A full fifteen years before California became a dramatic escape for The Joads in John Steinbeck’s classic “The Grapes of Wrath,” Eugene O’Neill employed the Golden State as a distant ideal for the gruff, hard-working, yet trapped Cabot family in 1924’s “Desire Under The Elms.”
In his very crowded first act, there is a tendency among modern directors to cut a scene where we see all the Cabot brothers in their primitive kitchen. O’Neill describes this setting in his stage directions as “the atmosphere is of men’s camp kitchen rather than that of a home.” As we continue to learn that brothers Simeon and Peter (biblical allusions, anyone) are bound at the hip, and Eben is purposefully distant, there fluttering on the darkened, candle-lit wall at the rear of the set (again from O’Neill’s directions) is a “big advertising poster with a ship in full sail and the word “California” in big letters.”
“Desire” is a traditional story translated into a nontraditional play. Set in New England in 1850, this is a family unit that feels more like prisoners. Opening with all the Cabot brothers briefly celebrating the beauty of a sunset, these rays will be the sole glint of optimism going forth. Written in thick New England vernacular (“He’s slaved Sim n’ me n’ yew t’ death — on’y none o’ us hain’t died — yit,”) O’Neill sets the table on brotherly rage and position over the family farm. Even as the characters reveal death as coldly as the past news of the day, we as viewers want to see them drawn to each other. Instead, O’Neill might as well have them shackled together.
Our main character is Eben, a young man of twenty-five, who already carries himself with the gait and look of a person that has worked twice as long. As impenetrable as he wants to be, his intensity cannot be contained. Eben is a cauldron of familial confusion. First of all, he is a not a “naturel” brother and second, he is the first to deliver the news that their father ran off two months prior to get married again after the death of Eben’s mother.
PETER [after a pause — judicially] She was good even t’ him.
EBEN [fiercely]. An ‘ fur thanks he killed her!
SIMEON [after a pause]. No one ever kills nobody. It’s allus somethin’. That’s the murderer.
Left alone to fend for themselves for these two months, the brothers have grown more primal and their work is only a delay from stewing in their thoughts about what has happened and what comes next. After making a bargain with his brothers over true ownership of the farm, Simeon and Peter quit working for Eben and shuffle off to California. Having traded his secret fortune for this land, his father Ephraim returns with Abbie, a much-younger wife.
Over time, the three learn to live together. Ephraim especially is softened up by Abbie’s presence. Only we know that Abbie truly has her eyes on the farm as her reason for living. So when she seduces Eben (at a key point of time,) Abbie turns the tables by accusing Eben of lusting after her to draw her closer to Ephraim and his ability to declare the farm to be hers.
While there is no doubt about magnetism existing between Eben and Abbie, O’Neill is not interested in standard romance inspired by “wanting the one you cannot have.” “Desire” has Greek tragedy firmly in mind with Abbie as a reincarnation of Phaedra subject to not only longing and guilt, but that hidden motive - greed. Eben is far more complex. Rigid as he might seem, one could be convinced that proverbial love is either what he is searching for or what will break him. For a character that deals in conversations early on that always lead to a bitter truth, Eben subjects himself to the whims of Abbie for implied reasons.
For the play, the implication of what could happen seems to be everything one must confront. O’Neill’s dialogue interchanges neatly take the place of inner dialogue and many of the reactions (and timing) are purposefully written in. For this reason (no spoilers,) the ending is shocking (even by today’s standards.) “Desire” is not a play to arouse any sympathy (like “Anna Christie”) or even push the actors to new heights of emotional revelations. If anything, the emotional peaks here resonate because the actions of the characters do not match. In O’Neill’s world, the plot may look machine-like, but that is solely because, the plot is secondary to the emotional concealment on the part of all his characters. In the end, “Desire Under the Elms” is an intense study of actors playing one emotion while professing another. Much like the soliloquy-less “Anna Christie,” this is American theatre portraying the lives and hidden desires of real people.
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Mik Davis is the record store manager at T-Bones Records & Cafe in Hattiesburg.
NEW MUSIC This Week
JUSTICE - Hyperdrama [CLEAR 2LP/CD](Because) • Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay have been dormant for some time. Apparently, the pair have been hard at work on a new combination of sounds to continue their ongoing streak of arena-ready (mostly instrumental) Electronic Dance music. In 2007, it could be easy to lump them in with other French Electronic artists swinging for the fences (Daft Punk, namely.) While "Cross" changed their fortunes dramatically, "Hyperdrama" finally feels like they went after the golden ring again. Since they will likely never make tracks that compare to the ebullience of "D.A.N.C.E" or the wave of energy produced by "Waters of Nazareth," "Hyperdrama" is unabashedly Disco in nature. So "Hyperdrama" invites Thundercat, Miguel and Tame Impala to come along to perhaps produce a "hit." Underneath, Justice wants to secretly make sounds that are bigger than "Cross." More samples than ever, "Incognito" cranks up Seventies Italo-Disco to head-nodding speed, and the banger "Generator" is a deep slowed-down House funk. It is certainly no "Cross," but hearing them come close to it is just as thrilling.
