Momus, The Little Red Songbook (Le Grand Magistery)

Posted December 31st, 1998 by admin

Momus
The Little Red Songbook
Le Grand Magistery
By: Eric G.

Momus is a bit of a freak. He is a clever wordsmith with an ear for a catchy tune in the vein of Jacque Brel; however, his subjects know no boundaries. He asks the world-weary question "what is the cultural meaning of coming in a girl's mouth?" in "Coming In A Girl's Mouth." He concludes that it is "some sort of baptism by sperm." He also wonders in "Walter Carlos" if time travel were possible could composer Wendy Carlos travel back in time to marry herself before she underwent a transgender operation when she was known as Walter Carlos (the composer of the original score for Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange). Momus got slapped with a law-suit in excess of seven figures for defamation of character for that tune, which he won, although, he decided to pull "Walter Carlos" from future pressings of The Little Red Songbook anyway.

Momus composed and performed The Little Red Songbook entirely using a Roland VS 880 H.D.R. His electronic ditties are simple and up beat, creating the perfect landscape for his eremitic sense of humor. Momus cites an unique list of influences in his liner notes: Brecht, Pasolini, Klaus Nomi, Beastie Boys, Falco, Stanley Kubrick, Michael Jackson, and, of course, Wendy and Walter Carlos among others. The last half of The Little Red Songbook is comprised of Karaoke versions of ten of the album's brightest moments, for which Momus has supplied the lyrics and encouraged listeners to partake in the parody by recording one's own version of a Momus song and mailing in the results for a chance to be on the next Momus album. Momus offers his own disclaimer for those unable to digest his acerbic wit: "To anyone injured by my Baroque spite (you know who you are) sorry to make you suffer for my art! I was just powdering my wig and a cloud of chalk went up."

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