Droolian
release date: 1990
format: digital
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,22]
producer: Ron Fair
label: Zippo Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 1. "Sqwubbsy" - 3. "Unisex Cathedral" - 5. "Safe Surfer" - 7. "Jellypop Perky Jean"
6th studio album by Julian Cope is his second sel-released album to follow his pompeous and disowned My Nation Underground (Oct. 1988). The album follows closely on the same path laid out with Skellington (1989) despite both pointing back on the '89-album as a kind of leftovers and at the same time laying out his future fully-formed style, which comes to full blossom on the successor Peggy Suicide (Apr. 1991) .
Droolian is a peculiar mix of spontaneous fanciful ideas - appearing as improvs and quite subtle arrangements. Cope demonstrates original ideas, although, he may have followed an urge - as a result of the lawsuit tried by Island Records [see Skellington] - just to record and release a complete album without the proper finish, which could have resulted in something closer to Peggy Suicide. As a curiosity Droolian contains "Safe Surfer", which on the '91-album is rearranged to "Safesurfer". Some tracks sound like complete improvs and at times Cope appears as an artist, who is about 100% on some (acid?) trip, which often create unconventional, not seldom quite funny, but also easily forgotten moments.
All in all, Droolian is funny, different, and flawed, and nevertheless worth a moment of your time.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]
