Victor DeLorenzo
Pancake Day

by Brett Ratner

T he Violent Femmes defined catchy, quirky, punkie pop music in the mid '80s.

It is also this writer's opinion that they are undeservedly denied credit for pioneering the whole "unplugged" thing that MTV has so unashamedly embraced as its own brainchild.

All soap-boxing aside, the Milwaukee-based trio were pioneers of sorts. Innovators, if you will.

Three years since their demise, V.F. drummer Victor DeLorenzo has released Pancake Day, his second independent solo album, set for re-release this July on a new label spearheaded by Herb Alpert.

According to DeLorenzo, there are several production changes inherent to the newer version, so this review will focus on the older one, released in late 1995.

In a nutshell, this album demonstrates that DeLorenzo possesses a degree of musical schizophrenia. Songs like "Blister In The Sun" and "Add It Up" locked him into a style. As a solo artist, he has the liberty to do what he wants and takes full advantage of that liberty.

In the vein of artists like Adrian Belew or bands like Tin Machine, DeLorenzo starts with pop framework, then piles the floating, dissonant, unsettling orchestration on top.

A lot of the unique orchestration has to do with the means in which the album was recorded. DeLorenzo owns his own recording studio, which he says a vibrant group of musicians hang out at. While DeLorenzo performs the lion's share of vocals, guitars, noisemakers and of course drums, he gave his little cult following of performers the opportunity to contribute to the project. The result is a collection of tones as eclectic as DeLorenzo's songwriting.

"Peach" (not to be confused with "Peaches" by the Presidents of USA) is a raunchy, raucous rock and roll tune with a low-fi quality to the recording. The second track, "Blind" has an Electric Light Orchestra sort of atmosphere to it, utilizing dreamy guitar sounds and haunting vocal harmonies. "Only God Knows," the third track, has a naked quality to the vocals reminiscent of Roger Waters on The Wall. "Gossip" is a tribute to '70s funk. "The Wait of the Son (Suite)" simulates scanning various radio stations and hearing different forms of music.

Perhaps "The Wait" encompasses the vibe of Pancake Day as a body of work. It's like flipping through stations.

If there is a downfall to this record, perhaps it's a center of gravity. It's like eating a Whitman's sampler when all you want is the turtles. In other words, if I crave "tha' fonk," I'll put on George Clinton, if I yearn for dreamy soundscapes, I'll reach for Tin Machine or maybe Sonic Youth. If I want upbeat pop, The Violent Femmes come to mind.

That isn't to say that this isn't a great record. Pancake Day easily demonstrates a man who spends as much time appreciating a variety of music form a wide range of artists as he does writing his own material. The thing is that for DeLorenzo to make his mark as a solo artist, he might need to nail down a sound that is uniquely his.