Reviewer: Nick Smith -
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November 20, 2007 Subject: Stalker For some time now I've been a fan of Tim Chaplin's work. My favourite Luminous pieces test all the boundaries, frequently combining the eerily mechanical with beautiful discordent classical, to create brilliant, original movements which challenge definitions and perceptions of music. Tracks such as 'Emit', 'J Lazer' and 'Red or Rec' are uplifting, thought-provoking pieces of music, so I was keen to hear the recently released collaboration project Tim embarked on with writer, Julie Ann Mackay.
'Stalker' is, from what I can gather, the tale of two lonely souls who meet on the internet and swiftly become entangled in an addictive online love affair. The gentleman - screen name Messy Love Death (homage to William Burroughs' work?) - becomes obsessed with meeting and sleeping with 'The Girl' (we never learn her name), but in true Luminous tradition, nothing is quite as simple as it first appears. Chaplin and Mackay become the masters of intrigue, exposing the fascinating nuances of contemporary sexual behaviour, and setting their explicit narrative against a backdrop of sinister, sexy, scary sound, giving the whole thing a distinctly voyeuristic feel. Tim's layering of the various narration tracks delivers an interesting dynamic, I especially like how the whispering, swallowing and breathing heightens intensity at crucial moments. At times the narration is very assertive, when The Girl is demanding sex, for instance, and at other times everything feels much more frail and vulnerable, like when Messy Love Death urges '...So will you come and dine with me, in my little hole, where no-one dares to go?...' It's undeniably brave of Tim and Julie Ann to have explored the story and expressed it as they have, for it's likely to attract a certain amount of criticism from those who might question the morality of an EP containing the F-word 21 times (I think I counted!), but such people miss the beautiful, raw charm of 'Stalker', which is almost impossible to compare with anything else I've heard, and I'd recommend this compelling, unique bizarre little modern mini-opera, most highly!
