artist: karoliena verlinden
title: baby, you can drive my hearse
label: bee knee's industries
verdict: pick it up if you can find it.but dont waste too much time looking for it.


track listing
1.absinthe flavoured kisses.
2.sittin on your headstone.
3.baby,you can drive my hearse.
4.diner at the edge of the world
5.don't sell your soul for me.
6.sunrise after the bomb.
7.stardust on my pillow.

sounds like:

review:
fresh from the presses at bee knees industries comes "baby,you can drive my hearse". most people will recognize this young lady from her work with moderately successful psychobilly band,"atomic war bride". karoliena's solo work is an entirely different animal from the reckless...or feckless abandon that the war bride is known for.aside from the subject matter,these songs wouldnt be out of place if sung by billie holiday or ella fitgerald.to deepen the connection to times past,this album is only available on 78 rpm vinyl.

"i was looking to create a sorta female tom waits feel.you know,disturbing and dark,yet sexy as hell.",karoliena commented when asked about the direction of the album. "dark and disturbing" is indeed an apt discription of her wares.most of the songs center around deaths of one sort or another.

absinthe flavoured kisses
the album's opening track is a slow jazz number about lips that taste of everyone's favorite wormwood based liquor..not the best written song,but it slinks along with enough innuendo that ron jeremy's face would turn red.

sittin on your headstone.
there is a certain pleasure that can only be derived from sitting on a (late) lover's tombstone.the song tells the tale of a woman who murders her husband by dosing his morning coffee with lsd....right before he heads off to work.at the funeral she sits atop the tombstone and reminisces about what drove her to such lengths...lesson learned: buy your lady some flowers every now and again!

baby,you can drive my hearse
possibly started life as an atomic war bride song.it's noticeably faster than most songs on the album.the song is obviously a take off of the beatles "baby,you can drive my car".the song features a very "mod" sound,provided by erica hess and her magic keyboard.

diner at the edge of the world
a rather surreal song about a 50's themed diner sitting on a fragment of an exploded earth.karoliena's vocal delivery makes even untold human suffering sound tolerable,providing one has a cup of coffee and a slice of pie! the song is nothing short of beautiful,and is the strongest track on the album.

dont sell your soul for me
basically a song about not putting women on a pedestal.the song is a woman detailing the numerous,and sometimes shocking ways she's been untrue to her man.sometimes a pretty smile hides a very sordid past.

sunrise after the bomb
it's been said "everything looks better in the morning"........

stardust on my pillow
the album closes with "stardust on my pillow".an upbeat and rather sweet song.nothing special,but it's an innocent love song in the way of "a kiss to build a dream on".

final word
all in all "baby,you can drive my hearse" is solid album,but one has to wonder what sort of audience will appreciate it.it's too dark for traditional jazz fans,and it sounds too much like great-grandparent's music to be of interest to anyone else.