IRON AND WINE - Light Verse [CLEAR BLUE LP/CD](SubPop/ AMPED) • On his seventh album, Sam Beam returns to the whispery poetic writing that made him famous. With co-producer Dave Way, Beam has assembled a large band (David Garza, Griffin Goldsmith, and more) that does not resemble one. "Anyone's Game" rumbles along with light percussion and the secret weapon of violinist Paul Cartwright. While it leans to a haze of Seventies psychedelia, it never crosses into anything but nostalgia for Beam's past endeavors.
CHARLEY CROCKETT - $10 Cowboy [BLUE LP/CD](Son of Davy/Thirty Tigers/The Orchard) • Synonymous with consistency, Crockett's hard work was finally rewarded as "The Man In Waco" became his first album to chart spawning two AAA hits in "I'm Just A Clown" and the horn-driven "Trinity River." The latter seems to have released Crockett from sounding "so Country" production-wise. The loping title cut is perfectly adorned with piano and other instruments in a style befitting "Sticky Fingers." While he is still not a storyteller, all credit to Crockett for staying honest and doing his best to avoid cliches and obvious rhymes. "Solitary Road" and the pure Seventies Country jangle of "Hard Luck & Circumstance" are also worthy additions to Charley's growing canon.
ST. VINCENT - All Born Screaming [RED LP/CD](Virgin) • Despite help from Justin Meldal-Johnsen (Beck's bassist and producer of M83, Poppy, and Paramore,) Cate Le Bon (producer of Wilco's latest and Deerhunter,) and Dave Grohl, "All Born Screaming" is another Annie Clark album where she tries too hard to be hard. Her clanging Industrial Nine Inch Nails sounds all in the right place (even there to surprise you in the middle section of "Flea.") However, there is nothing powerful or empowering about sensuously imploring three times in a row for the chorus "What are you looking at? Especially after rewriting the verse from The Stooges immortal "Search & Destroy" to match its intensity. "Masseduction" was far more on the ball at being both personal and distant as a method of attraction ("Slow Disco" co-written with Joy Williams of The Civil Wars.) Menacing like Nine Inch Nails musically may be her dream, but Clark's feeling of being "unfiltered" still feels like it has been done before.
LAUFEY - Bewitched: The Goddess Version [BLUE 2LP](AWAL) • After being lauded by Billie Eilish, this new chanteuse took home a Grammy for her second album. Now the Chinese/Icelandic multi-instrumentalist is being discovered by a new audience. A lifetime admirer of Ella Fitzgerald and Chet Baker, "Bewitched" adds longtime Pop producer to sculpt her songs ("From The Start" became a hit in Europe.) However, the recent Berklee graduate Laufey wisely refuses to take herself away from her roots in classical and vocal Jazz.
CORRIDOR - Mimi [PINK LP/CD](SubPop/AMPED) • Montreal quartet Corridor made a huge leap in the quality of their songs and production on 2019's "Junior." For their latest, the Francophone group cools the angular juts of their music with lush harmonies and well-placed buzzes of noise ("Mon Argent" is a rhythmic dream with a chorus that lingers.) "Mourir Demain" is a lot bigger and hookier in places, but cools down to a Kinks-ian/Beach House-style verse that sways (even with key changes) in its breezy stabs of steel guitar.
REISSUES OF THE WEEK
BILLY IDOL - Rebel Yell [2LP/2CD](Chrysalis) • At the time, William Broad was better known as part of the Bromley Contingent that surrounded the Sex Pistols in their mercurial but brilliant run at the top of the charts (and newspaper headlines.) As Billy Idol, Broad briefly gained his own fame as the singer for the underrated Generation X. However, even they were too late for the big bang of Punk. So they briefly went Goth (as Gen X) with Idol even taking on a New Romantic look in 1980. In 1981, Idol realized that he needed to do it his own way and stop following the ill winds of faddish behavior. He already had the look, but in 1981 he found his guitar player - Steve Stevens. Newly minted MTV needed videos, and Idol was there with "Hot In The City" and "White Wedding" (both guided by Heavy Rotation play into the US Top 40.)
