Album Review: Of Montreal - Skeletal Lamping

Of Montreal
Skeletal Lamping
Polyvinyl, 2008

Skeletal Lamping can be overwhelming. Ideas bloom and wither at an astounding pace, as if Kevin Barnes ignited a firework stand and recorded the spectacle. There are no segues. The arrangement of audio fragments in any one “song” seems completely arbitrary. However, the unpredictability becomes intoxicating. Cowboy twang becomes cacophonous noise becomes falsetto bliss symphony. Piano elegies are juxtaposed with filthy Boys II Men slow jamz. Barnes is endearingly sassy when he delivers his obscene come-ons, alternately seductive and Boy Scout earnest. The lyrics can be read as a commentary on sexual identity and gender politics in the twenty-first century, but the strip club bass curtails deep analysis. (Perhaps for the best – it’s wise not to delve too deeply into the psychology of lines like, “You’re the only one with whom I would roleplay Oedipus Rex.”) Good job adventure sex time!

[Adam Rux]