JUNK OF THE HEARTS

I just hit "send" on the e-mail carrying Clamp School Paranormal Investigators vol. 2 to Tokyopop. 44,400 words. 12:04 a.m. on the day it's due.

It went smoother this time. It was nice actually having an editor, having some direction, rather than stumbling through it blindly. The writing is cleaner and more in tune with what the Tokyopop novel line will end up being.

And I did some unexpected writing this week for the Too Much Hopeless Savages trade paperback, due in August from Oni. Christine Norrie and I were brainstorming ideas, and we stumbled on a good one for a two page strip--the first page serving as the intro to the story, the second as an afterword. She will draw, and I get to play Alfred Hitchcock.

The other unexpected item of the week is the new Cardigans record, Long Gone Before Daylight. Sweden's finest have returned to the fray quietly, and what they've come back with is entirely unexpected.

This is not the cocktail pop that made them famous. Gone is the happy face in the midst of heartache; now the heart is on the sleeve. Gone are the breezy rhythms, and just about everything that made up the cliche of the Cardigans sound. What they've come back with is more slide guitar, some Southern rock inflections, Mazzy Star without the doilies. From the get go, "Communication," I was in love. Nina Persson's voice is full of pain and defiance without being over-emotive or showy. It's all so simple, all so direct, as she she sings over a soft rhythm about a lover who just can't be straight with her. It's tragic and redemptive, broken and standing tall.

Things continue apace from there. The single, "You're The Storm," follows--love as war, love as uncontrollable weather. A soaring chorus. Gene's "Fighting Fit" recast for windswept plains ("Fighting Fit" being my ultimate song for sexual fervor, and why it's been referenced for the second time in as many record reviews here).

And that's just the first two tracks. It's all this good. It's all surprising and special and something oh so new. Where did this come from? And does it matter? Because this is certainly going to be one of my favorite records this year.

Current Soundtrack: The Cardigans, Long Gone Before Daylight

golightly@confessions123.com * The Website