Review → Noun – Holy Hell (2010)
Noun - Holy Hell
Noun is the solo project of Marissa Paternoster, vocalist/guitarist for the indie-punk band Screaming Females, who have released several awesome records on Don Giovanni Records. And, apparently having a number of songs that don’t fit her primary band, she’s released this debut solo record, Holy Hell.
And it’s definitely different from her material with Screaming Females.
Well, except that fantastic voice of hers. That’s here and in fine form, thank goodness.
So, this record is a substantially different beast from what one might expect. I suppose that’s the reason such a solo album would exist. Her music on this, combined with her powerful vocals, reminds me sort of mid-’70s albums from the band Sparks, who if you don’t know, you really should.
The songs here feature some varied instrumentation; sometimes quiet piano-based songs which build into swelling choruses (see the opener, “Black Lamb”), and then fuzzy, bouncy rockers like “Outerspace.” When she’s a-rockin’, the similarities to her songs with Screaming Females becomes more clear, and that’s great- though the music is still quite far from each other- but it’s the songs that sound wildly different that really sell the album; the aforementioned “Black Lamb,” the pop-piano ditty “Call Earth,” and the funky “Wrong Things” are great examples. Not that calling to mind her day job is bad; the reverb-soaked title track is stellar.
This is an addictive album, which each song burrowing into your head. And seriously, I cannot listen to this without hearing echoes of Russell Mael (Sparks) in it; in particular, “Call Earth” reminds me of one of Sparks’ slower songs off Propaganda. Again, this is no bad thing; I don’t know if she’s actually influenced by the brothers Mael, but more artists should be.
Holy Hell is a great album, and it’s a crime that more people aren’t talking about it. The lack of straight-up pop-punk a la Screaming Females might be off-putting to some fans, but those who give the album a chance will find a whole lot to like here. You can stream the whole album on Punknews, and I recommend you do so.
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