60%
Jezebel—Forbidden Fruit (2003)
Details
Produced by Ralph Cardall. Released on 26 August 2003 on the Triple Silence label.
All songs by Eileen Daly except “Snow”, “Heroin”, “Kiss kiss”which were co-written with Nigel Wingrove, and “Decadence”, “Lecter and Bundy” and “Rock Chick” which were co-written with Tom Callaghan, and “Brute of Cute” which was co-written with Marvin Frost.
Band
- Eileen Daly — Vocals
- [No information on other band members]
Tracks
- Intro
- Queen of darkness
- Kiss kiss
- Brute of cute
- Rock chick
- Garden of love
- Snow
- Heroin
- Plastic surgery
- Lecter and Bundy
- Decadence
Review
I had never heard, or heard of, Jezebel before (other than the Queen of Israel who features in the Hebrew bible, 1 Kings 16:31). The band was formed by (adult) actress and singer Eileen Daly who has apparently appeared on The X-Factor and Big Brother. But as I watch neither…
The sleeve notes claim ten tracks, my CD player claims 11. And sure enough, the album opens with a short, unnamed track which I’ve called “Intro”. That really didn’t endear me to the album before I’d even listened to it, as I had to edit the track names twice on my PC. (Oh the hardship!)
After the 57 seconds vocal scrapbook that is the opening track, “Queen of darkness” bursts into life with a heavy electronic/guitar riff. Daly’s vocals are mostly spoken which did make me wonder if this was more of a vanity project than anything genuinely musical but the rest of the album put those doubts to rest.
The album does have a dark, gothic feel to it but wrapped within an electronica and pop-metal shell. It immediately made me think of a fusion of Crowforce, Killing Joke, Depeche Mode and Efua Baker. What a combination!
Daly’s vocals do develop beyond the opening track’s multi-tracked spoken offering. In tracks like “Brute of Cute” she aims for a sensual delivery (think Marilyn Monroe singing “Happy Birthday, Mr President”). While in “Rock Chick” and “Heroin” her vocals are more like Skin from Skunk Anansie: a little more ballsy and rocky. And then of course there are buckets of Kate Bush influence in this album, not least the album cover.
Conclusion
This isn’t a bad album as such. It’s melodic, the songs are well written. It’s gothic pop. It’s transient. It’s throwaway. But while it lasts it’s also quite fun.
My kids think that the CD cover looks “freaky”. This afternoon they hid it at the bottom of a pile of CDs on my desk. They stuck the CD for Immortal Sense Call it anything at the top. My middle boy said, “It says call it anything… so I’ve called it Bob.”
Review score: 60%