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If the Ghetto Love EP -- released by Spinnerette late last year -- was anything, it was a statement of intent. That statement screamed an unconcealed desire for change -- a curiosity, diversity and experimentation that Brody Dalle had previously kept carefully repressed within the closets of her mind during her years as the in-yer-face frontwoman of L.A. postcard punx the Distillers. While Dalle claimed in an interview with MTV in 2007 that her Spinnerette output would “not be that far removed” from her latter work with The Distillers, this could not be further from the truth. As Ghetto Love illustrated, Spinnerette is a brand new machine altogether -- and this self-titled LP only serves as further proof of this -- with Dalle here delving even deeper into her creative soul, spitting out whatever she finds, no matter how dark, how bleak, how challenging.

The album itself, like the preceding EP, varies greatly in tone -- veering without warning from agitated to upset, from depressed to celebratory -- but always glued together with a dark undercurrent. Often sounding like a post-apocalyptic punch-up between an angry, cocaine addled My Bloody Valentine and the Distillers on an amphetamine stained comedown, Spinnerette is full of desolate laments that document the inner demons residing within the mind of Dalle.

From the sexually charged “Geeking” and the troublingly incestuous “Sex Bomb” to the love shattering “Cupid,” Dalle at times sounds lost in the traffic of her own racing thoughts; however, there is something endearing about the honestly with which she dispatches the woe from her bleeding heart. Flashes of what Dalle is capable of appear intermittently; “Driving Song” is one notable example, as she articulates some of her most poignant, refined and confessional lyricism to date: "If all the love in this world isn’t enough / Where do you go? / Who do you trust? / I find myself wrapped in the arms of emptiness / I can’t stop running away / Can’t find a place to exist."

But beyond merely exploring Dalle’s inner self, Spinnerette is an exploration in the creation of music -- the arrangements here are more complex, more diverse than any generic, archetypal ‘punk song.’ It is here that one must admire Dalle, for she is attempting to pursue a creative direction that is a purer representation of her character than the Distillers would have permitted -- a woman of her stature, reputation and fame could quite easily churn out an album of candy-coated, radio-friendly blasts of pop-rock for big money, but instead she has chosen to stay true to herself.

The flipside of this, though -- of creating something so distinct from her previous work -- has resulted in what is essentially a complicated album: a maze of ideas, together with a mesh of styles that at times wanders close to something bordering on special, other times stumbling onto the wrong side of forgettable. Yet this is a good album that reeks of potential -- the beginning of a journey that will surely, and almost inevitably, yield greater fruits.



People who liked this also liked:
Refused - The Shape of Punk to ComeThe Distillers - Sing Sing Death HouseOperation Ivy - Operation IvyAlkaline Trio - GoddamnitThe Distillers - Coral FangSpinnerette - Ghetto LoveFugazi - 13 SongsRise Against - The Sufferer & the WitnessRise Against - Revolutions Per MinuteFugazi - Repeater + 3 Songs



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    Posted by weldergirl on 2009-11-19 17:28:09

    I really enjoy her music, I can feel the passion in it. I do not think her music depends on who she is fucking at the time. I think it stems from that. It is poppy but I think the lyrics is what it brings it together. It will be interesting to see where this goes.

    Posted by ____Win_Win_Situation____ on 2009-11-06 06:45:19
    My Score:

    this record is really bad and not punk at all. the cover is some lame sex shit.

    Coral Fang is my fav. Distillers record. 10 stars for that!

    Posted by ____Win_Win_Situation____ on 2009-11-06 06:45:12
    My Score:

    this record is really bad and not punk at all. the cover is some lame sex shit.

    Coral Fang is my fav. Distillers record. 10 stars for that!

    Posted by raveneffect on 2009-08-29 23:37:15
    My Score:

    I have to admit it,I'm quite fond of Brody. Shes hot as fuck and has an amazing voice. I really liked her Distillers stuff,but for some reason this album just doesn't do anything for me. Aside from the catchy Ghetto Love (which has a retarded name),the rest of the album was completely forgettable for me.

    Now that The Distillers are long gone,maybe Brody should just stick to being a house wive.

    Posted by Chadreligion on 2009-06-30 03:42:09

    I don't think that's Brody's crotch on the cover, but if it is, it's photoshopped really well, but still amusing.
    She has a big Aussie butt, so she can't be that bad of a shag, not to mention, she aint too bad looking as a blonde.
    Other than that, her and her music can blow me, Distillers and all...

