Enon - Lost Marbles and Exploded Evidence

I tried to describe Enon’s sound to a friend recently, and all I could say was that it was like a soundtrack to a futuristic junior high dance. Or, I’ve tried to do it by comparisons: I’ve always felt that Enon is a second-rate Blonde Redhead. [Thus, that makes Black Box Recorder a third-rate Blonde Redhead). The formula always boils down to sugary-sweet ultra-feminine vocals + European sounding androgynous male vocals + some sort of electronica. On this collection of b-sides, Enon sounds like a fifth-rate Enon. So of course, I am one of those self-righteous music snobs who will not be limited to any one genre and who will be open to anything. Well, the fact that I can’t quite place this anywhere is one of my greatest annoyances. Each track jumps completely from one place to another and doesn’t quite have the structure of an actual completed work. I don’t need a strict verse-chorus-verse, but at least something that has auditory congruence? “Grain of Assault” is like a demented carnival game; “Genie’s Got Her Bag” is a mishmosh of tribal rhythms and performance art noise that ends up like a unharmonic jam band session. This is just to name a little of the bizarre experimenting Enon has done in their career that goes completely awry. People, sometimes tracks are rarities and b-sides for a reason. To clear my conscience, I do want to recommend that if you are interested in Enon, please try to listen to 2003’s Hocus Pocus, where Enon really showcases superb vocals and a mix of indie and electronic. [www.enon.tv]