The Odd Fiddler

"I Wrote Yr Name on a Public Toilet" CD

Series Two Records

Genre: outsider, folk, singer / songwriter

Michigan, USA

Feb 23, 2009

Also on Indieville: The Odd Fiddler selects his ten crucial records!

Part Jandek, part Go-Betweens, part Anal Cunt's Picnic of Love album, The Odd Fiddler is just about as weird you can get with little more than a guitar and vocals. Well, that might be an overstatement, but these oddly-designed songs are triumphant bursts of out-of-tune vocals and equally unharmonious guitar parts. The result is unsettling but not incompetent - somehow, several of these songs have an alienated melodic quality. The overall impression is strongly reminiscent of The Shaggs in its idiosyncratic appeal. The best tracks are the haunting "Chewing Yr Bubblegum (Instead of Laughing at Me)" and "Pretty Please." These are the ones with deeply chiming, echoing guitars and eerie vocals. Some of the others are boring and grating ("Photographs Of?," "Very Gentle and Kind"). The Odd Fiddler has an unusual appeal that is pretty much the definition of hit or miss - his brashly tuneless vocals being the main culprit for this record's polarizing nature. Most listeners will consider this hackneyed and obnoxious, but to the daring lover of outsider music, I Wrote Yr Name on a Public Toilet will make for a rare and titillating treat.

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youuuuuuuutube!: video for "chewing yr bubblegum"

Matt Shimmer

[Vitals: 11 tracks, distributed by the label, released Feb 5, 2008]