Coloured Untruths

Stumbling upon new music never fails to put me in high spirits. Not just a new band or musician, but one in a genre of music that I wouldn't even think about looking into. My mood is lifted and I become filled with energy, pawing at the ground in anticipation of a new sound. This is exactly what happened to me when I discovered Vermillion Lies.

Vermillion Lies came to my attention through a project update on Kickstarter, a website deserving of an entire post itself for another time. Consisting of sisters Kim & Zoe Boekbinder, Vermillion Lies combines folk and cabaret music into something entirely new. The sisters, calling the music "junk store cabaret", have merged sounds into something that to me gave an almost Gogol Bordello vibe in it's peculiarity. With vocals and instruments split between them and the occasional addition of another musician when live, the songs are filled with piano, guitar, ukelele, triangles, xylophones and in one case a typewriter to remarkable effect. Combined with lyrics that sometimes evoke the debauchery of the cabaret, mild terror and at other times a story, songs like The Astronomer and Circus Apocalypse leap out and take hold of you, occasionally to humorous effect.. The line "your milky ways are all over me," had me snickering like a school boy in a sex ed. class. Ranging from gentle love songs, to classic folk, to gentle blues and to energetic rhythms guaranteed to get your foot tapping at the very least, the girls lead you down paths of wonder, horror and excitement, lured all the way by stunning voices.
Within hours of the find I had gone from testing the waters with some YouTube searches, to diving in clothing and all and putting my money down for the two albums Seperated By Birth and What's In The Box (for digital download). Digging further I was subjected to some news both good and bad; as of 2009 Vermillion Lies had somewhat parted ways, with Zoe & Kim both pursuing solo careers albeit with the intention of performing together at times as Vermillion Lies. The good news? Both now have an album on the shelves and after some Google wizardry and YouTube magic I can safely say that their work is just as good apart as it is together. Kim seems to favour a calmer style with the odd injection of an energetic song, while the same Gogol Bordello vibe I felt is still in some of her tracks as well as the cabaret style. Zoe on the other hand has focussed on the acoustic guitar and retains some of the quirkiness of Vermillion Lies while having some success covering various hits such as Hungry Like the Wolf and Single Ladies, adding her own special style to the songs. The Impossible Girl by Kim Boekbinder and Artichoke Perfume by Zoe Boekbinder are both available to listen to online here and here respectively.

I haven't been as thrilled with a new band or musician since Fink, who still gets played to death in my home. So when you have the time, try telling yourself some Vermillion Lies. You might just believe them.