Skeletal Lamping

by Of Montreal

Overview

During the closing moments of 2007's Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?, bandleader Kevin Barnes introduced an alter ego, a flamboyant singer by the name of Georgie Fruit. One year later, that character runs amok on Skeletal Lamping, having wrenched the spotlight away from Barnes' sugary pop and trained it on an ambitious hybrid of glam rock, experimental R&B, and Scissor Sisters-styled sex-funk. Barnes sounds truly uninhibited under the Fruit guise, making declarations like "I'm just a black she-male!" with flamboyant confidence. Such a shift in direction marks Of Montreal's ascent into the psychedelic clouds where Ziggy Stardust once flew, only this time, the listener catches a ride on the back of a transgendered Prince fanatic whose songs are fragmented and confusing, yet still peppered with irresistible hooks. Like the album's cover art (an origami-influenced billfold whose flaps unfurl to form a giant floral display), Skeletal Lamping demands attention by being purposely puzzling. The music is extravagant and elaborate; each song is comprised of multiple vignettes, many of them completely different in style, and each track spills into the next. It's interesting to watch the pieces fit together -- to pinpoint the exact second where one song ends and another one begins. But whether or not you enjoy Skeletal Lamping depends on your tolerance for unchecked ambition and left-field experimentation, both of which are emphasized here. Of Montreal have rarely sounded so free, so unrestrained, but this is a love-it-or-lump-it album, a polarizing effort that -- depending on personal preference -- is either irresistibly attractive or overzealously pretentious. ~ Andrew Leahey

Product Details

Release Date:	01/17/2020
Label:	Polyvinyl
UPC:	0644110944917
Rank:	37098

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Of Montreal   Primary Artist
Alexis Daglis   Saxophone
Charlie Estes   Trumpet
Heather McIntosh   Cello
Aaron Jollay   Trombone
Dorothy Alexander   Keyboards
James Huggins III   Drums

Technical Credits

Andy LeMaster   Tracking
Kevin Barnes   Mixing,Composer,Engineer,Performer
Glenn Schick   Mastering
David Barnes   Artwork,Art Direction,Package Design
Nina Barnes   Artwork,Art Direction
Elaine Fong   Art Direction
Matt Lunsford   Art Direction