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Scissor Sisters - Ta-Dah

Rating

RIYL

Elton John
Strength
!!!
The Rapture
The Bee Gees

Tracklist

1. I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’
2. She’s My Man
3. I Can’t Decide
4. Lights
5. Land of a Thousand Words
6. Intermission
7. Kiss You Off
8. Ooh
9. Paul McCartney
10. The Other Side
11. Might Tell You Tonight
12. Everybody Wants the Same Thing

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Despite the somewhat cold shoulder Scissor Sisters' debut album received in the US (it placed at #102 on the US charts and #1 in the UK), their sophomore effort, Ta-Dah, has received nothing but love and a #19 debut on the US charts. This is no surprise to me. I was not a fan of their debut, but Ta-Dah has shown me that Scissor Sisters do have more going for them than flamboyance, glamor, and raunchy lyrics.

The album begins with the heavily disco influenced, “I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’.” Although this track sounds similar to their earlier songs, there are noticeable progressions in their sound. The song begins with a sixties psychedelic sounding guitar intro, and you can hear they experiment more with the synth and also have a real drummer now, which they lacked while they recorded Scissor Sisters. Just from listening to the first track, it is evident that there is more dimension to their sound in this album.

As the album continues, these progressions become more evident. Scissor Sisters play around with horns and Jake Shears expands his boundaries vocally, cutting down on the obnoxiously high-pitched vocals that encompassed Scissor Sisters. These small changes give the band a more dynamic sound and, in songs such as “I Can’t Decide,” which has a bluegrass feel to it and “Intermission,” which is straight-up cabaret, give them a new sound all together.

They do not rely on glam disco and filthy lyrics as much as they did in their debut, although both are still at the core of the album. They still sing lyrics like, “fuck and kiss you both at the same time,” but they are supported by a strong musical backbone. In fact, Elton John collaborated with the band in “I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’” and “Intermission,” playing the keys in both tracks and co-writing the former. It doesn’t get much stronger than that.

The first single off the album, “Land of A Thousand Words,” encases Elton John’s influence on this album. The piano drives the song forward as Shears belts out “I’m on the run to wherever you are.” This is a beautiful ballad and shows the maturity of the band.

If you loved Scissor Sisters for its raunchy flamboyance, have no fear because the Sisters have not strayed from that, (I mean, seriously, they got their name from a lesbian sex position. They will always be raunchy); however, if you didn’t like their debut, give this album a chance. It is more alive and even more colorful than their freshman effort.

--Katrina Nattress