Previously, I went on about my infatuation with Su Tissue, the band's singer and figurehead. After rereading this more recent interview with guitarist Frankie Ennui (nee Rick Whitney, a practicing lawyer for the last 20 years) I discovered that in my lack of due diligence I may've overstated her creative role. It appears the band's material was mostly written by the guys, lyrics included, though her vocal stylings––arguably the reason for the band's posterity in the first place, and in the case of Janitor, the janitor/genitals concept––were all her own. It was she who provided the band its highlight reel.
But, as often happens, it's the figurehead we remember most. They're the brand. And if it's a cute chick up front, all the more. (This was also the case with the band I was in, where the fetching non-writing singer was fetching most of the attention.)
In any event, theirs was a brief moment but one still very much worth savoring: Enjoy.
Download:
Suburban Lawns, Janitor and Green Eyes from Suburban Lawns (1981)
Suburban Lawns, Flavor Crystals from Baby EP (1983)
3 comments:
actually she did write lyrics, you can tell especially in their second release the EP, you can clearly distinguish her compositions too.... that EP is a jewel, and her solo album salon the musique is a minimalism masterpiece.
Thanks for the info! I was basing my premise on what I'd heard in an interview from another band member. If I recall, he didn't speak of her compositions, only his, and was mostly addressing his remarks to Janitor which, obvioulsy, gets the most attention.
Not to take anything away from her, her contributions as a singer and character were invaluable.
Have you ever checked out the Facebook group "Whatever Became of Su Tissue?" In spite of the name, it really is about both the Suburban Lawns and Su Tissue. It has about 1500 followers and the posts are reasonably frequent for a band that disappeared over 30 years ago!
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