Lissy Trullie: Self-Taught Learner EP
Lissy Trullie says she's a Self Taught Learner
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Monday, 29, Jun 2009 12:10
Wichita Recordings, out now.
In a nutshell...
Seething, catchy, child-like, understated
What's it all about?
Self Taught Learner is the debut EP for post-punk singer song writer and one time model Lissy Trullie, including singles She Said and title track Self-Taught Learner.
Who's it by?
Sporting a flawless image, for which she is both praised and vilified, Lissy Trullie has been said to embody a very current New York 'scene'. Courtney Love is already a committed fan, as is Adam Green, from fellow New York band, Moldy Peaches. Touted as a young Patti Smith, Trullie's laid back, gravelly tones (which she has compared to a frog) are set to cut up guitars, creating a stripped down, post punk sound with elements of grunge.
As an example...
"She said, she said she'd said she'd wait/Well I know I know I know that's not her way/Oh oh oh oh oh." - She Said
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
Lissy Trullie has been outspoken in her rejection of populism and what she sees as record label-manufactured aesthetics within music. Having said this, Self-Taught Learner has all the elements conducive to commercial success.
What the others say
"Trullie's music embodies a... sort of quintessential New York chic, yet there's plenty of substance behind the style. Her debut EP, Self-Taught Learner. sounds like a product of the late 70s, perched perfectly between new-wave flair and punk attitude." - Time Out, New York
"Self-Taught Learner... drops her drawling Chrissie Hynde pastiche vocals over what appears to be outtakes from the Strokes debut." - The Music Fix
So is it any good?
There is nothing bad about this EP, but equally there is nothing which is startlingly original.
She Said and Ready For The Floor are both great pop songs, with a retro, slightly edgy feel which never fails. She Says is the really stand-out track of the EP, generating a haze of discordance and angst which - though possibly familiar sounding - is still flawless in its execution.
As far as the rest of the album goes, Boy Boy sounds very naïve, with teenage lyrics and similarly awkward and stilted chord-changes. Once again, it is easy to listen to and far from terrible, but possibly lets the rest of the EP down slightly, particularly as the opening track. Money and Forget About It follow the presiding, 70s sound but with a chipper, vaguely Blondie feel.
The slower, more pensive title track has a different feel to the rest of the songs on the album. It doesn't have the vibrancy reached elsewhere, but shows an exploration of different territory.
Overall, the EP is catchy and difficult to fault if taken for what it is. There are marks of inexperience throughout which add to the unaffected style and with them a sense that Trullie has more to offer as an artist.
7/10
Julia Ross