Vincent Gallo - When

As I leave The Dark Horse near downtown Atlanta, GA around 12:04am, I struggle to remember which way I turned to get here coming from I-85. After creeping down several side streets, I find an outlet road that runs in I-85 North back towards my Dad's house on Old Peach Tree Rd. in Gwinnett County. The stereo is blaring 'Around The Fur' by the Deftones, so I eject the CD to look for something a bit more mellow. As I drive down I-85 at about 73mph, I fumble through the old wrinkled, plastic pages until I come across a CD that my friend Jeremy Davis burnt for me, Vincent Gallo's "When". Remembering that I haven't devoted anytime to checking out that particular album, I figure the 45-minute drive from downtown Atlanta to the suburbs of Gwinnett should be plenty of enough time to immerse myself in its contents. Track one spins and I find myself presented with a strange and rather textured loop reminiscent of a lazy jazz track. Coming in the left and right speakers are a mixture of a groping guitar lines, crossing back and forth over each other. Among the guitar lines are weak, quivering chords emitted by some sort of synthesizer. As I round a bend in the interstate and enter the mess of lights, buildings, and signs that is downtown Atlanta at night, I begin to think about all the things I haven't done during 2001. I never took any more real photographs after school ended, developed a role of film, made contact sheets, started a new project, painted, sketched, or met a girl that really made me feel special. Then track two rolls in with a simple, lonely guitar chord, accompanied by a voice softer than anything I've ever heard. It was Vincent Gallo. I hear lyrics that are so simple in their essence that it makes me want to cry. The song keeps on going from beginning to end and Gallo presents his plea to whomever he's singing his song to. The rest of the tracks seem to carry similar on in a similar fashion; loops, beats, guitar, warm bass lines, randomness, strings, and Gallo's trembling melodies weaved together over and over again. Several tracks stand out to me as I continue to listen, drawing closer to the Old Peach Tree Rd. exit on I-85. Track five, which I later learn is the infamous 'Honey Bunny', track eight, also known as 'Cracks', and track nine, 'Apple Girl', all catch my attention as I drive along, now at around 81mph. As the last song draws to a close, I see the Old Peach Tree Rd. exit about ½ of a mile up the road. As I pull up to the stop sign, I eject the CD and replace it with a Plaid's "Rest Proof Clockwork" and take left towards my Dad's house. I'm really tired and I want to go to bed. It's now 2002 and I still haven't bought the Vincent Gallo CD, but I really want to when I get some money. Actually, I plan on ordering it directly from Warp Records. Anyways, the CD still produces the same reaction in my mind and heart. It may be what Barry in High Fidelity calls "sad bastard music," but it seems like a great choice every time I slide it out of my CD case. [www.warprecords.com]