LISA GERMANO

Fiddle player for Little Johnny Cougar Melonhead back in his commercial heyday, and then she realized she could do so much better on her own.

Her first album, while still very uncompromising, seemed a little tentative and over-polished when compared to her later work.   She went truly nutso on her next batch of albums, HAPPINESS, GEEK THE GIRL and EXCERPTS FROM A LOVE CIRCUS.  Brave, harrowing, original – all them there good adjectives apply.  This is the meat.

She stayed awesome after this trio, but her music seemed to slowly get more fragile, introverted and claustrophobic.   Intense, like suffocating on shimmery cobwebs.  How can you not respect an artist who released music on both 4AD and Young God?  Not sure if she’s still active, her website doesn’t appear to have been updated recently, it’s been 4 ½ years since NO ELEPHANTS.

I recall not being overly thrilled with her OP8 project (w/ Giant Sand), but that was probably because it wasn’t Germano-esque enough for my tastes.   I’ll have to check it out again one of these days, maybe i was just in a pissy mood that day.  It happens, even w/ us intellectual dilettantes.