Arto Lindsay - Noon Chill

Arto Lindsay was a key figure in the No Wave scene due to his membership in seminal No Wave band DNA, though that is not why I bought this and this is not a No Wave record. Growing up in Brazil during the Tropicália movement, Lindsay has moved on from his No Wave days in a gradually more jazz oriented movement, first with The Lounge Lizards and then with his solo work. Again, not why I bought the album. A talented producer, Lindsay has begun to produce albums by some of the Brazilian artists who inspire him, including Caetano Veloso, Vinicius Cantuária, Gal Costa, and Carlinhos Brown. But I learned all this from his website. I bought this album because I thought his name was pronounced like seminal Star Wars Character R2-D2. I am a fucking idiot.

The music is heavily influenced by the Bosa Nova music of his youth, but with heavy electronic influences. The mix is pleasant and hypnotic, like a kind of latino cool-jazz version of Radiohead. I don’t know if it is the standard release method but the album I have is in a non-conventional jewel case. Instead of the brittle clear material we are used to this plastic is the heavy gage rubber-type material we are more familiar seeing in kid’s toys.

Part of what attracted me to this was the fact that Lindsay, a scrawny, balding, middle aged man, appears on the front cover soaking wet in nothing but a snorkel. On the internal photographs he is in a button up, long sleeve green shirt, tucked into his jeans which are hiked up to his belly button, and really ugly tortoise shell glasses of the type that were very popular in the 80s and early 90s but which were already inexcusable by the album’s 1997 release date. On the back cover there is a silhouette of a man with an obvious erection. This isn’t bad album art design. It is downright horrific. I basically had to see what the music was like.

So what is it like? I am trying very hard to be vicious in my reviews but any time I concentrate on the music my mind is forced, against its will, to think about other things. It is like the album has a will of its own and is exercising self preservation. I don’t know that I will ever seek this alum out for casual listening, but it is an interesting work, with some very talented performances and some great songwriting. I can see myself listening to this in the bath while I pursue my latest 900 page history of genocide in Africa. I could use a bath. I’ve been pretty stressed out this week, what with trying to find my pace working on the blog and worrying about my persistent lack of employment. A nice hto bath woulc be good for me, and anyway it is like 4:30 and I haven’t showered yet. That’ll be nice. I’m going to…I’m…I’M DOING IT AGAIN! THIS ALBUM IS EVIL! RUN! RUN WHILE YOU CAN THIS WILL EAT YOUR MIIIIIyyyy my I can have some nice tea while I while away the time. I did just buy some nice green tea and I have been hitting the white tea rather hard. It would be a nice change.