Jean Smith: VOCALS and piano, keyboard, synth, percussion, sax, guitar
David Lester: GUITAR

KRS 453
Label: Kill Rock Stars
Street Date: April 11, 2006

Kill Rock Stars

press page and photos:
http://www.killrockstars.com/press/KRS453

For publicity and interviews contact
Maggie
maggie@killrockstars.com


For promotions contact Audrey
audrey@killrockstars.com


Or contact Jean and David:
meccanormal@hotmail.com
604-253-8106

Kill Rock Stars
120 NE State Ave. # 418
Olympia, WA
98501 USA
www.killrockstars.com

New songs, video and tour dates on MySpace
http://www.myspace.com/meccanormal

Lyrics
http://meccanormalsongs.blogspot.com

Most of the songs on The Observer are about Jean's online dating experiences. Jean is working on her 4th novel F.L.O.W. vs. P.L.A.N. in which a woman exposes her complex system for Internet dating and the encounters that follow her online chats.

Jean's notes on the songs:

1. I'm Not Into Being the Woman You're With While You're Looking for the Woman You Want (4:55) -- What I ended up saying to a guy I'd been with twice when he asked me out again. I'd seen him back online for hours and when I asked what he was doing there, he let me know he was still looking for a partner -- from the Relationship section. I felt like I was supposed to accept that I was a common little slut from Intimate Encounters where he picked me up, and that the nice ladies from Relationship were inherently more valuable.

2. Attraction is Ephemeral (5:32 piano, synth, sax) -- This was the last song we wrote. David played something I hadn't heard and I picked up a section of the writing I was working on about my Internet dates. We recorded it at rehearsal and didn't play it again until we were in the studio. After about six months of deception and lies I felt my intuition and trust were in upheaval. Everything guys said sounded like a line to get what they wanted.

3. I'll Call You (3:04) -- Written from a male perspective -- what a guy would put in his online dating profile if he was being honest.

4. To Avoid Pain (1:30 piano, sax) -- An encounter with a travelling man and the agreement not to allow feelings to enter into it.

5. 1922 (6:30 piano, synth) -- A large man swaggers happily around his European estate in 1922. He may never finish the great novel he claims to have started, but hey, he's a man -- history reminds him of his importance. Women make things, practical things, but this is not what he considers 'art'. Men make art.

6. Fallen Skier (12:43 piano, sax, synth, percussion) -- A first date. Nothing terrible happens. No sparks. No romance. Stories exchanged.

7. His Own Madness (4:10 piano) -- A man and a woman in a cold kitchen during a winter storm. The man is making quesadillas, warming his hands on the food while he tries to explain why he is going to leave the woman. He is sad. He wants to go and create a new identity. The woman understands and doesn't take it personally.

8. The Dark Side of Maria (5:16 piano, synth, keyboard) -- A song from the work environment; a co-worker tries to set me up with her room mate.

9. Arsenal (5:29 piano, percussion) -- About a lack of integrity between men and women when sex is involved.

10. The Caribou & the Oil Pipeline (3:51 piano, percussion) -- A singer doesn't think she can write a hit about environmental concern, oil, Arctic devastation, caribou migration and calving, and an ecosystems disrupted by development -- but she has to try.

11. The Message (2:40 piano, guitar, synth, percussion, keyboard) -- Canadian UN ambassador Stephen Lewis was determined to improve the situation for AIDs patients in Africa. On a visit to a community, information is presented to him in the form of a song. In the west music is entertainment. In some other cultures music is a way to communicate ideas that promote social change.

12. The Observer (4:37 piano, guitar, sax, keyboard) -- Observation on public transit and a reference to an era when talking about beauty with a loved one was a thing unto itself, an activity to enjoy.

Recorded by Jordan Koop at The Hive, near Vancouver, Canada.


All photos, cover art and poster by Jean Smith.