Description
. There’s a playfulness in Sim’s work, too, connecting to queer horror’s habit of having fun with absurdity, referencing The Twilight Zone, The Rocky Horror Picture Show and even Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In the hopeful ending of the film and throughout the album, Sim weaves a lighter narrative using the voice of Bronski Beat’s Jimmy Somerville. The collaboration was the result of Sim’s real-life desire to seek guidance from a queer elder before publicizing his HIV-positive status; throughout the record, Somerville’s countertenor floats through moments of uncertainty, bolstering Sim when, like every villain, he falters in a song’s third act. It’s Somerville who encourages Sim to “be brave, have trust” and “be willing to be loved” on the opening track, after which “Am I hideous?” becomes a defiant rhetorical question instead of a self-effacement. Somerville emerges from the spectral mist of “Confident Man” as Sim’s chanting of the chorus begins to feel frenzied; his voice is a reminder of what further possibilities exist in direct contrast to the toxic ideas symbolized in the bass vocal, which never reappears by itself to torment Sim after this song.
History may erase, society may discriminate, the self may succumb to shame. When others accuse you of dancing with the devil, Hideous Bastard argues like decades of queer-interpreted horror before it you can show them how he really moves. But though there is liberation in revelry and taking ownership of villainy, masks are meant to come off. A queer figure alone in a conformity-obsessed society can be a tragic one; when you live like that, it’s easy to internalize that tenderness is not available to you. But care and community are instrumental to survival. If there is power in reclaiming monstrosity, Hideous Bastard posits that there is also power in reaching out our hands be they clawed, scarred or deformed for kindness, and receiving it in turn. (via NPR)
Label: Young
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Released: 2022
Genre: Pop, Electronic
Style: Indie Pop
File under: Alternative / Indie / Pop
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.