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GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE August 18, 2000

eveningsout

Lovin' that lang lady

by Bob Findle

It has been a long three years for k.d. lang fans. Our girl has been missing in recording action since Drag, her ode to cigarette culture and addictions, came out and smoked our ear drums with several of her most beautiful ballad covers.

Fans can breath a sigh of relief as stores are now stocking lang's latest CD, Invincible Summer, which is being dubbed "her joyous tribute to sunny days in Southern California."

Much is being said and written about how this release continues lang's chameleon career, one that has included a variety of musical genres and postures during its dozen or so years, one that could be designated as "Constant Changing." I beg to disagree. Invincible Summer is not so much another shift in style as it is a refinement of lang's move from the country wild gal of 1986's A Truly Western Experience to the smooth pop mistress that took root in her 1992 release Ingénue.

I remember the first time I heard lang; it was also the first time I saw her in action. When the video for "Turn Me Around" filled the screen at my local stand-andmodel watering hole, I could only think, "Who and what is that?"

Although the whirling dervish of a performer wore a big ol' swinging square dance skirt, the head with an almost-crew-cut was not easily identified as female. Was this a male doing a Red Hot Chile Pepper guy-ina-skirt routine or was this a butch female doing a Minnie Pearl send-up? I could tell whatever it was, it was something to take note of. So did everyone else.

Someone just becoming aware of lang today would be surprised to hear her first releases, A Truly Western Experience and Angel With a Lariat. Lang is wickedly way out of control on Angel for most of the, CD,

When the video for 'Turn Me Around' filled the screen at my local stand-and-model watering hole, I could only think, 'Who and what is that?'

voice-box-deep in what can be classified as country punk with polka overtones. (Lang says, "To dance is human, but to polka is divine.") Produced by rockabilly man Dave Edmunds, no toe can be left untapped while listening to pressure-cooker tunes such as "Got the Bull by the Horn," "Watch Your Step Polka" and "Tune Into My Wave."

The release of 1988's Shadowland was the first indication that lang was not going to stay pigeonholed as an oddball country singer. Paying homage to vocal great Patsy Cline, the CD is country, but country flooded with blues, jazz and cocktail hour. Lang's bell-clear voice shimmers over former Cline producer Owen Bradley's multi-layered arrangements.

The CD's "Lock, Stock and Teardrops" (a show-stopper in concert), "Shadowland"

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and "Tears Don't Care Who Cries Them" are perfect with lang's aching-heart whispers and big, belted-out crescendos she tosses off without a hitch. Her power and control on "Busy Being Blue" are something that screechers Mariah Carey and Celine Dion can only dream of.

When playing 1989's Absolute Torch and Twang, it is necessary to shut your windows as to not disturb the neighbors. Every selection is so infectious, you must, yes, you must, sing along at the top of your lungs. It's country swing, big ballads and torch songs made smoky by the campfire. Willie Nelson's "Three Days;" "Big Boned Gal," lang's guitar-thumping sonnet to her plus-sized sisters in the community; and "Pullin' Back the Reins" are the standouts on a standout CD.

Of special note is "Nowhere to Stand," lang's chilling take on child abuse. It is a performance piece that shows off her immense ability as both a writer and singer. Accompanying herself on the guitar, lang lets her rich vibrato tell the story, her voice catching in her throat at just the right times, but then soaring up into flames of anger at others. The CD is worth purchasing for this one selection alone.

In many ways, although 1992's Ingénue produced lang's Grammy-winning "Constant Craving," the CD, along with 1996's All You Can Eat, disappointed fans who did not want her to abandon her country roots. Besides "Constant Craving," Ingénue has the tasty co-dependent "Save Me," beseeching someone for love, and the campy “Miss Chatelaine," but the other selections blend together in a sad-themed sameness making them indistinguishable from one another.

All You Can Eat fares somewhat better because of its wider variety of topics, but you find yourself thinking that lang is capable of so much more than the pop collection offers. While listening, you long for her to knock you off your sofa with a vocal wallop like only she can pack. With 1997's Drag, lang hits her mark.

WARNER BROTHERS

The CD showcases her voice throughout, backing it with often simple, but effective arrangements. She finds a pop sensibility that is not top 40-dredge material. The CD has a dark quality, a sweet melancholy that lang brings to life with her phrasing knowhow. "The Air That I Breathe;" the worldweary "My Old Addiction," with its quite lovely cello and piano support; the expertly nuanced "My Last Cigarette;" and a noncamp version of "Theme From the Valley of the Dolls" all are some of her best noncountry-based work.

Invincible Summer is more of the same. As noted earlier, the CD is not a new direction, but a firm grasp of what lang now wants her music to be. Unlike on Drag, she is in a good mood this time around-in love and loving it. She penned ten of the eleven selections.

"Summerfling," the first single, is a bouncy electric organ and string romp with a hook that stays in your head way too long. "Only Love" should be the second single. The song will tempt you to set the single track replay button to eternity. Lang slides her voice in and out of a chorus that causes you to close your eyes and think of that person that took your heart away. "Love's Great Ocean" is another tender ode to love and its power, with an electronic background sounding like a sea chantey. The other nine selections are also about love and relationships, with "Extraordinary Thing" being extra perky.

Is Invincible Summer a change of styles? No, lang is only growing her style. While a part of me wishes for a good dose of lang torch and twang, a bigger part is just happy to have access to such a talent, in all ways she wants to present it. ✓

K.d. lang will be appearing Sunday, August 20 at Cain Park's concert series in Cleveland Heights.

Bob Findle is a Chronicle contributing writer living in San Diego, California..

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