(((((OPENmind/SATURATEDbrain))))): VOGUE, THE

Sunday, 27 November 2016

VOGUE, THE

Band: THE VOGUE

Genres: Post-Punk / Art-Rock / No Wave / Post-Hardcore / Jazz / Experimental / Lounge
Related artists: The Blood Brothers, Jaguar Love, Soiled Doves, Vade, The Chromatics, The Gossip, Neon Blonde, Fleet Foxes, Poor Moon, Appendixes, Past Lives and Shoplifting.
Country: Seattle, Washington USA
Years Active: 1999-2000
Song: "Cardiac Arrest in 4/4 Time"
Album: "The Vogue"
Year: 1999
For fans of: Soiled Doves, The Blood Brothers, Jaguar Love, The Chromatics, Neon Blonde and Dance Disaster Movement.

Label(s): Made In Mexico
This post's artist is from the November 2016 Mix. This is track #3.

You can download: the November 2016 Mix#11 right here or get the new December 2016 Mix#12 here.

Johnny Whitney from The Blood Brothers played in THE VOGUE. Like the other, more rock oriented side projects Neon Blonde and Jaguar Love, this band was the first of which showcased the synth-pop side. THE VOGUE was essentially the precursor to the jazzy, sassy experimental rock offshoot Soiled Doves that existed from 2000 to 2001. I'm pretty sure this switch from THE VOGUE to Soiled Doves happened for two reasons. The first was the rising popularity of screamy sasscore band The Blood Brothers. The second, synth player Hannah Blilie exited the band.

For the most part, this sounds like Soiled Doves. I mean...it basically is minus one member so I'm not going to go into much detail here as I've already reviewed the aforementioned band. THE VOGUE's debut 7" is my personal favourite and the screamier of the band's two releases. 'The Vogue' begins with "The Medicals" that uses really cool synths which mimic a heart monitor in a hospital room. The vocals float around until the one-minute mark when a creepy synth-driven breakdown occurs but swerves to a quick stop so the demons can step out of the vehicle and start dancing. This eerie beat during the verse then crashes in and out of time with the creepy breakdown creating a very cool dichotomy that is one of the band's strongest moments during their brief tenure. The incredible "Cardiac Arrest in 4/4 Time" is also housed on this rare 7" (which I happen to have for sale right here) and is 2:36 worth of choppy, eerie, THE VOGUE gold. At 1:37 it really picks up steam with some fantastic acid-soaked guitars and vocal explosions that make this the best song written by the band, in my humble opinion.

It's probably important to note that I'm very hesitant when it comes to keyboards in music. I generally find them to dominate the sound and take over my ears so I can't focus on the other instruments. Also, the volume level is usually blaring and obnoxious. With THE VOGUE, though, this is not an issue. I adore the synths on the 7"EP, but the cdLP 'As Brass and Satin' doesn't hold the same appeal. The synths are still there and are pretty good, I guess, but the music as well as the vocals are much more subdued and chained to a methodical writing approach and therefore lack the flair and sass found on the self titled. There are still some good tracks, such as "Scorpion Boy" (sounds just like Soiled Doves), "Sparkle That Rash" (combines The Blood Brothers sound with wailing keys reminiscent of 80s jazz-rock bands) and "March of Black and White Roses" which is the strongest song on the record, as well as the calmest, most melodic and catchiest.

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DISCOGRAPHY
Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.

1999 - The Vogue 7"EP (buy 7" here)

2000 - As Brass and Satin cdLP

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(1999) THE VOGUE - "Cardiac Arrest in 4/4 Time" (from 'The Vogue')