CD Review: Kenny Siegal

"Eleccentricity"

by Sharon Nichols, July 27, 2010

At long last, Kenny Siegal, front man of fave New York indie band Johnny Society, has unleashed his strangely yet appropriately titled solo effort upon the eager ears of his old and new fans. Stylistically, this record could never be put into any sort of genre box, as it ping-pongs from one uncategorizable song to the next—yet, at the same time, it melds everything together into a perfectly cohesive whole. Not surprisingly, Eleccentricity was nominated for an Independent Music Award in the, ahem, eclectic category. Siegal himself sings in a chameleon of voices and plays electric, acoustic, and bass guitars, vibraphone, keys, and programmed drums while utilizing such fellow regional musical treasures such as Nina Violet and Blueberry.

A feast of aural oddities abounds here, that warrants the use of headphones to pick up on all the peculiar nuances. There’s the slow, smooth groove of “Back to You,” the colorful Beatle-esque “Theremin,” the spooky-dreamy “The Wake,” the exotic pop of “Shamaness,” the dynamically funky instrumental “Punishments for an Open Mind,” and the whack, WTF-is-this? “Latest Creation.” The 12-track CD ends with “Beautiful,” the only song that seems, er, normal—and, yes, it is a beautiful piece, featuring Siegal’s acoustic guitar and soaring vocal. Siegal weaves a one-of-a-kind musical adventure here that never ceases to surprise, and it is in no way meant for mainstream monkeys, so you might want to question your sense of adventure before spinning. The more courageous, however, will have a field day. www.myspace.com/thewolfofthesteps.