Aural Fixations

JEFF KELLY
For the swan in the hallway
THE GREEN PAJAMAS
Through Glass Colored Roses: the best of the Green Pajamas
(Hidden Agenda)
Jeff Kelly is best known as the leader of Seattle's great psychedelic pop band the Green Pajamas, and those attuned to such things (and there ain't many of us, lemme tell ya) also know him as one of the very finest songwriters in America. He's kept a solo career going simultaneous to his work with the PJs, often exploring certain themes in more depth than on band records. Though his last solo disk Indiscretion was practically a concept album about Catholic guilt, For the swan in the hallway is more of a collection of songs, with no particular thematic link other than Kelly's usual obsessions with art, literature (especially that of the Gothic era) and the twists and turns of romantic relationships. Tracks like "Afterimage" and "The Depth of My Desire" dig deep into the dark heart of love without flinching from either beauty or ugliness; the protagonists practically revel in melancholy melodies and choking atmospheres. "Oxford Street" and "Whispers of the Pool," on the other hand, let the sun shine into the claustrophobic world of Kelly's characters, and feature brighter music and more obvious hooks as a result. The tunes here move along at a fairly leisurely pace, permeating a warm bed of guitars and keyboards, the rhythm sublimated to the melody. Kelly rarely writes out-and-out rockers, but his solo records tend to be even more sedate than PJs albums; sometimes you wish he'd borrow a little more from the 60s psychedelic icons that inspired him and be aggressive once in a while. But Kelly's concern is to always put the song first, and if he thinks the tunes here are best served by gentler rhythms and unflashy arrangements, I'm inclined to err on the side of his judgment. Besides, the lack of face-smacking gimmicks forces you to give For the swan in the hallway close attention, and for that you will be rewarded by an almost sublime experience. [buy it]

Just as a reminder of Kelly's ongoing brilliance, he and his longtime PJ compatriot Joe Ross put together Through Glass Colored Roses: the best of the Green Pajamas. As the PJs are the kind of band that generates a small but fanatical cult, the subtitle will no doubt find little consensus amongst its diehard fans; as a sampler for newcomers, though, it's nearly perfect. Drawing from five albums, including the brilliant This is Where We Disappear and the underrated masterpiece All Clues Lead to Meagan's Bed, Through Glass Colored Roses spills over with beautifully melodic nuggets of psychedelic folk rock like "The Secret of Her Smile," "Queen of Sunshine" and "High Waving Heather," not to mention edgier rock/pop creations like "This is Where We Disappear" and "Rattlesnake Kiss." There's even a re-recording of "Kim the Waitress," the band's first single. I do have a couple of caveats, however. While Kelly is the undisputed leader and visionary of the Pajamas, it would have been nice to have more songs by keyboardist Eric Lichter (the Colin Moulding to his Andy Partridge) and co-singer/guitarist Laura Weller. Also, while it's understandable that Kelly and Ross wouldn't include anything from the numerous EPs the band has released over the years, for some bizarre reason they picked nothing from 1990's Ghosts of Love or 2002's Northern Gothic, two of the group's most exceptional albums. Those puzzling admissions aside, though, Through Glass Colored Roses is a smashing introduction to an unfairly overlooked but great American songwriter and band. Michael Toland [buy it]