    Posted by evildeadalive on 2009-06-30 03:03:58

    Is that Brody on the cover?

    Posted by CCSummers on 2009-06-29 00:47:24

    For real. The punk scene always hypes itself for being so accepting, but there are always assholes like the ones below with sexist attitudes repping patriarchy in their words and actions.

    Album is okay. Some really good moments.

    Posted by the_other_scott on 2009-06-28 21:15:59

    i haven't heard this yet, but the mysogny in these comments is ridiculous. the assumption tha Brody can't/doesn't write her own music is absolutely fucking dumb. by the way, the distillers never sounded anything like rancid and i can't imagine this is anything like QOTSA.

    Also. QOTSA own Rancid. But if you listen to music then you already knew that.

    Posted by mattramone on 2009-06-28 11:15:58

    Who is she fucking this week?

    Posted by Tye on 2009-06-27 10:20:08
    My Score:

    @cunt and rancidtommy, who was she with when coral fang came out cos that doesn't sound like rancid or qotsa? unless she was gettin boned by the ghost of kurt cobain, that's a pretty flawed theory. also the song writing credits on alot of the songs are shared between her and the bassist, who was or is in qotsa, hence possible similarities you might hear, but is it a bad thing that another member of the band contributed to the writing of the songs?

    still, not the best. everything just seems "buried" by the overslick production. and the reviewer puts a positive spin on the variety of the album, and that can be a good thing, but i prefer albums to have a more consistent "theme" or style, and i didn't think it worked too well on this.

    Posted by oldpunkerforever on 2009-06-27 07:02:35
    My Score:

    ugh, terrible-oldpunker-

    Posted by clark530 on 2009-06-26 18:11:45
    My Score:

    After reading the comments from some of the people on here on thought I would add my opinion since their's are based on the fact of who and not what. This CD is pretty awesome. I loved the Distillers and love this more then anything they put out. You can HEAR if you listen that Brody and Tony have grown musically. So what if her husband has influenced this music. Someone has influenced you. Baptized by Fire is the best song on the CD. I like almost every song on it. I'm glad that she's still around making music. If you like Brody's sexy voice you will love this. I can't quite put a label on it. Brody rocks and you know it.

    Posted by pastorrichards on 2009-06-26 15:30:48
    My Score:

    Score is for the album cover which reminds me of the 'Watchmen' poster!

    Posted by lookbackandlaugh on 2009-06-26 14:43:43

    The cover art is... just really bad.

    Also, I think it's a bit unfair to say that punk (or punk-ish) music can't have complexity. There are ways to work within that framework; she just wants to make different music.

    Posted by cunt on 2009-06-26 13:25:53
    My Score:

    Spinnerette just goes to show she has no musical identity of her own. She's with Tim her music reflects his, she's with Josh, her music reflects his.

    Posted by pricey123 on 2009-06-26 12:03:17
    My Score:

    disappointing

    Posted by Rancidtommy on 2009-06-26 11:50:05

    the band isn't like the Distillers cuz Tim doesn't write for her anymore.

    FUCK Brody & the fags of the stone age

    Posted by NewKid on 2009-06-26 08:38:13
    My Score:

    Score is for all the metaphors in the review. I want to hear this album. The hype around this and the EP made me curious.

    Eric

    Posted by xcarlupanddiex on 2009-06-26 02:03:44
    My Score:

    score is for the cover artwork

    are there people who care to listen to this ?

    Posted by telegraphrocks on 2009-06-26 01:48:10

    Also, Tim Armstrong's tongue was up-in-there!

    Posted by telegraphrocks on 2009-06-26 01:47:31
    My Score:

    This is a terrible fucking album.

    P.S.
    The Distillers weren't all that bad. Never got played that much by me, but when I played 'em I rocked out.

    But this.... dogshit.

    Posted by keith19 on 2009-06-26 01:28:42

    I will never listen to this cause I hate Brody. Nothing appealing about her to me at all. Oh well.

    Posted by mikexdude on 2009-06-26 00:48:49

    Also worth mentioning this is the second review posting in a row where the word "incestuous" was used. AWESOME!

    Posted by mikexdude on 2009-06-26 00:48:02

    Drunk is Shultz Brian.

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