year's CMJ Music Marathon, and might even come to where you live.

Doleful Lions 1999 were Jonathan Scott Amy Palazzolo Dave Jackson

Doleful Lions 2000 are Jonathan Scott Kurt Mueller Dave Jackson

"Scoring with the lion's share of tracks on this album pop fans will have nothing to complain about, finding hints of everything making pop so fun on this record…From the sweetly thin voice of Jonathan Scott to the band's trumped up sparkling guitars popping up on this record, the Doleful Lions exhibit one of the finest understandings of everything pop since pop's fall from grace earlier this decade." Aversion.com

"(Jonathan) Scott carries on the North Carolina tradition of diminutive, brainy pop guy with a high nasally voice (think Mitch Easter or Mac McCaughan). Overall, Scott delivers a wealth of melodic parts that point to emergence as a talented songwriter." -Angie Carlson (Independent Weekly, November 10-16, 1999)

"The cryptically titled The Rats are Coming! The Werewolves are Here!, was released late in '99, and it's giving some reviewers a chance to drop some names of their own in the midst of compiling lists of perceived influences and kindred spirits: Ray Davies, Brian Wilson, Mitch Easter, Alex Chilton, Robert Pollard and Game Theory/Loud Family guy Scott Miller to name a few." -Rick Cornell (www.spectatoronline.com, January 19, 2000)

"They've discarded any twee elements to their sound and beefed things up significantly, while still maintaining the melodic core which is cast from a mix of guitar and keyboard. Harmony rich vocals inhabit every song and there's an element of experimentation, with synths, loopy SFX and even whistling , that sets the Doleful Lions apart from the pack." ---Terry Hermon (Bucketful of Brains)

"The Doleful Lions have elevated themselves into the leader category when it comes to taking their music in a new direction….TRAC!TWAH! is considerably longer, explores darker themes and fuzzier sounds, and exhibits impressive artistic growth and maturity" Eric Sorensen (Amplifier)

photo by Upma Singh