A title like that just begs unkind jibes; but I will refrain. I felt compelled to write a short review of this disc having accepted Rachel Portman’s Beloved score reviewed above. This album is comprised of about 50% source material, maybe more: songs performed by Jefferson Airplane, Canned Heat, Richie Havens and others which are outside the scope of this site and which I do not feel qualified to judge. The remainder of the material is ethnic or hybrid instrumental music, some of which may or may not have been composed for the film. "Baba, Baba Mektoubi" performed by Jil Jilala is North African instrumental and vocal music that will be colourful or just monotonous wailing according to your taste. Western ears need to adjust to the colour and subtle harmonic and rhythmic shifts of this music. "Tortoise Song" is in similar territory while "Wishing Well" is an attractive, reflective guitar solo. There is no mention of any one composer on the front cover of the CD booklet so one cannot fire missives in any concentrated direction. John Keane , however seems to be responsible for the seven-minute title track "Hideous Kinky". This is something of a hybrid embracing Western, North African and, I think, Middle Eastern forms, together with those pipes which seem to invade every kind of score these days. It begins with melancholic wailings before the music grows more strongly rhythmical to become an exotic dance; then a piano enters playing Spanish/Moorish type material above a groaning ostinato. To conventional ears, this is the most interesting track on the CD.

Reviewer

Ian Lace

Reviewer

Ian Lace