![]() Unfortunately that melodrama spilled out from the songs into the band themselves. They held nothing back in their musical melodrama. But that’s what makes Gene Loves Jezebel so endearing. When they bray orgasmically “I want a kiss, just a bit like this, oh, oh, oh, uh, OH YES!’, it’s so exuberant that it can cause a chuckle. It also showcases the distinctive vocal stylings of the Aston brothers, who’s Welsh accents and reedy delivery make them sound unlike anyone else. It screams hit single and breaks the mold while doing so. It was actually recorded by Jimmy Iovine, super producer (and future head of Interscope Records). Indeed, Motion Of Love wasn’t even produced by Peter Walsh. Whereas most of House of Dolls has minor-key grandeur, Motion is much more upbeat and poppy. But it feels slightly incongruous to the other tracks. The album’s biggest hit was The Motion Of Love. I’ve knocked on every door in every street And Every Door remains one of the best 80’s ballads with the Aston’s wistfully singing about unrequited young love: ![]() Take the meditative pulse of Message and the dark churn of Up There. They’re more about the simmer and the slow burn. GLJ circa 1988.Like The Cult (who Stevenson is currently touring with) they were shedding their goth skin for more universal appeal. But GLJ never got too heavy. And the rhythm section of Peter Rizzo on bass and Chris Bell on drums complimented his style. Stevenson adds just the right mix of flash and dexterity in his riffs and solos to drive them to places that more rudimentary post-punk guitarists couldn’t go. Twenty Killer Hurts is another song with a spiky, funky riff that frames the Aston’s rumination on the dangers of drug addition : Take Set Me Free, which kicks off with a stark staccato riff, or the slithering guitar work that punctuates the sultry Suspicion. This song set the template for Dolls less experimental textures in exchange for bigger hooks and heavier riffing. So, you go to a bar and you / Talk to your friends about girls and cars/ And even though you’re bored/ They’ll only go this far/You’re So Gorgeous baby It also featured their sexually ambiguous lyrics: ‘The House Of Dolls’ album coverIt opened with Gorgeous, with a decadent riff that reeked of adolescent hormones and romantic longing. The band’s follow-up House of Dolls (produced by Peter Walsh) would flirt further with the mainstream, and leave a solidly satisfying, catchy collection of Eighties awesomeness. Click here for my exclusive interview with GLJ guitarist James Stevenson He added rock musculature that distinguished them from their more skeletal, austere beginnings. It flirted with dance beats and benefited from the recent addition of guitarist James Stevenson (formerly of Generation X). The Aston twins front and center on the ‘Discover’ album cover.Their first stateside hit was Desire off their album Discover. On early releases the group had a harsh, angular tone punctuated by the Aston brothers ethereal banshee wails. ![]() And rather than sullen solitude, their music was more concerned with romance than alienation. The band’s early mystique revolved around its androgynous dual lead singers, who happened to be identical twins Jay and Michael Aston.Īnd while they had emerged in the Goth scene, their wardrobes were drenched in color. ![]() The band were touring for their album The House Of Dolls, which proved to be a defining and divisive point in the band’s history.īut first, some background info GLJ were a post-punk group forged in the early 80’s. It’s the second rock show I’ve ever been to ( INXS being the first). I’m at the Arcadia Theatre in Dallas, TX to see Gene Loves Jezebel with openers Flesh For Lulu. Let’s look back at Gene Loves Jezebel’s ‘The House of Dolls’, one of the most addictive albums of the 80’s. They were too glam for goth, and too goth for glam. Albums Revisited: Gene Loves Jezebel ‘The House of Dolls’ ![]()
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