Devil Doll, a Slovenian band who at one point in time was almost completely unknown to the world are quite possibly one of the most unique and artistic bands ever conceived. In essence the band is the creation of one man (known only as Mr. Doctor) with tons of enlisted help on each output. What’s interesting about Devil Doll is that there is no single genre you can place them in. The band exhibits such a large variety of influences that they exist in their own genre. You could say the band is a theatrical Gothic rock band, but even that wouldn’t fully describe these guys. The band has a large orchestral influence present plus a wide usage of a choir within their music. In addition to the usual guitar, bass, and drums the band also uses a wide selection of stringed and brass instruments plus there seems to be a very strange vaudeville and classic horror movie influence within the bands music. But to put it simple, Devil Doll is a band you really can’t describe you simply just have to hear their godliness to understand it.
A common trait of Devil Doll releases is having the entire recording being one long song or as is the case with this second album titled, 'Eliogabalus' just two twenty plus minute songs which total in for and even forty five minutes of music. This particular album carries on in a similar Gothic rock/theatrical/orchestral vein as the first album, but seems to really expand in certain areas. Mr. Doctor still uses a variety of different voices and vocal styles, but by and large uses one style to sing most of his lyrics. Moreover it seems this album is not as Gothic rock laden and begins to show the listener the even more weird side of the band, the side that would be seen on all subsequent albums. Still this album features some of my most favorite Devil Doll moments ever. In particular from 5:50 to 7:25 in the song, ‘Mr. Doctor’ the listener is treated to a really beautiful neo classical section with violins, piano, militaristic drumming, and Mr. Doctor’s always interesting vocals. In fact I would even go so far as to say this is one of my all-time favorite moments in music altogether. This was actually the first Devil Doll song I heard, and after hearing it I immediately rushed out to get all their albums, which coincidentally proved to be quite a challenge.
Another fine moment in this album occurs in the second song at about thirteen minutes in, there’s very fast violins that remind me of something found in a horror movie that strangely then segues into this strange vaudeville section complete with tuba. Yet these are just a few of the really exciting moments on this release. I mean any band that combines Gothic rock with violins, piano, accordion, tuba, e-bow, celesta, and an entire choir has got to be capable of creating one very attention-grabbing album. Right? Yes indeed.
Personally I first became aware of and got my hands on the bands discography back in late 2004 but for whatever reason I've found myself neglecting the band in recent years. A mistake. There’s no way I can fully explain this great band to you, but if you have eclectic tastes in music than you should immediately order anything you can find from this band. ‘Eliogabalus’ is a perfect progression from the first album and seems more refined in its ideas yet some people will still say the subsequent albums are greater. I however am inclined to think everything Devil Doll has released is great. Give 'em a try.
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