Classic Albums: Adult Themes For Voice by Mike Patton

Oh man, I love Mike! Thursday morning post is back to the alphabet order of my CA list and this time I’m going under the album title. So today A is for… Adult Themes For Voice by Mike Patton. His debut solo album from the year 1996, it would have to be my major highlight for me from that dozen of months’ music. I can’t help myself with this one, I still remember the first time I heard it. I was totally dumbfounded, unbelievable is an understatement but just a warning it’s not for everyone, so far from it. It really could still scare the shit out of someone or a lot of peeps.

Out of a lot of crazy music I’ve included in my list this here it could taken the cake, maybe would even take the table and chairs the cake is on plus even the room, the house or building that cake in too. It’s totally mad but if you haven’t notices by now I do like it like that. Now to be clear on this album the only thing on it is pretty much Patton own voice recorded on to a four track recorder in hotel rooms while he was on Faith No More’s 1995/96 world tour. Before this he had done a couple of Mr. Bungle albums as well at this point three FNM records too. But here’s where Mike came into his own and also leading into all his projects over the years outside those early bands, pure insanity of his vocals is front and center.

Now at the time of release almost all reviews I read about it said wasn’t even music but music critics just missed the point again. So what it’s got no instrumentals and it’s only mainly Patton shouting, screaming, clapping, squeaking and moaning etc. It’s a total masterpieces in my opinion, stripping it down to him and his throat just making sounds and not even sung words, who else has made ones own singing so entertaining. The only word I can tell on the whole album is “Fuck” he repeats, I don’t know how many times? But it’s just got to be the most creative use of the word ever in music.

Adult Themes For Voice has 34 tracks or themes and goes for about 45 minutes long so it don’t go on forever but just longer to show his epic vocal range plus it never gets boring. Unlike say half or something of the albums I’ve listen from that 1001 book. They’re a few curve balls in it but nothing like this, I kind-of wanna hack into the book publisher and change some of the albums. Maybe I should published own version of it or is that what I’m doing here online and blogging, it’s not a book but kind-of the same thing. Something like this album by Patton is so crazy but so creative and very entertaining listen all at the same time. Earlier this year the English magazine Uncut named and number this album at 13th in the weirdest albums of all-time and good on them for the little write up about it, I guess it’s pretty bloody weird. But I totally love it and now follows FNM’s King Fool album from 1995 into my own list of of classic albums.

What does everyone think about Mike’s solo album here and now? Do you like it as much as me? Or what or not?

Adult Themes For Voice track listing and times:

1. Wuxiapian – 2:10
2. “I Killed Him Like A Dog…And He Still Laughed” – 0:55
3. Smog – 0:44
4. The Man In The Lower Left Hand Corner Of The Photograph – 1:49
5. Robot Sex (Neon) – 0:25
6. Screams Of The Asteroid – 0:56
7. Robot Sex (B/W) – 0:17
8. Porno Holocaust – 1:01
9. Inconsolable Widows In Search Of Distraction – 3:10
10. “Hurry Up And Kill Me…I’m Cold” – 0:08
11. Man Alone In Steambath – 1:07
12. Guinea Pig 1 – 0:34
13. Guinea Pig 2 – 1:28
14. Guinea Pig 3 – 0:18
15. Guinea Pig 4 – 1:43
16. A Woman With The Skin Of The Moon – 0:40
17. A Lizard With The Skin Of Woman – 1:43
18. Catheter – 1:19
19. “Fix It So The Bruises Don’t Show” – 1:21
20. Robot Sex (Watercolors) – 0:25
21. A Ceremony Of Senses An Alibi In The Red Light District – 0:42
22. Butterfly In A Glass Maze – 2:19
23. Pajama Party Horror – 0:57
24. A Leper With The Face Of A Baby Girl – 2:39
25. The One Armed Vs. 9 Killers – 1:20
26. Pillow Biter – 2:48
27. Raped On A Bed Of Sand – 1:51
28. Violence⁵ – 2:17
29. Red Mouth Black Orgasm – 0:27
30. Wuxiapian Fantastique – 0:17
31. A Smile A Slap In The Face A Fart A Kiss On The Mouth – 0:28
32. Private Lessons On Planet Eros – 0:36
33. “Pneumonia With Complications” – 0:17
34. Orgy In Reverb (10 Kilometers Of Lust) – 4:54

All my Classic Albums posts are in that link or they’re all linked below too!

Basically the idea is write a little about each of my fave albums but I don’t know why really I titled/tagged them all as classic albums? Please feel free to leave a reply about this one or any of them or all of them all, Thank you!

5 Comments

Cristian says:

September 8, 2017 at 3:00 am

Love this album. You’re right that it never gets boring. Mike creates so many different moods and sounds on here just using his voice but without uttering a word (well, except for ‘fuck’ as you mentioned). I feel like what Mike did here was a precursor to Fantomas: if you just added guitar, bass and drums to these pieces, you’d have one of their albums. Have you heard the album he put out the year after this one, Pranzo Oltranzista? More of an instrumental album and not quite as entertaining as this one, but still pretty cool. I must revisit both.

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1. William says:
  
  September 9, 2017 at 2:17 am
  
  Yeah, yeah I with to have to revisit Fantomas sometime real soon too! I’m totally loving Dead Cross, have hear that yet?
  
  LikeLike