Scout Niblett – Kidnapped By Neptune

Just as the world is trying to figure out which way to turn after the death of the sometimes odd, and always strange Captain Beefheart, along comes Scout Niblett to fill the gap. To infer that Scout is a free spirit is an understatement, to describe her as a minimalist is right on the mark, and is manifested by her liner presentation ... taking her cues from Patti Smith, Cat Power, P.J. Harvey, and even Kurt Cobain, where she inspires her fresh artful take on what can only be described as minimal blues, expressed with a here to fore unheard quality and resonance.

Scout’s emotional range is dry and plaintive, even idiosyncratic, and has nothing to do with conventional song writing, either by design, or technique, where through heartbeat drumming, and lyrical juxtaposition she challenges all that’s gone before her. In no way am I suggesting that Kidnapped by Neptune is an easy listen, it’s not, but neither was the early work by The Velvet Underground, who also showed a new path, and inspired a generation of artists to develop, and expand the footprints they had laid down. Scout’s music is unencumbered, possess clean lines, and exists within a thin sparse guitar. Some might call this magic, others will see it as nothing but listenable harmonic distortion that at times drills like a headache, with vocals that seem torn from the sky in such haste that she’s actually ripping apart the fabric of the universe.

I’m not one of those who thinks that music should necessarily be art, art can be rather difficult to deal with at times, leaving the audience to linger over material that is easily recognized and understood ... but if everything were easy, where’s the fun [?], where’s the future [?], where’s the inspiration to push the boundaries [?].

Review by Jenell Kesler