JERI ROSSI - I Left My Heart But I Don't Know Where (7" 1983)

If you enjoyed the Your Funeral single posted a couple months back you’re in for a exceptional treat because next up is the one and only, powerfully haunting solo recording from none other than Your Funeral vocalist/guitarist Ms. Jeri Rossi!

Recorded in 1983, this single has two tracks total, the A-side being an original song written by Jeri herself, and the flip a boldly feminized cover of the James Brown song It’s A Mans Mans Mans World. Both songs share the same spirit found in Jeri’s previous work, but the approach here is a little different, more poetic perhaps, with word and instrumentation woozily tangled together in a cacophony of mismanaged passion. For myself, the first track, I Left My Heart But I Don’t Know Where, is the easy winner of the two… a dense, dark, rhythmically bubbling brew of loud, confusing, disagreeable sounds recklessly spiked with Jeri’s wrathful tongue... within seconds the song’s contagious mood had me piled in goose-bumps and curling my upper lip in accordance. Highly recommended for fans of angry women like Lydia Lunch, Jarboe, and Bikini Kill.

I Left My Heart But I Don’t Know Where

I left my heart but I don’t know where
it’s beating on someone’s stairs
or in a dumpster where he tossed it
I wish someday to come across it…

I feel so hollow, made of tin
fingers quiver, chest sunk in
the question that comes to mind
“Why a heart is hard to find?”

Feel like a bullet in someone’s gun
he pulls the trigger, then he runs
into the banquet, pain and thunder
I’d rather be SIX FEET UNDER!

I left my heart but I don’t know where
I left my heart but I don’t know where
I left my heart but I don’t know where
I LEFT MY HEART BUT I DON’T KNOW WHERE!

JERI ROSSI - I Left My Heart But I Don't Know Where (7" 1983)

1. I Left My Heart But I Don't Know Where
2. It's a Mans Mans Mans World

DOT #13

COÏTUS INT. - Self-titled (LP, 1982)

At first glance, I recognized Coïtus Int. as a kind of ordinary, copy and paste postpunk band with nothing new or special to offer. But after further, more focused listens, I discovered that there was a greater level of artistic integrity in effect here than first realized. Like Joy Division, the base of Coitus Int.’s music is sparsely structured - featuring bass as the lead melodic instrument, jagged guitar and baritone vocals. But, it is the band’s special attention to song ornamentation that saves them from being written off as yet another JD clone, instead morphing the unit into something that approaches a stripped down, dirge-obsessed version of Bauhaus, sans the glam antics and glossy finish.

Released in 1982, Coïtus Int.’s self-titled LP is dark, depressive postpunk perfection. It’s soooo good in fact that the more I listen to it the more I want to hear it! From the low, opening rumble of the hardcore in slow-motion “Birds” to the dreary spaced-out feedback of closing track “Tourist Ghetto”, there’s just so much to savor. It’s one of those albums that’s best explored alone and without interruption as the music and voice carry the listener through the emotions of alienation and self-preservation. The vocalist takes a deep bellowing approach to his lyrics, which are never sung, but instead lazily uttered in slur - a style that matches the instrumentation well and helps to maintain the raw, depressive atmosphere. The song structures are solid and varied, with lots of playful guitar leads that bounce in and out, often building up to a nice, climatic end. Think Southern Death Cult, Joy Division, Bauhaus and you’re on the right track. The band even managed to put together an instrumental dance track… one that actually doesn’t sound like it’s missing its lyrics! And I really can’t emphasize that enough because I usually need lyrics, or at least a chorus, to keep my interest. But not here, no ma’m… I just want to dance! So do yourself a favor and check this album out… I promise you won’t be disappointed.

COÏTUS INT. - Self-titled (LP, 1982)

1. Birds
2. To Avoid The Pressure
3. The Threat
4. Shrill Screams
5. My Ideal Man
6. At The Edge Of Triumph
7. The Connection Is Obvious
8. Cat-like Movements
9. Tourist Ghetto

DOT #12