After attending a party for the Rolling Stones, Idol and Stevens saw a bottle of whiskey emblazoned with the name "Rebel Yell." With a Linn drum machine, the pair went to work making an album they wanted to capture their best work ever. Stevens' guitar gave Idol's music a Glammy new edge. So Idol let him slash and burn through the hooks. The effect was immediately felt. The lead single "Rebel Yell" dropped in late 1983 calling back to Generation X hooks and infused with a new sense of drama. An instant radio hit, it never enjoyed the chart success of the previous singles - but it hovered in the lower reaches of the Hot 100 long enough that everyone heard it. That "insurance" set up the second single for impact. More romantic and lower pitched (but more steamy,) the synth-driven ballad "Eyes Without A Face" would secure Idol's breakthrough. Its film-like video and full sound, led it right up the charts to #4 making "Rebel Yell" go double platinum. Idol was now officially a star. His matinee good looks and rock-star behavior could make headlines, and he led his own band through terse shots of Punk, Metal, Disco, and Pop, even reviving Generation X's "Dancing With Myself" to prove to them all that he always had it in him.
SONNY ROLLINS - The Complete Blue Note Masters: A Night at the Village Vanguard [3LP](Blue Note/Capitol) • As the legendary saxophonist approaches 100, he may not be able to perform anymore (yet hanging tough at 93 beating back pulmonary fibrosis) but his vast musical library is growing even more important. After graduating from high school in 1948, it was a matter of months before Rollins was playing Fats Navarro, Roy Haynes, and Bud Powell. Like the other musicians leaving Big Band music to pursue more freeing music in small combos, Rollins was among the first to experiment with Hard Bop. Sidelined by drug use and its criminal path, Rollins broke his habit in 1955 and joined Miles Davis to start his comeback. One year later, Rollins released his first solo masterpiece, 1956's "Saxophone Colossus."
Rollins' ability to play/improvise with themes and variations led him toward interesting his ideas with modal and blues ideas. While they were not chords with voicing that could "color" the mood of a piece, they were enough to allow Rollins to perform with only a bass and drums. On the heels of his "strolling" trio's debut on "Way Out West," Rollins recorded three sets for Blue Note on November 3, 1957. The afternoon set features Donald Bailey on bass and Pete LaRoca on drums. LaRoca's lengthy Buddy Rich-like solo on Dizzy Gillespie's standard "A Night in Tunisia" demonstrates how far Rollins would let his players venture during Jazz's prime. Later, Rollins leads them both through blazing standards ("I've Got You Under My Skin" is almost unrecognizable outside of its theme) and synchronized changes.
The evening sets feature Rollins with Wilbur Ware on bass and Elvin Jones on drums. Rollins feels more driven by the muscular drumming of Jones (especially how he emphasizes his kick and steadies everything with the high-hat counting.) The run through Miles Davis' "Four" is possibly the most melodic. Hearing Rollins play the head on his own, while Ware and Jones establish the foundation is a testament to his power. In many tracks, even as he solos you rarely wonder if he will ever run out of air or ideas. "Village Vanguard" now restored to its complete 1976 order makes a fascinating introduction to this living legend of Jazz.
DEF LEPPARD - Pyromania [2LP](Mercury Studios/Universal) • When Metal began its lengthy rule of the world, THE festival to perform at was Castle Donington in England. In 1980, they kicked off their one-day Monsters of Rock festival series with all the best NWOBHM bands in one Leicestershire show. 35,000 metal fans made the Midlands the home of Metal - except for one band. With a Top 15 UK album ("On Through The Night") and eyes set on the United States ("Hello America" opens the record,) Sheffield's working-class Def Leppard had their sights set high. After being booed during their Donington set, the band made one brave decision - not include themselves in the swelling NWOBHM ranks. Instead of being mentioned in the same breath as Motorhead, Iron Maiden, and Judas Priest, Def Leppard wants to be as big as the Rolling Stones.
In January 1983, "Pyromania" was released just as NWOBHM began its descent. With one riff ("Photograph,") Def Leppard became the biggest new Metal band in the United States. Longtime admirers of AC/DC, Def Leppard hired "Highway To Hell" and "Back in Black" producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange to produce. A relentless perfection, Lange wanted to make sure that "Pyromania" had all the hallmarks that would make Def Leppard sizzle. The multi-tracked harmonies ("Foolin'.") The blinding hot, well-organized guitar solos ("Rock of Ages.") And a swagger that made them appeal to females instead of those thugs throwing beer at them during their Donington set. The latter was easy to establish via MTV, but even better maintained by an album with a fist-pumping opener ("Rock! Rock! Til' You Drop!,) and another power ballad ("Too Late For Love.") Synthesized, certainly. However, Lange saw how Def Leppard could truly be Rock stars AND Pop stars. In one fell swoop, they changed Metal in the Eighties. In the ultimate revenge, as labels scooped up those other NWOBHM bands (and as its success waned with the Punk/Metal hybrid Thrash on the horizon) they were hair-sprayed up and told to write like Def Leppard. However, the ultimate compliment to "Pyromania" has to be from the late, great Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy. Legend has it that singer Joe Elliott met Lynott shortly after Lynott heard "Pyromania." Lynott reported told Elliott, "I've heard your album -- I can't compete with that. It's the reason I've split the band."
