viperHouse: Ottawa
benjamin david stewart (stewartb@wam.umd.edu)
Wed, 1 Oct 1997 16:08:44 -0400 (EDT)
I'm not sure how many people paid attention to the post a few weeks back
about viperHouse's live CD fromt he 1997 Ottawa International Jazz
Festival, but I'm gald I did.
I took a chance on this one, and I can say that I wagered well. I'd never
heard of viperHouse before the post so I didn't know what to expect. They
did post to an acid jazz listserv, so it couldn't be that bad, right?
This Live performance is probably one of the few that I've heard in my day
that truly captures the emotions of the band. The songs on the album are
filled here and there with funky guitar riffs, heavy bass lines, and some
great horn playing. The most remarkable sounds on the album come from the
lead singer Heloise Williams. She may not have a voice fit for the Opera,
but on songs like, 'Give It Up' her haunting melodic vocals hypnotizes you
and will have you singing the song all day long afterwards. The hammond
organ on the tracks also deserves some credit. The faster songs would be
left in the dust without flowing wails of Ray Paczkowski's lines. With
covers of Sly Stone's 'You're The One' and Sun Ra's 'A Call For All
Demons' the Live CD, I feel, demonstrates this band's ability to mix slow
grooves with slick, toe-tapping, head-bobbing jams. If you can get your
hands on this puppy, you'll see what I mean. Later.
-Ben Stewart
stewartb@wam.umd.edu