[Music] Rufus Wainwright

Artist: Rufus Wainwright
Origin: Rhinebeck, New York, USA
Genre: singer/songwriter, alternative pop/rock, baroque pop, Popera (Pop Opera)
Discgraphy:
Rufus Wainwright (1998, DreamWorks)
Poses (2001, DreamWorks)
Want One (2003, DreamWorks)
Want Two (2004, DreamWorks/Geffen)



Biography

He is gay and he sings pop opera. That's way kewl. Personal impression is that he might be just one of the most origial artists out there with very gifted song-writing talents and vocals.

After having been a fixture on the Montreal club circuit, Wainwright cut a series of demo tapes, one of which found itself in the hands of DreamWorks executive Lenny Waronker. The label signed him and he released an album in the spring of 1998. This album received much critical acclaim in Canada, and was recognized by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the best albums of the year. Wainwright's second album, Poses (2001), brought similar acclaim.

Wainwright's first main exposure to the American public came as an opener to singer Tori Amos in 2001 and 2002. He recieved praise for his performance and began touring as a main act shortly afterwards. He has frequently toured as the opener for Sting and co-headlined with Ben Folds and Guster in the summer of 2004.

His music has been described as "Popera" (Pop Opera) or "Baroque Pop." His lyrics are filled with allusions to opera, literature, pop culture, and, more recently, politics (in songs such as "Gay Messiah" and "Waiting for a Dream").Wainwright's music contains several persistent themes, ranging from highly personal statements about being gay and single ("Oh, What A World") to statements about the decadence of California ("California.") He also references New York City in many of his songs. One of the main themes in Rufus's songs is indulgence, a great example of this theme is "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk".

His talent has been widely recognized and praised by such artists as Elton John, Morrissey, John Mayer, and Sting, and he continues to influence artists like Keane, Alanis Morissette, Scissor Sisters, and Ben Folds.

[b_Tunes] Review : Want One



Released: September 23, 2003
Label: DreamWorks
Producer(s): Marius de Vries

Track listing
01.Oh What a World - 4:23
02.I Don't Know What It Is - 4:51
03.Vicious World - 2:50
04.Movies of Myself - 4:31
05.Pretty Things - 2:40
06.Go or Go Ahead - 6:39
07.Vibrate - 2:44
08.14th Street - 4:44
09.Natasha - 3:29
10.Harvester of Hearts - 3:35
11.Beautiful Child - 4:16
12.Want - 5:11
13.11:11 - 4:27
14.Dinner at Eight - 4:33

Want One is the first Rufus Wainwright's album that I've come across and I'm very very impressed. After listening to all four Wainwright album, I personally think Want One is his best and most accomplished work to date. It is not very often that I came across a singer song writer this talented. His lyrics are clever, profound and often hilarious. It forms part of the personal history of himself: a collection of songs of intensely real and authentic emotion and while they mostly reveal feelings and experiences of personal misery, angst and near exhaustion. The end result is a very promising album of complex beauty and maturity.

The opening track for Want One, O What A World is an instant classic. The lyrics, "Why am I always on a plane or a fast train, Oh what a world my parents gave me, Always Travelin' but not in love, Still I think I'm doin' fine, Wouldn't it be a lovely headline, Life is Beautiful on a New York Times" is apparent Wainwright's personal narrative of the dilemma of Everyman of how to relate to one's place in the world. Second track, I Don't Know What It Is is a more poppy follow up to O What A World which is equally impressive. Vicious World meanwhile is a sublime electric song of misery and loneliness, which is also one of my favourite track out of Want One maybe because I could imagine myself in the situation. "Thought that maybe we'd fall in love over the phone, Thought that maybe I'd really love being alone, Everybody but Heaven knows how I was wrong". The fifth track, Pretty Things is a stunning piece of solo piano work that offers a dark, depressive experience. Sixth song into the album, it still doesn't fail to surprise me. Go or Go Ahead is also one of my favourite off Want One. It started off with few simple guitar cords and slowly progresses into a more melodramatic singing almost so desperate and accompanied by the sublime background choir. "I'll never know what you have shown to other eyes." is simpl effective and bold.

No artist, though, has yet been able to sustain such a standard of songwriting through a whole record. The result, then, is a record that has no comparison in the modern arena of contemporary popular music, not even the follow up record Want Two that followed in 2004. Want One is a statement of Wainwright's talent from arguably the best and most creative songwriter of his generation. Want One is an album that just can't be ignored - the songs are remarkable and that alone should rank him as one of the leading and most important songwriters of his time. Like it or not, its a matter of personal musical taste, but I'd have to say that this album offers a more original and different sound.

Beaker's Verdict: A